His magic continues

On a roll
Swapnil Joshi is all set to play Vinay Chand,the protagonist of Gujarati humorist and wirter Shahbuddin Rathod’s works in SAB TV’s new serial Shahbuddin Rathod Ki Rangeen Duniya. When contacted,Swapnil confirmed that he is playing the role but did not divulge more details. Swapnil in the past has played Krishna and Kush but this is the first time that he will be playing a character based in social literature. Swapnil’s streak of comedy was discovered when he did Comedy Circus on Sony and last emerged as the winner in Comedy Circus Mahasangram. Currently he has teamed up Ali Asgar,the winner of the first Comedy Circus,in the latest edition of the same show. “This is the first time the channel has done away with a professional stand-up artiste and paired two actors,” smiles Swapnil who is also judging the Marathi laughter show Phoo Bai Phoo with Nirmiti Sawant on Zee Marathi. He,however,is most excited about his upcoming film Mumbai Pune Mumbai which according to him is the first candyfloss love story in Marathi. “What is unique about the film is it has only two characters,” informs Swapnil who is paried with Mukta Barve. The film will hit theatres on June 11.

Yamaha dream ride
This one is for bikers and bike afficianados. Just after MTV aired Stunt Mania,which had contestants performing stunts on bikes,comes UTV Bindass’ Yamaha Dreamride,which ropes in couples for a thrilling and dangerous ride. It will have some fiery tasks like ‘Fire n Ice’ where the girl’s feet will be wrapped in ice and her partner has to jump through fire to reach her. It is being positioned as a reality show set to redefine the adventure-reality-show-space.Says Nikhil Gandhi,Business Head,Bindass,“Yamaha is launching a new bike and they came to us with the proposition of a dream ride. We created a concept of reality show involving boys and girls that connects with the youth and will also communicate about the product.” The show has zeroed in on seven couples who will compete for the brand new bike. Interestingly the show is being aired at 10 pm and will comprise 10 episodes shot over 12 days. According to Nikhil,it is an attempt to create a new time band.

Thoda hai… replaces Swarg.. on Colors
Rose Movies’ Thoda Hai Bas Thode Ki Zaroorat Hai is finally ready to take-off on Colors. The serial,which as we had mentioned earlier was planned for the noon slot but later being considered for primetime as the channel was happy with the way it shaped up. Also,the afternoon band Sanjhi Dopaharis not doing that well However,they were waiting for a slot. Now,with Swarg Mata Pitah Charanon Mein going off air the channel has slotted it at 7.30 pm. However,producer Goldie Behl denies any knowledge of it being made for the afternoon slot. “My job was to make the show,slotting it is entirely the channel’s call,” he says. The show,incidentally was conceived by Goldie when he visited his wife Sonali’s parents house in Shivaji Park,Mumbai. He took his son for a walk in the park alongwith his brother-in-law and his two children. “Since I am a Punjabi and my wife is a Maharastrian,I was fascinated by the amalgamation of different communities that reside in the central suburb. People there are warm and endearing and this despite living in a urban set-up,” he smiles. His sneak peek into the lives of Maharastrians courtesy his in-laws inspired him to base the show in a Marathi household. “I find Maharastrians very practical and pragmatic. They are culturally strong and at the same time progressive and liberated. I have tried to bring these elements into the show,” informs Goldie. True enough,the protagonist of the show Mugdha is shown to be a housewife while her ma-in-law is a working woman. Their relationship too is shown to be warm and endearing unlike usual saas-bahu sagas. “It’s a realistic drama beacuse like films,TV too is becoming real these days,” says Goldie.