REFRESHED Star Plus gets BOLDER

Apparently inspired and based on the heart-wrenching story of teenage sportswoman Ruchika Girhotra who was driven to death by the powerful ex-senior police officer S P S Rathore,Kaali is a bold story of a teenage girl who becomes victim of sexual harassment at the hands of a powerful mafia and powerbroker K Thakraal. According to Gaurav Banerjee,Star Indias Vice-President,Content Strategy,Kaali… will take television beyond drama and expose viewers to the trials and tribulations of Indian women who are increasingly being subjected to sexual harassment. Denying that it is inspired or based on the Ruchika-Rathore case,Gaurav says the show is not based on any real-life incident but is inspired by what millions of girls in India face in their day-to-day lives. The story is purely fictitious, he adds.

But the similarity with Ruchikas case cant be missed. Kaali depicts the story of a north Indian small-town teenage girl,Rachna,who dreams of becoming a badminton star. However,her life is shattered when she is subjected to sexual harassment by Thakraal. He threatens her very existence but Rachna shows courage and determination to fight back. The show explores whether Rachna will have the strength to become a courageous woman,a modern Kaali to fight evil. The story is a classic fight between good and evil. Any similarity with a real-life case is incidental as such cases are fairly common, clarifies Nachiket Pantvaidya,managing director,Fox Star Studio India,which is producing the show.

Swati Kapoor plays the 15-year-old girl Rachna while Ashutosh Rana essays the powerful Thakraal. Veteran television and film actor Arif Zakaria plays Rachnas single parent,Virendra Mehta,and another newcomer Neha Sharma plays Rachnas cousin and best friend Anu. Sonali Kulkarni plays Rachnas deceased mother,who appears in flashbacks. Having done a daily before for Star One,Swati is not an absolute newcomer. But Kaali is a big break for her. Rachna is a positive and sunshine girl. She wants to be Indias best badminton player. But Thakraal makes her life miserable, says Swati. While working with senior actors is an awesome and great learning experience for her,Swati admits that the role is difficult.

It is a story of abject middle-class fear of reputation and shame. But how one incident traumatises and transforms the passive family to fight the evil force is the shows positive aspect, says Arif,who is returning to television after six years. He adds further,The family goes through humiliation. Thakraal manipulates the law but doesnt escape confrontation. Like Arif,Ashutosh is also making a comeback to television fiction after more than a decade and hopes to make an impact with his power-packed role. Thakraal is a powerful man. He gets what he wants, says Ashutosh. What he liked about Kaali is that it is a contemporary fight between good and evil. The issue it touches upon is very relevant and concerns women who are the main audience of general entertainment channels, he reasons. Another aspect of the show that he likes is that it brings a national level issue into living rooms. All the daily soaps bring kitchen politics into living rooms. But Kaali deals with sexual politics and harassment of women,which has become a national issue now, he adds.

Both Nachiket and Gaurav admit that Kaali is a bold show. Says Gaurav,The treatment will be bold and thought-provoking. Nachiket is hoping that the sticky and popular Pratigya will help Kaali get viewers at late night. Arif also admits that the show can disturb viewers comfort-zone. People may get wary of content. But I hope they watch it because it sends out a positive message, he says. The aim behind doing the show,according to Gaurav,is to engage viewers with meaningful programming and create awareness about issues related to the welfare of women.