Opinion Tele scope: Marathon PM

His hectic schedule makes it difficult for us to keep up with him — or anyone else

Shailaja Bajpai

November 27, 2014 12:20 AM IST First published on: Nov 27, 2014 at 12:20 AM IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the 18th summit of the SAARC in Katmandu, Nepal. (Source: PTI photo)

We have a bone to pick with the prime minister. In the last six months, Narendra Modi has kept everyone — including humble television critics and viewers — so busy with his hectic cross-country, cross-continent marathon that we’re unable to keep up with anyone or anything else. In the last week, he seemed to travel directly from Fiji to Jharkhand before zipping across to Jammu and Kashmir for campaigning, make a stopover in New Delhi to plot the winter parliamentary session (began on Monday), before winging his way to Kathmandu for the Saarc meeting. See?

Even when we were not following him around, television news ensured we did not miss Modi for long. Thus, there were opinion polls across channels on the performance of his government, six months on. Predictably, they were complimentary: for instance, the India TV
C-Voter poll found that the public wholeheartedly approved of the prime minister’s foreign affairs and his government’s hands off Pakistan. Up to 80 per cent felt that his government worked faster than the previous one, which comes as no surprise, since the PM is India’s marathon man.

If the PM is away, others will play. Saw the Trinamool Congress (TMC), perhaps stuck in a time warp, mistakenly believe this was the monsoon rather than the winter session of Parliament and go armed for a rain dance. What else can explain their umbrella sit-in in Parliament?

With a busybee PM, we have missed out on a few interesting developments elsewhere on TV. We have missed Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh (Life OK), which began in October. But we did catch up with it this week and just as well. For beginners, it marks the TV debut of actress Sonali Bendre. More than that, it’s a marked departure from the usual soaps on offer. Sonali plays Shobha, married to Samarth (Harsh Chhaya), who, she discovers, has been unfaithful to her. This causes a rift between them and Shobha decides to be her own woman. She takes up a job with Vikram Ahuja (Apurva Agnihotri) and when we joined the show, she was being forced out of his employment until Vikram discovers that another employee and a former employee had been plotting her downfall. The episode ended with Shobha delivering the former employee a resounding slap.

Not your average prime time Hindi serial. Much of the action is in an office, the wife strikes out on her own despite maternal responsibilities and, for a change, characters dress and speak like real people. The women are not weighed down by cosmetics, jewels, lehengas or heavily embroidered sarees. Also, the camera does not cartwheel with a gymnast’s agility.

All this is worth pointing out, since Ekta Kapoor as producer has curbed her instinct for melodramatic flourishes. The plot is interesting — urban, contemporary — and the cast led by Bendre acts more or less in character. Good to see.

Pukaar — Call for the Hero (Life OK) is also good to see, even though it looks more like a Bollywood film than a TV serial. It stars Rannvijay (MTV Roadies fame) as Rajvir, an armyman estranged from his father (Raj Babbar in his TV debut) but devoted to his family as he looks for his brother Rahul, who has been kidnapped. Like Anil Kapoor’s 24 and the Amitabh Bachchan starrrer Yudh, Mumbai is a leading character in the 50-minute episodes. Its dark, brooding neighbourhoods, lit up empty streets lend it an eerie glow, inviting crime.

And violence. Plenty of that as Rannvijay encounters the mafia mob in his home and then in an abandoned building, while searching for clues to his whereabouts. He takes on four or five of them at a time and, in typical Bollywood style, beats them to pulp. The don, Rastogi (what is it with names starting with the letter R?) is another Bollywood stereotype.

Pukaar attempts to challenge television entertainment’s ruling soap culture. The earlier efforts did not hit the sweet spot, with viewers accustomed to costume dramas. Need to see if this one fares better. But even if it doesn’t, it deserves to be applauded. Taken together, shows like 24, Yudh, Pukaar, Airlines, Everest, Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh are trying to change what’s been the staple in Hindi TV entertainment. We live and watch in interesting times.

shailaja.bajpai@expressindia.com