Telly goes back in time

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Sanjay Leela Bhansali with the cast of Saraswatichandra

Bahut saal pehle ki baat hai, Gujarat mein Govandhanram Madhavaram Tripathi namak ek vakil the. Jab woh “me lord”, “mere kabil dost” kehte-kehte thak gaye, and daleelon, takreeron se bore ho gaye, toh Tripathiji took voluntary retirement and devoted 15 years of his life to writing one story.

This was no mamooli story. Saraswatichandra, whose first part appeared in 1887, was a four-part love story jiski layers, complications and twists mein Yash Chopraji could have spent a lifetime and the Barjatyas could have been gainfully employed forever, releasing one shaadi video every Diwali. But none dared. Because the novel is an epic and it has a sad ending. Also, its hero, Saraswatichandra, is given to needless whinging and often skulks out of the story, leaving pyaari Kumud all dukhi-dukhi. So it’s appropriate that Sanjay Leela Bhansali, he of grand designs, solemn romances and teary endings, has decided to adapt the novel. That’s what he claims at least, when credits for his Saraswatichandra (Star Plus) roll. But judging by the first few episodes, it seems that he has not adapted the novel, but the story of the 1968 black and white film, also titled Saraswatichandra, starring Nutan and and a very lallu type of hero, one Manish. I mostly remember that film for its extraordinary soundtrack – Phool tumhein bheja hai khat mein, Chandan sa badan, Chod de saari duniya kisi ke liye, and, of course, O main toh bhool chali babul ka desh...
Now cut to Bhansali’s TV offering which is about Saraswatichandra and his chaddi-buddi Vidyachatur’s daughter Kumud Sundari. Bhansali hopes that he will beat Ekta Kapoor’s 1,833 episodes of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi..., and his serial will go on for 2,000 episodes. To that I say, Bhansaliji, in your dreams. Yeh TV hai janab, aapki khala ka ghar nahin. Yahan bade-bade aaye, aur rote-rote chale gaye. Aapke lavish sets pe camera ek episode tak gorgeous girl ko caress karta reh jayenge, aur aapka rival show TRPs le jayega. Why? Because wahan, bahu ne saas ki sari press karte-karte jala-di, while you are still counting the dew drops on the heroine’s left cheek.
Yet, I have to say that apart from the very slow beginning of his show, I liked the sets, the clothes and the big-big bindis on simpering Gujarati aunties.
The story has been given a modern setting. This, unfortunately, has turned all the characters into strange beings who live in our world but talk like they are visitors from the hoary past. There’s also been an upgrade of venue — Lakshminandan lives in Dubai with his second wife Ghuman and her sauteli aulad Saraswatichandra. Abhi tak toh mujhe sirf yeh character TV ke layak laga — Ghuman, played with chudail-like perfection by Monica Bedi. But then, Bediji aur Dubai ka toh purana yarana hai.