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"As of now, we are India's No 1 weekly in the Hindi speaking
markets. In the 9 pm band, comprising Kehta Hai Dil, Sanjeevani,
Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand, we are clearly the leader. We are
also ahead of Sony's Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahi and Kkusum,"
Miditech's producer Nikhil Alva offered.
While the show might have an air force back drop, the real reason
why the show is doing well, according to the makers, is the central
character Monica. "In fact, we have this punch line 'Hamari
Monica Jassi Jaissi bilkul nahi' (Our Monica is not like Jassi at
all)," joked Alva.
"Thursday is a competitive slot. Most of the weeklies end
the week on Thursday, so it is wasn't the most conducive spot for
the show. We have successfully fended the competition in that slot.
Be it against Jassi.. . or the movie premiers. Our target
audience belongs to 14+ brackets, both male and female. Somebody
who is not interested in the family dramas, which is same as that
of Jassi...," Alva offered.
Despite the female protagonist, the show has a lot of aspirational
value. So when the show, during its early stages, digressed on to
a family track, the ratings dipped. "It was a bad judgment
on our as well as the channel's part. But the mistake was immediately
rectified and we have been in the top 10 shows on Star Plus ever
since," insisted Alva.
What, according to the makers is the high point of the show is
its theme, approach and most importantly, the characters.
"Monica's character is such that the audience can empathise
with. She is a bold woman in a man's world. While she has her feminine
side (she is every inch the ideal daughter), she is also driven
by her mission so much so that she won't hesitate to kill someone
if the need arises. Meanwhile, Sanjana's character is unlike any
vamp that you see on the telly today. She is shown to be a school
teacher, someone with a soft side. But despite that she is a ruthless
spy. She has hers reasons to act the way she does. It is all about
her love for her country, mission and the things that have happen
to her in the past," explains Alva.
While it is likely that Sanjana's character will be exposed in
the show and the makers might decide to introduce another negative
character. One character that is going to make his entry back onto
the series is that of Karan, played by Anuj Saxena. Playing on topical
issues, Karan will be shown as a PoW, who makes a daring escape
from the enemy dungeons.
"Despite the channel not as keen on the publicity and the
promotional blitz, but the topical plot around espionage and the
Indo-Pak milieu have received great feedback," Alva exhulted.
Interestingly, the high point of the show has been the episode
where the central character Monica was behind enemy lines. "We
showed a 15-minute chase sequence, which traditionally no one would
believe works. But it has given us 13.8-14 TRP rating," gloated
Alva.
But is there any likelihood that Monica might go the family way
ever? "Highly unlikely," says Alva. Maybe that's for the
best then.
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