|  But
Zoom took the cake with its completely unrelated product placement this week,
when Siddharth Kannan and Baba Sehgal, who anchor the inane Santa Banta,
went 'Chai Piyo, Khub Jiyo' in this week's edition. The unconnected slogan, effusively
chanted by the duo quite out of context would have made no sense if one had not
spotted the Tea Board marquee that was sliding surreptitiously on the lower half
of the screen. The channels are getting their advertisers and the viewers are
not complaining. If programming looks wonky as a result of the crazily inserted
placements, who cares?
**** |
Has
the Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (committee for the abolition of superstitions)
wound up shop in India? Each week, Sony's Man Mein Hain Vishwaas takes
up 'real case studies' of people who have relied heavily on faith' for physical
and spiritual recovery, and logic be damned. To be fair, the programme has included
Hindu deities, Muslim maulvis and this week, even Jesus Christ in its pantheon
of belief. But the show is definitely not doing much to encourage scientific thought,
and promotes idol worship pretty unabashedly. Oughtn't there to be a debate on
the merits of such a show continuing its happy run on one of the better watched
channels in the country?
****
Star
Plus' Ek Chaabi Hai Pados Mein should ideally be a daily. It's too good
to be enjoyed just once a week. The show shares its theme with Mohalla Mohabbatwala
currently running on Sab, but it would be unfair to compare the two, as both are
being treated differently by the makers of each. But Chaabi is a treat to watch,
capturing the complexities of ordinary life as it does in a touchingly humorous
way.
The
rest of the cast too is competent but it is lead Varun Badola who has really come
into his element here. After the odd Star Bestsellers that he featured and excelled
in, it is now that Badola gets to exhibit his histrionics, as even Astitva could
not do for him. He is charming, sarcastic and witty and makes you wonder why deadpan
heroes become icons on TV while those like Badola continue working unsung?
I
am yet to get around to watching Kulvaddhu, the heavily marketed new Sony
show. But with the Solhah Singaars and Zaaras that I am still
trying to
digest, it might just be a while till I get down to appreciate
similar
minded shows with an open mind!
****
Couch
potato's muaaah for the week - For the writers of Ek Chaabi Pados Mein,
for a racy, incisive script and dialogues to match. It's enough to make a parched
soul shed tears of joy!
(The
views expressed here are those of the author and indiantelevision.com need not
necessarily subscribe to the same)
So,
while the Bigg Boss gang has been vigorously scrubbing the floors of the
house with Lizol disinfectant (and washing their clothes in Tide detergent), they
descended to even lower market brands this week. It's probably a diktat from above
that they mouth the name of the brand as many times as possible while the camera
zooms in on the product they are supposedly using. So, this week Amit, Rakhee
and the rest of the gang got down to the task of cleaning the kitchen burners
with a bright can of something called Easy Off Bang that removes grease stains
in a jiffy. Wow! What better way to get the message across to the housewives,
when the buxom Rakhee and even the gracious Carol and the suave Rahul all sing
the praises of the said Bang, happily grubbing their fingers in the product in
a 'real' situation. A win-win situation all round, no doubt.