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Irreverence
comes as a breath of fresh air at a time when television
is bending backwards to deify the Indian housewife. Tusli
and Parvati (who by the way are coming together on Koffee
With Karan very soon) continue to be super-icons. Prerna
on Kasauti Zindagi Kay ran into her old flame Anurag
while holidaying with her husband Mr Bajaj. As luck (and
the creatively severely restricted scriptwriter) would have
it, both the men landed up in the same hotel room, as Prerna
was caught in- between the male gaze and red fluttering
curtain (in-sync with her unbelievable false eyelashes).
In fact coincidences have become a way of life on Kasauti.
Anurag ran into his estranged daughter Sneha in a peculiar
situation. He accused the innocent girl of shoplifting,
got her slapped around at the police station and then bit
his tongue when he realized his mistake.
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Anurag is like one of those incredibly daft game-show hosts who
insist on cracking sexist/scatological jokes because they know
the contestants can't afford to squirm, let alone object. They
are supposed to have fun at any cost, you see.
****
Mandira
Bedi who loves to play games, be it cricket or any other, now
hosts a game show on Sahara every evening. I haven't really been
able to figure out what this game show entails, except that strange
people from all over the country are supposed to phone in and
answer some strange questions.
On
Thursday there was a mother and daughter from a far-off place
(can't recollect the name but according to the squealing anchor,
the milk-cake there is to die for) where asked to name the film
for which Bhanu Athaiya got an Oscar.
"Er,
what's the prize?" the daughter asked.
"A
trip to Manali," chirped Bedi.
"We
don't want to go to Manali! Can we have something else?"
Asked the anxious contestant.
Manali it was….and the answer? "Mother India!"
Came the girl.
I guess one way to avoid a reluctant trip is to give out wrong
information.
****
While
all the women on TV, from Pooja on Life Ho To Aisi to Mandira
Bedi on Sahara's game show adhere to the status quo, I was thrilled
to bits to see a thoroughly capricious woman on Karan Johar's
show.
Notch
up a winner with Sushmita Sen who was quite simply, irresistible
on Koffee with Karan. Dressed in a sari she careened from
coquettish confidence to fey iconoclasm fascinating both the men
on the show. Sanjay Dutt was as usual quiet and thoroughly grateful
and embarrassed when a string of stunningly beautiful women from
Kareena Kapoor to Mallika Sherawat paraded on the video-monitor
to say what they thought of Mr Dutt. (Censored version, I'm sure).
We also had the guys saying the same about Ms Sen.
Some of the dialogues on the show were hilarious. Karan to Dutt,
"What's your art of living?"
"It's
the art of giving," says Sanjay Dutt.
"Could
you EXPAND on that?"
This
was followed by loud chortles by Sen. …Fun all the way, and
quite a between-the-lines experience worthy of being seen twice
over to be fully understood.
I must say Ms Sen and Mr Dutt made a terrific couple. Will someone
please cast them together pronto?
****
The
Filmfare awards on Sony threw forward many memorable moments.
Dev Anand was incredulous while announcing the 'Best Villain'.
"Where's
your trophy?!" the evergreen Anand wondered, clutching on
to his own 'The Golden Glory Viewers' Choice Award' (an honour
that he shared with Rekha) when Priyanka Chopra waltzed seductively
up to the stage.
Alas Priyanka's trophy was nowhere to be seen. She handled the
delay with grace. "Aisa hota hai," she laughed when
I spoke to her after the show. "It's all part of such an
event. And it's up to the winners to behave like winners in spite
of glitches."
Unfortunately
the evening's compere Saif Ali Khan (a disaster without his fellow-anchor
of two years Shah Rukh Khan) showed no grace when he was called
on stage by Dev Saab to collect his trophy for 'Best Actor In
A Comic Role' in Hum Tum.
Saif snatched Dev Saab's trophy made his pre-rehearsed speech
about family values and filial feelings (a guilt trip, traceable
to his recent marital breakup).
Other major goof-ups included the event's new eleventh-hour sponsor
asking the winner for art direction (Sabu Cyril) if he paints
on canvas or is he associated with cinema. And when Saif asked
Mr Swarup to say a few words, the sponsor wondered if he was summoned
to speak or give an award.
A lack of co-ordination between the anchors and the celebrities
couldn't take away from the nostalgia glamour and star appeal
of the evening. Rani Mukherjee (once again, the recipient of two
awards for Hum Tum and Yuva), Priyanka Chopra and
Sonu Nigam paid elaborate song-and-dance tributes to the stars
and music over the decades.
Once again the Bachchans -Amitabh and Abhishek- and Shah Rukh
Khan dazzled at the Filmfare awards. Once again they proved they
have no peers. When Abhishek won the award for best supporting
actor in Yuva it took him quite a while to reach the stage. The
volume of congratulations from friends (including Amar Singh and
Anil Ambani) and fans proved how popular the junior Bachchan has
become in the last one year.
Abhishek dragged his father on stage and gave his award to his
father saying, "As I believe there can be no actor better
than my father this award belongs to him." The senior Bachchan
promptly returned the recognition saying it's a tradition to give
the son whatever the father earns in life.
Great showmanship, topped by Shah Rukh Khan's performance of cinematic
romance over the years, from Rajesh Khanna singing Roop tera mastana
to Sharmila Tagore in Aradhana to , ahem ahem, Shah Rukh singing
Ladki badi anjani to Kajol in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai…
Shah Rukh enacted all of them with habitual élan. What's
more all the original screen queens , from Vyjanthimala and Sharmila
Tagore to Zeenat Aman, Jaya Prada and Rekha, to Rani Mukherjee
and Preity Zinta joined Shah Rukh for this astonishing piece of
on-stage virtuosity….truly the highlight of the evening.
Khan was rewarded with two awards both richly deserved. The best
actor award went to Khan for Swades. When he received Filmfare's
Power Award Khan said real power was Amitabh Bachchan's performance
in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Black.
(The views
expressed here are those of the author and indiantelevision.com
need not necessarily subscribe to the same)
Sony's
Batliwala House No 43 is a takeoff on the British chatcom
show The Kumars at No. 42. Unlike the other series this one
neither rocks nor rolls. It just growls with a guttural inanity.
