Imlie is one of the top Hindi shows on Indian television which has also been ruling the TRP charts for a long time now. Recently, the entire cast of the show was changed after a leap in the plot. Apart from this, Ashish Shrivastav, who previously helmed several famous shows including Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii, Kasam Se, Bandini and Pyar Ka Dard Hai Meetha Meetha Pyara Pyara among others, is now directing Imlie.
In a recent interview with News18 Showsha, Ashish was asked if television content has become regressive over the years. To this, the director explained that even though the content has changed drastically, it is primarily because of the audience only.
“There’s a difference in content today, but it is because of the audience. Sometimes, makers try to bring a new or different show but when the audience does not respond well, the channel or producers have to switch back to what works,” he said.
When asked if there is a difference in how actors used to work at the time of Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii in comparison to today’s generation of actors, the director said that actors are more devoted to work now. “Initially, when we started Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, the actors were good but they became much bigger than the show. With time, they realised that whatever they were, it was because of the show only. In the current scenario, even though actors are highly paid, they value shows. It was less during 2010 to 2015. Actors today are devoted to work because they know that whatever they are, are because of the shows. They understand this. It is good for the production house and for shows too,” he told us.
Does this mean that actors used to consider themselves bigger than the shows back in the early 2000s? The director replied negatively and explained that he just feels that actors are more ‘grounded’ today. “No, this is not exactly what I mean. Earlier shows used to run for 10-12 years. Therefore, with time, they used to become bigger than the shows. Now, shows run for hardly 4 or 6 months and so, everyone is grounded at work. Back then, they used to be like, ‘I will not say this’, ‘I will not stand like this’. It was a lot earlier but now it is not the case,” he added.
But why is it that shows do not run for a very long time today? Srivastava explained that it is primarily because a lot of content is also available on OTT platforms. Besides this, he also explained how difficult it is to bring something new and claimed that all shows have more-or-less similar characterisation and plots. He cited Rupali Ganguly starrer Anupamaa’s example and alleged that it is very much like Sakshi Tanwar’s popular show Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii. The director added that Sakshi had already done what Anupamaa is doing today.
“Even in Anupamaa, they (makers) initially presented a story of a mother and that’s how they connected with the audience. If you see the larger picture, you have already watched all of this in Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii. Sakshi Tanwar had already done everything that Anupamaa is doing today. After a point, all shows have similar plots. How long can you run such shows? Therefore after one or two years, even writers have less to tell. These are also the same writers who have written earlier shows too. Therefore, they keep re-writing a similar track,” the director shared.
“I am not saying Anupamaa and Kahaani are similar, their story tracks are similar. Sakshi Tanwar and Anupamaa are two ladies who are always standing up for their families. Characterisation is more or less the same,” the Imlie director added.
Srivastav also opened up about his competition with Anupamaa and shared that it motivates them to perform better. “If there will be no competition, we will never try to do good or better than the other shows. It is good to have healthy competition. It keeps you motivated,” he concluded.
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