TELE BUZZ

Aprajita’s featurettes for MIFF ’98
Indian Snapshots, five-minute fillers on STAR, are so very engrossing that even the compulsive channel surfers are forced to forfiet their sporting pleasure in lieu of these infotainment packets. Not surprising then, Indian Snapshots found a place at the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) for documentary, short and animation films. Two of films, which she has produced, scripted and directed, were selected for the Panorama section of the prestigious festival. Victoria : A Halting Ride, depicted the story and status of the traditional horse carriages that are still found running on the Mumbai streets and The Making Of The Tricolour, which details the manufacturing process of our national flag. We always knew there was more to pretty woman Aprajita than hosting inane TV shows, and she hasn’t failed us.

Tamil Aahat
B P Singh, the maker of the popular spine-chiller, Aahat on Sony sure has a tough job keeping the viewers’ curiosity all fired up week after week. And understandably, he’s gotten into the habit of springing new horrors on the viewers with every episode. But whatever possessed the Aahat actors last week that they started mouthing the dialogue in chaste Tamil? For a while die-hard fans thought that their fave director was upto some new tricks, but when a crazy looking lady in a white saree suddenly broke into Tamil too, they sat back scratching their heads in bewilderment. Aahat in Tamil, that was sure the horror of horrors for them! After all nobody wants to miss out on a single word of the horror show. Will Mr Singh rap the Sony guys to keep a check on their linguistic frequency please?

Studio hoppers
That’s what the politicians of the country were reduced to during the general elections. With hordes of election specials on various channels, netas were merrily hopping from one TV studio to another. When asked why she wasn’t at the party meeting, a visibly elated Najma Heptullah admitted unabashedly that she had given priority to a television encounter. Likewise Rajesh Pilot, whom the cameras spotted outside the Congress HQ, while the rest of the Congress men were busy conferring with the Party President. Obviously Mr Pilot obeys the press more than the president, these days. There were other indefatigable politicos who did the tour of the studios round the clock, facing volleys of questions from psephologists and experts. If only they carried on with their duties with the same enthusiasm!

Not too strict, not too liberal
Manish Goswami’s latest soap, Ashirwad seems to be a lesson in parenting. It is the tale of two small town friends who make it big in the city. Both of them have a daughter each. One brings up his daughter as per his orthodox values. He’s a stern, conservative papa. While the other gives his daughter all the freedom in the world and she grows into a liberated miss. In due course the girls get married. But their married lives are far from happy. The story goes on, but the morale is easy to draw — there can be no extremes in parenting. You have to take the middle path. Sort’a iron hand in a kid-glove.

Tickling the funny bone
That’s what aapli Renuka Shahane seems to be upto these days. She’s doing yet another comedy serial, Chhoti Chhoti Baaten Hain Yeh. Her disastrous attempt at comedy in Mrs Madhuri Dixit obiviously hasn’t put her off laugh-riots. Try she will, till she suceeds. In this serial she is paired opposite Mahesh Thakur. They are a couple married for eight long years. They plan to take the saat pheras all over again on their eighth wedding anniversary for the wedding album, a memento that eluded them on the real D-Day, because the photographer forgot to load his camera then. They are all set to play the coy dulhan and the nervous dulha. The only difference being that this time their children are also a witness to the shaadi.

Baraatis and gaana bajaana
Family dos aren’t the same since the Rajashree bonanzas Maine Pyar Kiya and Hum Aapke Hain Koun hit the theatres. It has become mandatory to have large family gatherings replete with gaana bajaana. And if the silver screen happenings have triggered off a trend in real life, it has also a sudden impact on the small screen. How else do you account for Zee’s brand new musical game show, Ladakiwale Ladakewale, which has two teams viz. the baraatis or the ladakewale and the ladkiwale? And guess what the prize is. If the ladkewale win, they walk away with the dulhaniya and if the brides’ team wins, they get to keep the groom as ghar jamai. Hosted by supermodel Geeta Gore and Daboo Malik (yeah, Anu’s chhota bhai), stay tuned in Zee for this musical hungama, every Thursday at 7.30 pm.

Gandhiji, Priya and Raza
Ben Kingslay did it, Annu Kapoor did it , Rajit Kapoor did it and Naseeruddin did it too. Now it’s Subodh’s turn to sport khadi, round rimmed specs and a tonsured look . He plays the father of the nation in Sattee Shourie’s daily afternoon soap, Yug. For a technician turned actor this no doubt is the role- of- a- lifetime. The serial is set against the backdrop of the freedom struggle and depicts Gandhi’s visit to famine struck Bengal, with the Mahatma trying to provide succour to the victims.

In a bid to breathe new life into the serial, of late Ms Shourie has incorporated Priya Tendulkar and Raza Murad into the star cast. Whether the triumerverate of Gandhiji, Priya and Raza will bouy the TRPs remains to be seen.

Made in the USA
Sunil Hali, a non-residen-Indian has produced a soap entitled, Mausam. Shot entirely in the US, it depicts the life of South-Asians there. The plot of the serial touches on the inter-racial marital conflicts. Mausam has a mixed cast comprising South Asian immigrants and the mainstream American artistes - Karen Ashey and Diana Roberts from the daytime soaps in US alongside Yasser Arif, the grand-nephew of the late filmmaker Kamaal Amrohi. The soap is aired every Tuesday at 8 pm on DD Metro.