Still some of the female characters in Marathi serials wear costly Saris and Gold necklaces and relax on the cozy sofas uttering repeated nonsense dialogues. Either they are ordering something to the house maid or they are discussing future of their children with their husbands. You always see them dressed up for a function, even during odd hours. Isn’t that copying the same typical Hindi TV serials, which are going on for years. Till now, Marathi serials talked about the problems faced by middle class; but now we see a contrast between the rich staying in cities and those simple living people from villages. And, you have the script changing on daily basis, according to the availability of artistes. Just check, how many times the camera moves to catch the expressions of every individual present in the frame, over any small issue. Now, instead of slow motion, they have started using this method. The best way to pass the time. This is the situation in many Marathi TV serials today.

The replacements have become so common that now the producers don’t even bother to disclose the same before the start of the episode. As a regular viewer, one should anticipate such change of artiste for a particular character. Isn’t that something like an event of kathputhli, where the operator can lift any character anytime by pulling a string and bring in another one in its place? As long as there is not much opposition, the show goes on. But, these producers forget that in the process they lose their viewer-ship. You can’t fool all the people taking them for granted.

by Ulhas Shirke © MMW