Break ke baad...

No wonder TV stars are happily declaring in interviews 'milte hain break ke baad!'

The husband is thrilled beyond measure. I am a fan of TV soaps but even I cannot take marathon re-runs. And so, he gets to lord over the remote. And I get withdrawal symptoms. Thanks to the stand-off between television producers and workers, the soap factory has lost all its bubbles and channels are desperately regurgitating old stuff with more desperate titles like ‘ab tak ka safar’ ‘jodi special’ ‘three-hour bonanza’ and the like. Husbands being happy is expected but the strike has come as an unexpected pleasure to the overworked television stars. Many of them have taken this opportunity to go on a much-deserved holiday. Daily soap stars have some of the toughest working schedules in the entertainment industry. Even if they are doing exceedingly well, TV stars have a blink-and-you-miss shelf life. Take the case of Ronit Roy. Once all over Star Plus thanks to plum roles in Kasauti Zindagi Kay and Kyunki..., both of which have gone off air, today he is spotted only occasionally as a judge in reality shows. And considering that he is one of Ekta’s ‘pets’, he will have to sit out and hope she plays guardian angel again. There’s crushing work pressure and intense competition in this field as even a slight slackening can result in the character being bumped off or cosmetic surgery-ed! Parul Chauhan (Ragini of Bidaai) once said in an interview that after the top-rated soap became a one-hour daily, she was shooting continuously from 7 in the morning to two in the night. Young Anjali Abrol (Rani of Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat) broke down during Nach Baliye 4 and whispered between sobs that her performance was not up to the mark because she had absolutely no time for dance rehearsals amidst her 20-hour shooting schedules. And Anjali’s only 17! Sara Khan, who plays the pretty Sadhna in Bidaai is another 18-year-old who was hospitalised with weakness because of excessive work and no rest. She is said to have gone to the sets straight from the hospital to shoot her portions and apparently trooped right back to the sick bed. Whew! No wonder TV stars are happily declaring in interviews ‘milte hain break ke baad!’