Aap Ki Kachehri, Kiran Ke Saath (Star Plus, Mon - Thu, 10:30 pm)
Rating 2 STARS out of 5
What’s it about? India’s first female police officer and Magsaysay Award winner Kiran Bedi has donned a new garb —that of a judge, in a televised people’s court. Unlike Rajat Kapoor’s famous Aap Ki Adalat, Aap Ki Kachehri does not have a host, with the blessings of the people, subjecting a public personality to the third degree. Here, the people take centre-stage as they bring their disputes before Bedi who plays the mediator and arbitrator. The show also discusses the Indian citizen’s rights and the laws of the land and promotes a better understanding of how our legal system works.
Who’s in it? Bedi, the Supercop is now poised to be Bedi, the Solon. The plaintiffs and the defendants are ordinary people who, engaged in domestic disputes, seek her intervention. Bedi’s years of experience as a police officer and her thorough understanding of the Indian constitution and its laws help her mediate. While the promos and posters of the show have Bedi shaking a highly rebuking finger at the world, on the show, she’s much less intimidating. Even as she sits on a high chair, the way she speaks to those before her, is not in the least condescending, nor does she raise her voice.
What’s hot? Many people probably expected this show to be a shriller version of Aap Ki Adalat. It should come as a relief that the similarities between the two shows end at the name. While the former was an unprecedented exercise in populism on television, the latter is more of a public settling of disputes. Bedi hosts the show with a firm hand and is fair enough to listen to both sides of the argument. Also, at the end of each episode, there is an explanation of the laws relevant to the case dealt with in that particular episode. What’s not? Of late, viewers have been complaining of reality show fatigue. This is yet another reality show and one wonders if people will be interested in watching strangers was their dirty linen in public. Of course, one must never discount the voyeuristic instincts of the public and that raises an important question - is this yet another attempt at catering to those instincts? The opening track is cheesy at best, what with staged scenarios and a ‘feel-good’ song thrown in for good measure. Also, since every dispute is resolved in one episode, with all the parties accepting the proposed solution, one wonders how many of these solutions will actually last and whether the parties involved will give it their best shot. Ideally, there should be a follow-up on each case and we can only wait and watch to see if that happens.
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