&TV : The Year Gone By… Milestones achieved by &TV

Bangalore, December 28, 2016: A channel that launched amidst much clutter in the GEC space has made its way into people’s living room with exceptional content! &TV, that had the much talked about launch last year stayed true to its promise of presenting content for the progressive and evolved masses. Let’s take a look…

Breaking stereotypes with a Heavy Weight Bahu (Badho Bahu)

While the industry defined a set standard for the ‘Indian Bahu’, &TV thought differently and    presented a very realistic approach with an unconventional love story - Badho Bahu. With this, &TV gave the viewers a peek into the life of a large sized Bahu who was accepted wholeheartedly for not just her size but her positive approach towards situations in life. What was pleasantly surprising was the onscreen Jodi of an over-sized Komal aka Basho played by Rytasha Rathore and a wrestler Iron Man of Haryana Lakha played by television’s hunk – Prince Narula. This couple is definitely breaking the predefined ‘formulae’ on the Indian Television and 2017 will only see further drama unfold.

Nations favourite Bhabi Ji! ( Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hain!)

Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hain! has struck a chord with the audience with impeccable comic timing from the lead cast and the various plots that are being explored. While the Kanpuriya neighbours – Angoori and Manmohan Tiwari; Anita and Vibhuti Narayan Mishra are busy in their day-to-day activities, unruly situations seem to knock on their door. From Angoori’s wedding to Demonetization, the show has kept up the decibels of laughter all through the year. Furthermore, the channel extended the show to Saturday as well at an 8.00 pm timeslot titled Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hai - Shanivaar Special. The Saturday special episode hosts celebrities and highlights their interactions with the moholla-wallas. From the hot couple - Bipasha Basu-Karan Grover to the Bollywood baddies Ranjit – Shakti Kapoor, the Bhojpuri superstar – Ravi Kishen to musicians – Alka Yagnik and Kumar Sanu… the show has seen celebrities taking the comedy a few notches higher.

A Hoshiyar Move! (Hoshiyar…Sahi Waqt, Sahi Kadam)

&TV ends the year with the launch of a new crime series titled Hoshiyar… Sahi Waqt, Sahi Kadam highlighting that a criminal doesn’t always follow a specific description or a pattern. It can be anyone from amongst us. So when the criminal can be amongst us, then the saviour can be amongst us too!

While most shows focus on how a crime was plotted and analyses the case once the crime has taken place, Hoshiyar emphasises on the importance of identifying a criminal activity and raising an alarm at the right time! A small step towards being alert, vigilant and taking due action in the nick of time can save a life and prevent a heinous crime from taking place.

And presenting this unique episodic series is none other than the suave and outspoken Mohnish Bahl as the sutradhaar who makes his comeback on television with this show.

 Reality Rockstars! (The Voice 1 & 2, The Voice Kids and So You Think You Can Dance) 

2016 saw the extension of an exceptional singing reality show – The Voice on &TV with the kids’  version. The platform gave a boost to the talent with the concept of Blind Auditions wherein the contestants were judged on the basis of their vocal talent alone. Furthermore, the platform eliminated the concept of ‘judges’ and introduced the concept of ‘coaches’. The selected contestants were seen being coached by the likes of Shaan, Shekhar Ravjiani and Neeti Mohan. Post the Voice India Kids, the second season with the adults was kickstarted with The Voice India – S2 which saw Shaan, Neeti Mohan, Salim Merchant and Benny Dayal come together as coaches.

The international format of dancing reality was introduced on Indian television – So You Think  You Can Dance which brought together Madhuri Dixit, Terence Lewis and Bosco. The Nation witnessed an epic battle of Street and Stage style for the very first time on Indian Television. The show saw contestants being challenged to master several dance style like Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Animation, Latin, Liquid, Tutting, Robotting, Ballroom, Lyrical Contemporary, Flamenco etc.

Echoes of a legendary Tussle - Sisters, Singers or Rivals! (Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan Hai)

Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan Hai, a strong-willed women of the Gaikwad family, received critical acclaim not just for the story line but for the realistic performance as well. This show saw the best in the industry come together at the helm of music. The show brought forth a beautiful story about two sisters and their bitter sweet relationship that turns into rivalry. This was the story of Kalyani and Ketki, for whom music meant the world, but due to unfortunate circumstances, music, that was once a shared passion, became the sole reason for setting them apart and making them who they are. The story was told across three generations and traced the journey of the two sisters from the beautiful town of Nagthane to Mumbai – the city of dreams! The character of Kalyani was portrayed by child actor Jannat Zubair followed by Amrita Rao and Deepti Naval whereas the character of Kalyani saw child actor Mehnaz charm the audience with her innocence followed by Aditi Vasudev and Zarina Wahab. Pallavi Joshi made a comeback to television as the strong-willed mother. The show also saw Ejaz Khan, Aditya Redij, Rituraaj, amongst many others.

Daughters’ might on Television (Waaris and Ganga)

Gangaa_post leapWaarisA progressive show like Waaris traced the journey of a girl whose identity was hidden by her  own mother. This girl was brought up as a boy under adverse circumstances. At a time when we speak about gender equality, gender bias is on the rampant. The journey of this girl Manu is metaphorical of the societal obsession with having boys as the rightful heirs. However, this girl Manu will prove this wrong and fight for her rightful position in the society!

Gangaa the story of a feisty, self-respecting child widow brought to light the little beings zest for life and the will to survive. Child actor Ruhana Khanna made a place for herself in people’s hearts and post leap, returned to the show as a grown-up Gangaa’s daughter – Krishna, only on public demand!

Queens Hain HumThe Sassy Women of Today (Queens Hai Hum)

Queens Hain Hum saw an up-close and a bold side of women who not are not afraid to have fun  along with managing their household duties, their careers and their respective families. Woman with an opinion – that’s the woman of today and that’s what this show is all about!

Undying faith in Gods Divinity (Santoshi Maa) 

Santoshi Maa This socio-mytho Santoshi Maa that started on a pious note continued to enthral the audience with newer twists in the tale. The year saw the comeback of the evil Goddess of Jealousy – Paulomi in Santoshi’s life. The role earlier essayed by Sayantani Ghosh changed hands and Debina Ghosh took the character further in a new avatar. The show also extended the learnings about goodness and contentment through special segments that were aired for 16 Fridays hosted by the veteran actress Poonam Dhillon.

The year also saw some of the shows reach their logical end – Tere Bin, Begusarai, Adhuri Kahani Humari, Kahani Hamari..Dil, Dosti, Deewanepan ki, Dilliwali Thakur Girls, Yeh Kaha Aa Gaye Hum