Zee TV to launch a 'saas-bahu' show with a difference in primetime

The new show is slated to go on air from December 3, Monday to Friday at 10 PM, in place of 'Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya'

Akansha Srivastava | Mumbai | November 24, 2014

Zee TV's new drama series is a story of a girl and her relationship dynamics with her seven mothers-in-law. The show, 'Satrangi Sasural', will go on air from December 3, from Monday to Friday at 10 PM. Zee TV is axing 'Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya' next month, to make way for the new fiction programme.

Namit Sharma

Namit Sharma, Programming Head, Zee TV, said, “Having launched differentiated content such as 'Jamai Raja' and 'Kumkum Bhagya', the superhero series 'Maharakshak Aryan' and 'Bandhan' - that explores a bond of sibling love between man and animal, we now bring to our viewers 'Satrangi Sasural' – a show that explores a unique scenario where the man of the house who has been raised by seven mother figures, is all set to marry a girl who must then stand up to the expectations of each of these doting mothers, adapt to this new environment and build relationships within the family. Written by Purnendu Shekhar, whose partnership with Zee has produced gems like 'Astitva … Ek Prem Kahaani' and 'Saat Phere', the show has a stellar cast in place. So, we look forward to entertaining our viewers with yet another interesting story.”

The show, which is based on a successful Marathi play, is being produced by 24 Frames spearheaded by Shekhar, Nandita Mehra, Gajra Kottary and Bhairavi Raichura.

The challenge in the making of the show, Sharma says, was getting the casting right. “Finding seven mothers who look like a family has been a challenge. To portray the roles of the mothers, finding a set of good actors has been another challenge. These days, casting of mothers does not have much importance. Mothers are generally seen standing behind the doors. But in this show, the casting of mothers has been the most important aspect,” he said.

Veteran actor Farida Jalal returns to TV as the man's grandmother who binds the whole family together. Actors Bhavana Balsaver, Sadia Siddiqui, Resham Tipnis, Sheetal Thakkar, Sonali Sachdev and Samta Sagar will play the mothers. 'Satrangi Sasural' has Ravish Desai as the male lead protagonist – Vihaan, opposite Mugdha Chaphekar who essays the role of Aarushi. Based in Delhi, the Vastals are a unique family that represents a cross-section of India's vibrant culture, as each of the mothers hail from diverse backgrounds and have their own individual personalities.

Talking about the story, Shekhar said, “Working with Zee is like coming back to family. Right since we first began discussing the show with the team at Zee, we were very clear that we did not want just another saas-bahu drama. The manner in which we've treated the subject of a 'mother-son equation' and the various aspects of caring and nurturing that each of Vihaan's mothers embodies and the challenges Aarushi will face as their bahu, makes it the first-of-its-kind on Indian television. The concept lends itself beautifully to presenting a vibrant cross-section of contemporary Indian culture, and we've gone about it in a slice-of-life manner. Fortunately, we've been able to sign on some of the most memorable faces of Indian television loved by audiences over the years. Each of them has sunk their teeth into these roles and what we have on our hands is pure magic.”

Sharma believes that the show strengthens the positioning of the channel. “The positioning of the channel is built around hope and we have portrayed hope in every show so far. The mothers seek to find the right girl for their son and Arushi's family hope to find the right son-in-law for their daughter. They find each other and what happens next is the crux of the show.”

With the show slotted at 10 PM, the channel hopes to garner viewership from the entire family.

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