THE ROLE of an Indian woman has been limited to cooking and cleaning jobs, taking care of children and dutifully following orders of their husbands. This image was reinforced by a string of saas-bahu serials which showed women in bad light and most of the time they were either bitching about their jethanis and devranis or working in the kitchen to impress their in-laws and sometimes even mixing poison in their milk....!
As a breath of fresh air, various reality shows have been launched that have all together broken the myth of a patriarchal society and for the first time shown women in all together different avtar.
This change was first brought out by Sony TV when it launched the show called, ‘Maa Exchange’. The concept of the show is that women of two different families switch places, assuming the responsibilities of one another. They make a new set of rules and regulations which the family members have to follow. As the new mothers go on with their duties, the members of the house realise the importance of their real mothers, and at the same time, they struggle to adjust in the new surroundings. The opening episode saw actress Pooja Bedi Vs stand up comedian Rajiv Nigam’s wife, as they struggled to set their foot in the new household.
Following Sony’s stint, Star Plus recently launched ‘Wife Bina Life’, where the wives go on a holiday and the men struggle with the huge amount of responsibilities on their shoulders. As a viewer, one can’t really help but feel amused, to see the daddy’s struggle to get their kids eat their lunch and dinner. As the father’s follow their duties, they realise the role and importance of their wives.
In an ode to pay tribute to the Indian women, Star Plus has also launched a theme song, titled, ‘Tu hi tu’, whose lyrics have been penned by Gulzar and music has been given by Vishal Bhardwaj. The track pays respect to the avtars of a women, namely-Durga, Kaali, Lakshmi and Saraswati. The track is in sync with the theme of the channel- ‘Rishta Wahi, Soch Nayi’.
In an attempt to set the target rating points (TRP’S) soaring, SAB TV too has jumped on the bandwagon of the new reality shows and has launched a show called, ‘Mrs Tendulkar’. Don’t go by the name, the show has nothing to do with the ace cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. The story traces the life of Mr Tendulkar, who takes up the responsibilities of his better half while she goes to work.
Indian viewers have become so used to the treatment meted out to women that they have accepted what is shown on TV as real. There was a time when Ekta Kapoor’s serials were a hit amongst the viewers. But with time as more and more producers got newer and fresher scripts, with broader storylines, the saas- bahu serials slowly vanished from our screens, paving way for new issues to be experimented with.
TV shows based on role reversal is one trend that may slowly but will surely catch pace with the Indian audience.
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