Cute TV actor Shruti Seth is hoping that her new association with Star Plus for their upcoming Gurudev Bhalla production will reap the success her first Star Plus show Shararat had generated 20 years back.
“I can’t reveal anything more, except that this is something I have not done before (high drama shows).” Here she clarifies that she is not playing mother in the show. Her last proper TV show was the SAB TV sitcom, TV Biwi Aur Main.
“Having said that, I did play mother in The Suite Life of Karan & Kabir, on Disney. If any show broke my Shararat image, it was this one. And the best thing was that the story was written in such a way that we never needed to explain whether she was divorcee or a widow. And I found that quite progressive.”
“Although we were quite successful, we could not go further than 3 seasons, as we could not Indianize the cultural context of the of the original US series, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, which stretched for seven seasons.”
Most TV leads today are 16-22 years old. Where do you fit in?
“I think the main reason for the same is that senior artists won’t work 30 days a month. And if they did, it would burn a hole in the producer’s pocket. Fresher artists won’t mind working the entire month at a much lower pay, as it gives them name and fame.”
Most recent Star Plus shows have also not got big numbers. “While I don’t know much about the business side of things as to what works, rest assured that our show will be something to watch out for in 2020, as Star is really backing us to the hilt. I am sure that post this, I will come out of my current bubbly, sweet gal image.”
Given the fact that you have a young daughter, did the long working hours worry you?
“Yes, at first I was hesitant to return to the daily grind after a long time. But several factors made me say yes. First thing, the show is set in Film City, unlike Naigaon, which takes five hours of daily travel. Secondly, over time, TV shooting has become streamlined. And last but not the least, Gurudevji told me that we don’t plan to make anyone’s life hell. This assurance went a long way in assuaging my fears.”
Talking about TV content per se, Shruti, who is also doing a couple of web series (Alt Balaji’s Mentalhood and Jestination Unkown on Amazon Prime) says, “Tube content is still ahead, for it reaches a much larger audience. And I personally also believe that your content needs to be relatable. Too much shock value turns folks off.”
“Having said that, TV content is still copyish. You see the same stories and costumes across all channels, while web tales do push the envelope.”
