A new show, Service Wali Bahu, will go on air from February 23 on Zee TV at 6:30 pm. Raakesh Paswan, the writer-director speaks with SHAlINI SAKSENA about the show and how it is a story of hope and inspiration
How did the ideal of Service Wali Bahu come to youIJ
There is an interesting story behind this. Some time back a friend called up saying that there were some 60-70 vacancies for teachers and more than half went to the women and the men were now looking to get married to these ladies. Of course, we know that women are definitely more intelligent than men, but it got me thinking and an idea took root.
I thought over it for days and reached a conclusion — what if this was the modern way to take dowry which is illegal.
Do you really think that this is the new way to ask for dowryIJ
Not exactly but indirectly one can say that some people under the guise of wanting a service wali bahu may be taking this route. After all taking dowry an land them in jail. So some people may have devised this method.
After all there was a time when people wanted a sunder and susheel girl who knew household work. Today, a few more words have been added — we want a girl who is working. Now whether the in-laws take this as a sign of pride that they let their daughter-in-law work or whether they see her as someone who will bring in money on a monthly basis if for them to understand and realise.
So there is a message in this serial...
Yes, definitely. We want to educate people. But at the same time we don’t want to appear to be too preachy. So the way the characters unfold as the serial progresses and the way the whole thing has been presented is very entertaining. I just hope that people will love what we have tried to do with this show.
Why do you think that there are so many women-centric showsIJ
One has to understand that a major chunk of our viewers are still women. It is natural that all the serials will be for the women. But now some specific men-centric channels are there which is good.
Why is it that we don’t have shows like in the WestIJ
There is a lot of difference between them and us. Our culture and lifestyle is family-centric. Our serials will show what our society comprises of. The west has shows that caters to their kind of audience. We should not compare ourselves with them.
Where does TV stand todayIJ
I think that we are in a transition state. There is a plenty of experimentation happening. But we have a long way to go. We have to mature as an industry. This will take another few years.