The pretty-looking shape-shifting serpants are back on TV in Ekta Kapoor’s Naagin 3 with a new story & interesting actors. Sangeeta Yadav chats them up about the sting of nagins on TV
The supernatural tales of naag and naagin, their conflict with humans and the chase for the naagmani are issues that have caught the imagination of audiences and set their pulse racing. From Varsha Usgaonkar in Doordarshan’s Chandrakanta to Sayantani Ghosh in Zee TV’s Naaginn to much-acclaimed naagins of telly Mouni Roy and Adaa Khan in Color’s Naagin and Sara Khan in Sasural Simar Ka, actors down the years have cashed in on the snake drama by playing shape-shifting serpents with stories around naaglok and naagdev.
After captivating the audience with the first two season, Ekta Kapoor is back with the season three of her No 1 finite fiction show Naagin with a new story and a power-house of actors including Karishma Tanna, Anita Hassanandani, Rakshanda Khan, Rajat Tokas, Chetan Hansraj, Pearl V Puri amongst others.
“It is going to be bigger and better with a completely new story and amazing actors whose roles have been well fleshed out. It is going to be high on power, passion and revenge.
“I play Ruhi, a sexy yet dangerous Ichhadhari naagin. The story starts with a bang when after a long wait of 1,000 years, Ruhi about to get united with her naag Vikrant, played by Rajat Tokas.
“But, on the night of their impending marriage, people try to harm them. An angry Ruhi goes on to take revenge from them. This unfolds big mysteries and a tantalising revenge drama. The challenge is to make the audience feel what Ruhi goes through and empathise with her,” says Karishma Tanna.
The new 26-episode show goes on air from June 2, 2018 at 8 pm every Saturday and Sunday.
Talking about her looks, Tanna says: “The No 1 rule of a naagin show is that the naagin has to be pretty and sexy. I was given a brief that I had to look appealing, larger-than-life and wear revealing clothes. All this is a deadly combination. My look is very different and inspired from Kareena Kapoor’s look in Ashoka movie. I have tattoos on my body, I wear jewellery, have kohl-lined eyes and long hair.”
Anita Hassanandani, who plays a positive and strong-willed naagin Vishakha whose life turns upside down due to an incident which compels her to take revenge from the Shekhawat family.
“It is a challenging role, neither positive nor negative. I have to play it in-between. There is a lot of mystery shrouding her story. I have concentrated on my looks to look bold and glamorous. Acting wise, I have to make sure that I don’t go overboard. The dialogues are witty and entertaining. We have been shooting for 10-15 days now. Season 3 is well written and that is what excites me the most,” Hassanandani says.
Chetan Hansraj, who will be playing Andy, a business tycoon obsessed with minting money by hook or by crook, says his role is meant to bring twists and turns to the main plot.
“Andy is one of the best roles I have done. He shares a different equation with every character and, for him, business is God. In the story, he buys a big piece of land which has an old haveli and a mandir of naags in its premises. He creates a lot of chaos by trying to break all that down,” Hansraj tells you.
Season 1 of Naagin became the No 1 show in 2015 and the trend was followed by many other channels who in brought naagin shows or wove a naagin track in ongoing serials.
“It was unreal but people still went for the show. It is interesting to see humans turn into snakes. Everybody knows that there is nothing like ichhadhari naag or naagin but actors like Reena Roy and Sridevi or Mouni and Adaa have played the part so convincingly that the story looks real.
“Supernatural and fantasy shows take you away from the real world and makes your fantasy world look real. You play with imagination and that is fun,” Tanna says.
In previous seasons, people liked the chemistry that Mouni Roy, Arjun Bijlani, Adaa Khan and Karanvir Bohra wove, thus becoming household names. But will the audience accept the new starcast in a different naagin avatarIJ
“The bar of Naagin has already been set high by Mouni and Adaa to meet everyone’s expectations. We are giving our 100 per cent.
“We have taken a big risk and the audience might take some time to accept the new starcast and storyline, but I am sure that with such a powerful script, the audience will definitely take to Season 3,” Hassanandani says.