Dec 18, 2007 04:10 PM
6286 Views
Finally! A TV serial that I can watch and not feel embarrassed about it. It has probably been years, maybe more than a decade, since somebody made a TV serial about real people and real problems. If you were fed up of the usual soap operas, and were missing the good old days of “Nukkad” or “Waagle ki Duniya”, then “Ek Chaabi hai Padoss mein” comes as a refreshing relief. This serial is not about scheming “bahus”, multi-crore deals or intra-family conspiracies. Nor does it have the characteristic multi-focused camera shots of nowadays serials.
“Ek Chaabi hai Padoss mein” is about a closely-knit group of people living in a fictional small-town. The center of all action, Colonelgunj, is a typical small town colony, where people still travel by cycle rickshaws, young boys play "pithu" and computer is considered a tool of the elite. The denizens of Colonelgunj are a diverse lot, coming from diverse religious & regional backgrounds. The director has intelligently avoided any unnecessary stereotyping(except probably Jumle, the teenage sardar).
Most of the episodes are about day-to-day issues in the life of the Indian middle class family. Sometimes it is about a son who has settled abroad and wants to take his reluctant father along, and sometimes about petty fights caused just because a family has bought the first car in the colony. The stories are generally very heartwarming, and will leave you with a lump in the throat. And unlike most of the currently running serials, the episodes come with an underlying social or moral message, like the power of dreams, friendship or sacrifice. The director deserves a pat on the back for his brilliant treatment of these issues, as “Ek Chaabi hai Padoss mein” never indulges in over sentimentality. In fact, the serial has a healthy dose of humour that makes it immensely entertaining. Something like a modern day Malgudi days.
Watch “Ek Chaabi hai Padoss mein” for relishing the simple joys of life, watch it for re-living the good old days and watch it for imparting the moral values of middle class India to your children. If nothing, watch it for old time's sake.