Ekta Kapoor (Bachelor of Bakwas in daily soaps). Review on Serials produced by Ekta Kapoor

After a long day at work, it seems turning on the television is a perfect solution to retreat from the stress you encountered during the day. However, the first question you might want to ask yourself when you suddenly flip the channel to a daily soap is, "Why is this interesting"? Is it the plot that captivates my interest, the many facets of the characters, or how closely is it associated with the real world? With Ekta Kapoor's serials, you might not have been able to answer "yes" to all of these questions, which is not unusual.

Ekta has been producing shows for many years, and each show that she creates begins with the letter "K", a superstition in which she believes that the letter K is what makes each of her serials successful. Some of her shows include Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi (KSBKBT), Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki (KGGK),Kasauti Zindagi Kay (KZK), Koshish, Kkhusum, Koi Apna Sa, and Kasamh Se, (too name a few). If you've watched any of these shows, you may have realized the following:

1. Characters disappear regularly , as if they've been abducted by the Ekta monster.

   
   




2. A character dies, then comes back without any explanation

   
   




3. If a character is given plastic surgery to the face, the voice seems to change as well

   
   




4. Characters are jailed, then come back out of jail without any explanation

   
   




5. A police officer only knows how to work with a bribe.

   
   




6. The doctor's are all corrupt, and heartless, as well as the nurses are clueless.

   
   




7. There is no such thing as confidentiality.

   
   




8. No one bothers to eaves drop on a conversation between the protagonist and the antagonist, especially when the protagonist has been draped with accusations.*

   
   

*9. None of the characters are smart enough to record a threat or "admission of wrong doing" on a cassette tape or mobile phone.

1. A character just stands around while another bashes his or her brains out. (Come on Bani-you could have done better than that!!!)

   
   




2. An evil doer steals the family's home, but also manages to takeover the company as well as all assets.

   
   




3. DNA evidence always seems to be manipulated.

   
   




4. The husbands always think their wives are liars.

   
   




5. There are characters who have no basis for hating others.

   
   




6. It is as easy as a snap of a finger for someone to be istitutionalized (sent to a paagal khana).

   
   




7. A rape scene is always included somewhere.

   
   




8. It is very easy to be convicted of money laundering.

   
   




9. A person's voice is not easily recognized if they have been missing from the family and suddenly comes back.

   
   




10. It is easy to prove that a character is guilty of adultery.

    
    

And the list goes on and on. These events are far from reality, and we all know what the answer is to the last question I asked earlier. Ekta's serials manage to grasp the audience's attention for a set period of time, but is then not able to sustain that interest for longer than a month.

Each serial changes direction so fast as if a tornado just swept through one's home. There is no ground to any of her shows, but we continue to watch them. Common examples include Janki Devi's revenge on Trishna, which was so fascinating, but why would one wait 20 years to take action? Or take Meera for example; she was a sweet, positive character, who suddenly went on a mental rampage to slap, torture, and then burn alive the mahaan Bani Walia. Let's also not forget Damini. It's okay for Mayank (her son) to rape Krishna Tulsi, on the justification that he is mental, then, to make matters worse, she wants to bring him back home from the mental institution, so KT can gawk at him all day and be reminded of his horrid act against her. It gets even better. The evil good for nothing Jigyasa Walia (who seems to think she more intelligent than Albert Einstein), hates Bani, yet she allows her to sit in the mandap with the tycoon, Mr. Jai Walia, when the lady he loves, Pia, disappears and runs off with another man. Do I need to go on with this absurdity?

Bashing one's head against a wall might cause some degree of head injury, but watching Ekta's shows on a regular basis may cause brain damage. I commonly ponder on the thought of how many women in India sit around all day in the luxury of their home and plot to:

a) Steal all the property and money, or

b). Poison their arch nemesis (in this case, the goody goody bahu)

This raises the issue of the stereotyping of people in India; not every woman is Komolika, or Mandira. Not every woman is as mahann as Parvati or Tulsi, and not every woman is as stupid as Damini or Mohini. Furthermore, not every man is as suspicious of their wife as Om, or even Mihir. Not all police officers and doctors are corrupt, and not all nurses seem as if they were granted their bachelor's degree in stupidity. Provided that Ekta Kapoor realizes all of this, her shows will not serve any purposes other than to disgrace the television industry of India, and more importantly, the image of indian people.

One positive note I will leave is that Ekta maintains the importance of religion and values in each of her serials. There is a serial of hers I have yet to see that does not show worship and appreciation of the almighty. Way to go on that.~