ITV

Tag: Kunika

  • Kunika Lall calls it day at Sahara Samay

    Kunika Lall calls it day at Sahara Samay

    MUMBAI: Doesn’t seem like glamour works for Sahara. Film and television actor- turned television procuder Kunika Lall, who was appointed as senior producer by Sahara Samay Mumbai in September last year, has called it quits.
     
    The lady, erstwhile in-charge of day to day operation at the news channel, told indiantelevision.com that she is opting out because of some creative differences.

    According to Lall, “It was an interesting portfolio, unfortunately things didn’t work out. I don’t think that I was allowed to be an asset to the company. I was making no contributions and yet taking fat cheque home. I saw no point in doing that. Although I have moved out, I still have to put in my papers. I will be on ‘leave without pay’ for the next six months, starting 1 February. If something works with the channel till then, well and good.”

    Lall, responsible for the news content on the channel, was reporting to the Mumbai head Rajiv Bajaj.

    When contacted Bajaj offered, “Kunika is a talented lady. That is precisely the reason why I asked her to join the organisation but unfortunately things didn’t work out. We wanted some fresh perspective so we got her in. But she could not adjust to the pace of journalism I guess. Journalism is about pushing yourself to the limit, banging it first, which is definitely unlike films and she couldn’t acclimatize to it.”

    “We aren’t looking for her replacement. We have sufficient people in the team right now, and I think we can manage pretty easily,” he added

    As for Lall, she has film production on her agenda next. She had earlier dabbled with television production with Strivers and Achievers on DD 2, which was taken taken off after 12 episodes due to lack of sponsors. She offered that her maiden venture titled Karmic Connection under her banner Vinayakaa Entertainment will be an Indo-US co-production directed by her brother-in-law Deepak Tijori and financed by Ramesh Goyal and Divya Deep Patel. Karmic Connection is a rebirth story of two lovers, written by Sujata S Sabnis.

    The venture was launched at Intercontinental The Grand, yesterday evening. While the cast is yet to be finalised, Lall announced that they would start shooting in June and the movie should hit the theatres before December 2004. She plans to shoot in San Francisco, Chicago and Mumbai.

    Besides, she also plans to take up acting offers, both in television and films. She has spoken to producer of Zee’s Kittie Party to revive her role in the serial. She also plans to produce another film and a music album before the end of this year. “The story of my second film is ready. The music album would be a remix, but not racy,” she concluded. In the past, Lall has actually sung for two music albums Lakhon Mein Ek and Kunika (2002 Times Music).

    Just recently, Lall launched an event management company Karma Events and Entertainment.

    Lall’s husband, Vinay, who is director of operations at the California division of a restaurant chain Olive Garden, specially flew down from the US for the announcement of his wife’s film.

  • Kunika turns producer with ‘Strivers & Achievers’

    Kunika turns producer with ‘Strivers & Achievers’

    MUMBAI: TV and film actor-turned-producer Kunika Sadanand Lall announced that her first product ‘Strivers and Achievers’ is ready to hit the tube on 13 April. The show will be aired on DD2, every Sunday at 10 am. As of now, Kunika is acting in only one serial- ‘Kittie Party’.
     
     
    The programme, anchored by Kunika herself, will celeberate the lives, struggle and achievement of people with physical/mental/situational handicaps.

    On being asked that what had made her don the producer’s hat, she said, “The seeds were sown when I saw a Oprah Winfrey show in the US sometime back. Oprah spreads a tremendous amount of goodwill in her society. So I thought, why not I? The seeds began to germinate when I was working on an AIDS awareness programme, under the guidance of Dr. I S Gilada. I have worked under him for the past 10 years. I discovered that people suffering from a terminal disease had more positivity, resolve and inner strenth to combat life, rather than others.”

    “Furthermore, I have had a learning experience in life which had almost made me a recluse. During that period, many people came forward to help me in different ways. I would not like to comment on whether our celebrities have given back to the society as much as they ought to have, and would disagree if someone were to say that there is no kindness left in this world.”

    Asked whether people would prefer seeing her show more than ‘saas bahu’ seials, she retorted, “Firstly, my show will be on Sunday mornings. I had asked for this time and got it. I am not fighting with daily/weekly soaps. I am not looking for any TRPs. I bet that this serial would help us to consider every ‘special’ child as a God’s gift.

    The show has been granted a permission of 26 episodes. 16 episodes are ready for telecast, says Kunika.

  • ‘Kittie Party’s success is a victory for women: Shobhaa De

    ‘Kittie Party’s success is a victory for women: Shobhaa De

    MUMBAI: Women from smaller towns have reacted favourably to Kittie Party’s theme of female bonding! This statement by celebrity novelist, script writer, journalist and socialite Shobhaa De said it all on the occasion of the celebration bash of Kittie Party’s century of episodes on air.
     

    Sidhant Cinevision organised a get together at Mumbai’s Onyx resto pub for the entire unit of the serial which is aired on Zee TV in the prime time night slot. Spotted were the likes of Shobhaa De, Shveta Salve, Poonam Dhillon, Kavita Kapoor, Deepshikha, Kunika, Kiran Kumar, Raza Murad and several others adding to the glam appeal.
     

    Zee had launched Kittie Party on Monday, 19 August 2002. It revolves around the lives of eight women who meet every month. The serial explores their individual lives through these meetings. It is not just about bored rich hausfraus splurging their excess cash on the phenomenon called the ‘kitty party’.

    Shobhaa De with the cast of Kittie Party Writer Shobhaa De has sensitively brought out their honesty even as she brutally exposes their frailties, their obsession with class and their weakness for the rich life.

    While speaking to indiantelevision.com, writer De says: “People have reacted in a favourable manner and this response has come from metros as well as smaller towns such as Indore, Nagpur and Coimbatore. I have been surprised by the response from people in different walks of life. This proves that the premise of female bonding and women meeting one another to discuss their lives is being accepted in several places in the country.”

    Actress Poonam Dhillon echoes this sentiment and says that her role has been appreciated by women audiences including her near and dear ones. “Kittie Party reflects the aspirations and dreams of today’s Indian women,” she adds.

    Manish Goswami’s Sidhant Cinevision has left no stone unturned to give the show top notch production values. The look as well as the background score is of a uniformly high quality and certainly seems to have done justice to the estimated Rs 450,000 per episode cost of the series. Sidhant also hired a special art director to bring in the required element of gloss.

    “In this age when viewers tastes are changing rapidly, it was a challenge for us to create and sustain interest. Kittie Party is a unique serial and its characters are refreshingly bold, convincing and comfortable with their selves,” adds Goswami.

    “Since the situations are from every day life, audiences are able to identify the characters and the conflicts they deal with,” says a Zee spokesperson.

    De also took a swipe at the kind of fare that dominates prime time television, saying that the story was about issues relevant to today’s women and not the “saas-bahu sagas where the protagonists’ mindsets were 50 years behind the times.”

    Actor Kiran Kumar who plays the character of Manoviraj in Kittie Party adds: “It was dream come true to be associated with Shobha De as I am a great admirer of her work. My character is that of a progressive male who gives space to his women without being too dominating.”

    “As far as Kittie Party is concerned, the eight women appealed to me. Their characters are very identifiable. It’s like we see these women around us especially in urban society,” director Tamara Nedungudi.

    “No, I won’t say it has a limited appeal. I would say that every household will be able to strongly relate with at least one of the main characters in the show. That is what makes it appealing overall,” Nedungudi adds.

  • Rani Mukherjee’s brother turns serial producer

    MUMBAI: Raja Mukerji, thus far known as film actor Rani Mukherjee’s brother, is producing a serial for Sahara TV.
    JR Entertainment, the production company floated by Mukerji, is currently shooting a daily soap titled Pratima.
    According to a Sahara spokesperson, however, talks for airing Pratima are currently on and the deal is likely to be finalised soon. According to Sahara programming head Basaav Raaj, the channel is also considering projects from other production houses like Balaji and UTV as well. Meanwhile, Mukerji is confident that the serial will be launched some time soon.
    The story has a female protagonist played by Jyoti Mukerji, who has earlier featured in Gharana on Zee. Based on a woman’s struggle, the serial has a ‘Bengali’ backdrop. It draws a parallel between a woman who revolts after being pushed too far and the transformation of the peace loving goddess Durga into a vengeful Mata Kali.
    The serial, tentatively slated to air after the World Cup, stars big screen and television actors Anang Desai, Vivek Mushran and Kunika, besides Mukerji’s wife Jyoti. Rajesh Sethi will direct the show produced by Raja Mukerji’s mother Krishna Mukerji and Jyoti Mukerji.