way to go forward

From launching new Hindi GEC channel with a fresh line-up of shows starring Ram Kapoor and Mohit Raina to some unconventional love stories to comedy and drama shows to new seasons of reality shows, 2018 brings to you a heavy dose of entertainment. Sunday Pioneer reports

Drama shows

Kaleerein: The viewers are in for a joy ride with Kaleerein which feature the many predicaments and dilemmas of a young Punjabi girl as she dodges marriage. The show stars newcomer Aditi Sharma and actor Arjit Taneja in lead roles.

Belan Waali Bahu: A new daily dose of laughter with Belan Waali Bahu, a quirky family drama with plenty of laughs. Produced by Shoonya Square, the show traces the lives of a mismatched couple Roopa Awasthi and Amarnath and how a belan (rolling pin) plays an important role in their lives. The stunning Krystle D’souza is making a comeback on the silver screen as Roopa Awasthi opposite actor, producer and writer Dheeraj Sarna who will be playing the role of her husband Laado in the show. The show will air on Colors from January 15 at the 10.30 pm slot.

Naagin 3: After the tremendous success of Naagin 1 and 2, Colors is all set to launch Naagin 3 in a new avatar with an intriguing narrative.

21 Sarfarosh: Saragarhi 1897: Produced by Abhimanyu Singh’s Contiloe Pictures Pvt Ltd, 21 Sarfarosh: Saragarhi 1897 is a fiction show inspired by the real-life story of 21 brave soldiers of 36th Sikh Regiment of the British Indian Army which defended an Army outpost at Saragarhi in the North-West Frontier Province against an onslaught by over 10,000 Pashtun and Orakzai tribals in September 1897. The stellar cast of the show also includes Mohit Raina in the main lead as Havildar Ishar Singh and Luke Kenny as Major Des Voeux.

Mere Papa Hero Hiralal: Television’s popular actor Sarwar Ahuja is all set to play the lead role in Mere Papa Hero Hiralal. As the lead protagonist, Sarwar plays the role of Hiralal Tiwari, a single father who makes his living driving an auto rickshaw, and is ready to go beyond the ordinary to help his daughter Gungun recover from a serious medical condition. Joining Sarwar is the cute little sensation from Bollywood, Riva Arora, as Gungun Tiwari. Riva, who started her modelling career at the age of 18 months, has done movies like Rockstar, Mom and Haseena.

Produced by Viniyard Films, Mere Papa Hero Hiralal is a fiction show inspired from a true life incident of an auto rickshaw driver from Mumbai who had to ply carrying his two-year-old child in his lap.

“Playing Hiralal made me explore so many new emotions that I have never lived before. Hiralal might not have money, but he is still richer than most. Life is tough for Hiralal, but with optimism and a never say die spirit, he makes every day special for his daughter,” says Sarwar Ahuja. The soon to be launched GEC channel Discovery Jeet will bring together Discovery’s unmatched story-telling and the best of real-life entertainment through larger than life stories aimed at inspiring millions

 Prithvi Vallabh: Prithvi Vallabh is a unique story of two archrivals that starts with hatred in a battlefield and ends up becoming the biggest love story. It will present an untold story of an era when relentless pursuit of ambition was most celebrated and will have the element of both mystery and fiction. With an amalgamation of art, culture love and war, the show will depict an era where Indian kingdoms were fiercely protective about their wealth and masses. The show’s starcast includes Ashish Sharma as Prithvi, Sonarika Bhadoria as Mrinal, Pawan Chopra as Singhdant, Shalini Kapoor as Rajmata, Alefia Kapadia as Savita, Jitin Gulati as Tailap, Piyali Munshi as Jakkala, Surendra Pal as Vinayaditya, amongst the others.

The show will go on air by end of January 2018.

Love is in the air

Aap Ke Aa Jaane Se: This unconventional love story will transcend the barriers of age, life stages, and background. The show marks the return of actor Suhasi Dhami as the 42-year-old Vedika Mathur opposite actor Karan Jotwani essaying the role of her 24-year-old love interest Sahil Agarwal. It goes on air from January 15 every Monday to Friday at 10:30 pm on Zee TV.

Bepannaah: An impossible love story of two strangers brought together by destiny, Bepannaah revolves around the life of Aditya and Zoya and how they find love again in challenging circumstances. 

Produced by Cinevistaa, the show brings together some of the most loved faces of Indian television — Jennifer Winget and Harshad Chopra. The show promises to be one of the most-greatest love stories to be told on Indian television.

Kapil Sharma will be back

After taking a break from his show in August due to the health reason, Kapil Sharma will be back with The Kapil Sharma Show soon on Sony Entertainment Television. The talks are on between the channel and the makers who are finalising the cast and the line-up of the show.

Comebacks

Ram Kapoor: Kapoor will be seen playing the lead role of a school principal in non-fiction comedy show Comedy High School. It is a light-hearted take on society, culture, education and current affairs through a classroom-based set up. A clean comedy show with theme-based episodes, Comedy High School will have leading celebrities visit the school every week in myriad avatars like educational inspectors or parents of students who are seeking admissions.

Mukul Dev: After a hiatus of 11 years, the actor returns to TV as he signs Discovery JEET’s 21 Sarfarosh: Saragarhi 1897 where he will be seen playing an antagonist Gul Badshah, a tribal Afghan leader. To get his accent and pronun-ciation right, Mukul took lessons from his father and friends.

Suhasi Dhami: Suhashi Dhami, who was on a break since three years, is back with a bang. She has been signed to play the heroine in the Aapke Aa Jane Se. She will be seen opposite Kinshuk Vaidya, whose last outing was Ek Rishta Saajhedari Ka, in the daily soap. Suhasi catapulted to fame as Swarn Abha in Yahaaan Main Ghar Ghar Kheli. She was last seen as Parvati in Devon Ke Dev... Mahadev.

Reality shows

Dance India Dance Li’l Masters: A new season of DID Li’l Masters will leave you dancing with mind-blowing performances of the people.

Rising Star: After taking the country by storm last year, the one of its kind live-based reality show, Rising Star will be back with a new edition. And reprising their roles as expert once again will be singers par excellence Shankar Mahadevan and Diljit Dosanjh.

India’s Next Superstars: The show brings Karan Johar and Rohit Shetty together as judges to create the ultimate opportunity for all young and talented aspirants with no connections in the film industry, opening the doors of Bollywood.  The winners of the competition will get a chance to star in a Karan Johar — Rohit Shetty project; a co-production of Dharma Productions Pvt Ltd, Rohit Shetty Picturez and Fox Star Studios India Pvt Ltd. Accompanying the judges on this journey will be Karan Wahi and Rithvik Dhanjani. The show goes on air on January 13, 2018 at 8 pm on Star Plus.

Dus Ka Dum: Salman Khan’s popular game reality show Dus Ka Dum will return on Sony Entertainment Television  after eight years. Salman Khan will resume as a host in the show after the successful completion of Bigg Boss season 11. Grapevine has it that in the new version of the show, the show-makers have planned to call the common people for the participation and the set for the show is assumed to be complete in a month or so.

Nach Le India: &TV is gearing up to launch a new dance show that will have promising pairs from across the nation who are not just ready to take up the dancing challenge but also prove their relationship dynamics. With this twist, the show will explore the strength of dancing pairs across age groups based on their relationships.