Kasautii Zindagi Kay went on air in the year 2001.
“Chaahat Ke Safar Mein, Dilon Ke Honsle Dekho,” do these words ring a bell? Do the names Prerna and Anurag sound familiar? Does the name Komolika bring flashes of a woman sporting a big bindi, rolling a strand of hair on her finger? If yes, then you, just like me, are one of those who had their dinner with the Basu family of Ekta Kapoor’s 2001 offering Kasautii Zindagii Kay. This tale of love and loss was a daily dose of entertainment. Its success paved the way for many other love stories on Indian television.
Now, for those who missed it, TV czarina Ekta Kapoor is back with it yet again. Before the second season of the show returns to our television screens, let’s take a trip down memory lane and revisit the original Kasautti Zindagii Kay.
The goody two shoes Anurag played by Cezzane Khan made many hearts skip a beat with his image of a level-headed son of a rich businessman. From the very beginning, just like any other Ekta Kapoor protagonist, he was an ideal son, lover and brother. Prerna aka Shweta Tiwari was a bubbly, full of life young girl who had her own ways of living life, but family always came first for her too. In typical Balaji style, these two, completely opposite individuals, fell in love only to be united, then separated just when they were about to get married and again united to finally being separated by the hands of destiny.
Anurag Basu and Prerna’s love story won many hearts back in the 2000s.
Komolika aka Urvashi Dholakia, within first few episodes, fostered deep hatred in the hearts of viewers with her villainous ways of separating lovebirds Prerna and Anurag. She married Anurag only for her lust for money and power and didn’t leave a stone unturned to make Prerna’s life miserable. However, over the years, she became a referral point for other female negative characters in daily soaps that followed. Another character who still remains fresh in the memory of TV viewers is that of Mr Bajaj played by Ronit Roy. From a hinderance in Prerna-Anurag’s romance to a doting father of Prerna’s daughter and a shoulder to cry for ill-fated Prerna, Mr Bajaj too became a household name and apparently still remains one.
Urvashi Dholakia played the iconic role of Kamolika in Kasautii Zindagi Kay.
The daily saga continued for eight years and became a ticket to fame for many small screen actors like Karanvir Bohra (Prerna’s son Prem) Surveen Chawla (Mr Bajaj and Prerna’s daughter), Hiten Tejwani (new Anurag Basu), Jennifer Winget (Prerna-Anurag’s daughter) and many others.
Ronit Roy became a household name with his character of Mr Bajaj in Kasautii Zindagi Kay.
This K-serial from the 2000s and its lightening sound effect the moment anything significant happened is still etched in the memory of every 90s kid. Now, before we watch Kasautii Zindagi Kay reboot starring Erica Fernandez as Prerna and Parth Samthaan as Anurag, we only wish we are not served with an over-the-top tearjerker melodrama and the show’s narrative fits today’s day and age.
Kasautii Zindagi Kay 2 goes on air today on Star Plus from Monday-Friday at 8 pm.