• PAGE ONE
• INDEX
• HOME

A long journey

Menka Shivdasani

As the television industry in India gets set for its second revolution -- the satellite explosion was the first -- we are going to see many old stars fade away and new ones come in.

One survivor from the old days of Doordarshan monopoly is Priya Tendulkar. She built her reputation as the fire-breathing housewife in the serial Rajni in 1986, an image with which she is still associated, despite other popular programmes like The Priya Tendulkar Show.

She is now going great guns with several new shows as well. You see her as the first wife, speaking from a photoframe in Hum Paanch on Zee. She is also doing Aangan and Aaj (both on Zee), Itihas (daily on Sony), and two shows for Rathikant Basu's new Mar athi channel, Tara. One of these is an interview-based programme, and the other is a soap, Asmito, for which she is writing the script, apart from playing the lead.

For Priya, the journey has been a long one. When the `Rajni' offer came, she was reluctant since she did not want a long-term commitment. ``But Basu Chatterji, who used to come to see my father (the playwright Vijay Tendulkar) for scripts, made me feel l ike a queen,'' she says.

When the first episode starring her was aired, she realised why. Vijay Tendulkar received a call from actress Padmini Kolhapure's father; he was very upset because Priya had replaced his own daughter after the first four or five episodes. ``Basuda had no t mentioned this earlier,'' says Priya, ``and when we asked him, he said he did not want to make a newcomer like me nervous by mentioning big names like Padmini Kolhapure!'' Worse, she was even, without her knowledge, made to wear sarees that Padmini had earlier worn!

Gritting her teeth against the humiliation -- she did get new sarees, though, when she threw a fit -- Priya stuck it out. Padmini Kolhapure faded away from the public eye but thanks to television, Priya's reputation grew steadily. The first run of the se rial was three years, and then it was on air on and off till 1994. ``It surprises me that even today's generation calls me Rajni,'' she smiles, ``so I suppose it does get aired somewhere or the other!''

The industry has changed a great deal since Priya entered it, and she has some very strong views on the subject. ``Today, it's a buyer's market, and there is no such thing as a television star. No one is irreplaceable; when you are in people's drawing ro oms, bedrooms and on screen even in an aircraft, then you are a known person, but that does not make you a star. A show like, say, Rajni, could put you on the map, but it has nothing to do with so-called stardom. Anyone who appears on television becomes a familiar face -- I once recognised a man on the street because I had seen him thrice on a programme about missing people -- but that does not mean they are stars. By that definition, all newscasters are stars, and the Prime Minister is the biggest star of all!''

In Priya's definition, a star is someone people will stand in line for, buying tickets to go to a theatre, not someone who just happens to be on screen when you switch on the TV set. This down-to-earth approach comes as a surprise, because minutes earlie r she had been talking about how terrified she had been when she was recognised in a public place, and actually scratched by a mob trying to get close to her.

Priya also points out that in the days of DD monopoly, there was work available for very few people and budgets were far higher. When Zee came in and other channels followed suit, the market dropped, but there was suddenly work for everyone. Most people may not make huge amounts working for television, but at least they would be ensured a living. Regional channels like Eenadu, for instance, she points out, could ensure work of at least 15 days a month at Rs. 500 a day.

This is particularly good for small actors, she says, whose opportunities only came from plays. A successful play, she says, would have had just 10 shows in a city before travelling elsewhere, and if you were the star, you'd get Rs. 1,000 per show, while everyone else would get no more than Rs. 100-200.

Of course, the irony of being on TV today is the fact that though you end up as a known face, you still have to stand in bus queues because you are not earning enough to own a car!

Priya also believes that a crucial transformation in the TV industry comes from the fact that today, it is the multinational that is king. ``It is the MNCs that can make or mar you,'' she points out. ``The sponsor is in a position to decide how a program me should go.'' Priya speaks from experience; producing a talk show for four years, she was constantly told, ``Interviews with politicians like Sharad Pawar don't help us sell our lotions and shampoos...''

Though she's well aware of the dangers of overexposure, she is also professional in her approach. ``Six years ago I played mother to Jackie Shroff, and I'm playing a role in Aaj, where I'm wearing a wig that makes me look 200 years old!'' she smiles.

As long as it's work, she has no hang-ups, and with that kind of attitude, you can be sure she is going to survive a long while, however competitive and crowded the field may get.

The author can be contacted at menkashivdasani@hotmail.com