Cinevistaas Ltd., known for making successful shows on television, will now depict a tale on ‘Women Empowerment’ wherein the lead girl would not enter the phase where she would be the subtle, mellowed down ‘beti’ or ‘bahu’ of the house!! Ek Hasina Thi, their upcoming show on Star Plus, will bring in a ‘Nayi Soch’ wherein the girl will not heed to commands, but will be seen directing people and voicing opinions. This show is touted to be the ‘best ever’ made by Cinevistaas Ltd. in their 37 years long contribution on TV. In an exclusive chit-chat, Producer Siddharth Malhotra opens up on Cinevistaas as a brand being proud of making a show like Ek Hasina Thi. Excerpts: How did you conceive the idea of making a show like Ek Hasina Thi? All began with an idea of giving a revenge-based story. Star Plus wanted a story about women empowerment in a space that would be appealing to the viewers. Hence, we decided to work on such a show that would break the myth that such concepts will not work on TV. My team comprising of me and my writer Sammeer Arora pitched a story to Star Plus. And from there we started developing it internally. It took six months for us to develop the concept and come out with a character like Durga. We then shot the pilot which went in for research. The best aspect of the pilot was that it got an exceptionally great feedback, with zero negatives. This began our search for the lead girl. Though Sanjeeda Sheikh shot for our pilot, she took a show on Zee TV. But for me, Sanjeeda was always the girl for Ek Hasina Thi. As luck would have it, Sanjeeda completed her Zee TV show, and got back with us for Ek Hasina Thi. We then shot for five episodes, and got it approved from the channel. We now have an approved and delivered bank of episodes for two months. And this has never ever happened in the history of Indian television. Initially, we took nearly five days to shoot an episode. Now, we complete one episode in two and half days, and that in itself explains the large scale on which our shoot and execution happens. To tell you further, Ek Hasina Thi will be a feature film on television. We are very confident of breaking all benchmarks on TV. And we could do it only with a consistently good script. Also, k Hasina Thi is a finite show that will run for one year. Again, this will be the only show where we have already written the end. We have an approved week by week story line till the end. And we have been following that, with no corrections or amendments whatsoever. Tell us about the shoot schedule in Kolkata… We have maintained a high level of quality and have shot extensively in Kolkata. We have so far completed three extensive schedules out there, and are readying ourselves for the fourth. We have had to work very hard with our directors, and give the product a presentation seen in films. Our directors Rohit Jugraj, Partho Mitra and Vikram Labhe have worked extensively on everything. So how would you describe Ek Hasina Thi? Ek Hasina Thi is a ‘complete masala thali’. You will get a right blend of romance, thrill, passion and emotion at its best. I would say that one will get a well-proportioned thali will all the required nutrients. In simple words, we are providing a masala picture on television, wherein every episode will have moments to look forward to. There will not be a moment of drag in the episodes. Our characters are so well-defined that when a person would be showing his negative side, he will show his meanest and wicked side. I am grateful to Gaurav Banerjee (from Star Plus) for allowing us to go by our conviction. We moved ahead being on the same phase to drive the show as a team. This will be Cinevistaas’ best show till date, and I am sure it will set a benchmark on TV. Considering that this is a big show, are you satisfied with the 8 PM slot that you have got? To tell you frankly, I would have been happier if I had got a 9 PM or a 10 PM slot. Having said this, Star Plus has many amazing shows and are the leaders in terms of GRPs. Our relationship with Star Plus has always been great, and none of our shows on the channel have failed to deliver. Our job is to provide the content and the channel’s job is to market it well so that the audience comes to sample it. I will go by their conviction that the show will work well at the 8 PM slot. The slot of 8 PM is a tough slot to compete in. Your take. Very true!! Our show is pitted against Jodha Akbar (Zee TV), the show which my family watches very faithfully. I would not consider Balika Vadhu (Colors) as big competition as it has had its prime. But Jodha Akbar is a very well-presented show, and it is a huge responsibility to break the viewership. I consider this as a huge battle but not an impossible one. Having said this, I respect the show and its maker. But as a Producer, I believe that if we have a good content, we can survive the test. Vatsal Seth – how did you get to cast him? Well, the credit has to go to my wife Swapna. In fact, Vatsal is a close friend, and when he was having a talk with my wife, he expressed his desire to do something out-of-the-box on TV. All credit goes to Vatsal for playing the waiting game. In fact, after he was locked by us, he was in talks for every other show in the making. Hats off to him, as he was very much committed to our show that he did not look left or right after signing in. He has been cast against his image, and that should work for him. Take us through the other cast? Well, Sanjeeda Sheikh is a thorough professional and is never a trouble maker. We have earlier worked with her in Jaane Pehchaane Se Ye Ajnabee and we are happy to work with her again. Simone Singh is the fulcrum of our show. Her portrayal of Sakshi Goenka will make people forget the Heena in her. Bhuvnesh Mann, who has been cast for Rudra, is also a major player. Also, we will have many cameos on our show, characters that will come and go. How did you deal with the long waiting period of three years? Ek Hasina Thi has been my baby and I have been involved with it personally from day one. Cinevistaas has made interesting shows over the years, and I am taking forward the legacy set by my father and uncle. Yes, the delay did bring in a frustration. Even our previous show Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behna Hai took one and half years to go on air. But the three years period was a bit too much to handle. There was a time when everyone of us in the team would wonder about the reasons for the delay. I must thank people like Vatsal Seth, Sanjeeda and Sameer Arora for being with me from day one. Media reports says this is a remake of Khoon Bhari Maang…. Not at all, our story is nowhere close to any movie or show seen so far. Yes, the genre is revenge and that is where the similarity ends. There have been many films on this genre like Pratigya, Khoon Bhari Maang. Even on TV, Main Naa Bhoolungi falls under the revenge genre. In simple words, revenge is the emotion that drives the character. Do you have other shows in the making? Yes, talks are on for two big projects. But everything is still in the nascent stage. Cinevistaas has always produced stars!! Who are the actors to watch out for in Ek Hasina Thi? Well, even though Vatsal Seth is a known name, he will be a huge rage. Bhuvnesh Mann will also make a huge impact. Simone Singh’s role will stun one and all. She’s my favourite on the set. Above all, Sanjeeda is a great and competent actor and we know this. So we are all geared up to roar!!