Welcome to the world of leaps! After surviving 778 episodes resisting the impulse to leap with the rivals, Kumkum-Ek Pyaara Sa Bandhan gives in for a standard 20 year leap and fits the bill of the other clichéd soaps. If you are all thumbs up for a fast moving storyline, then let the afternoon family drama rule your lunch timings!

We all say cheese!

The look of the leads and the setup are always the first to come under scrutiny after a leap - and in the case of Kumkum, the duo( Sumit and Kumkum) refuse to look 40 plus! Sumit's wardrobe looks unchanged. His striped shirts, which were initially designed by wife Tina, are still there, with a blazer jacket added on! Kumkum dons heavier and brighter sarees, with a hairstyle which takes us back to the 80's!

Gen next on Kumkum, though lively, has nothing new to offer. If anything, they could have been picked out of any show and fit into Kumkum!

Kumkum and Sumit will continue to be lovable for the hordes of fans they have spawned in the three years of their existence on the telly, but their effort to convince the audience that even at 40, people do look young, they do make love! Now, that comes across as a trifle odd! We guess there is no end to the justifications for not going grey! But we quite appreciate their sweat to keep in touch with reality!

A plus point in the show's favour is the intelligently calculated leap. The producers and channel have definitely done their homework so that they too don't encounter criticisms, as other shows have! The eldest and the twin siblings have a six year gap between them, which is quite fair, though visually not much difference can be seen in the age of the two brothers, but it's still acceptable!

Hussain and Juhi with Bag's Rajesh Chadda

The storyline moves at a faster clip and leaves all the 'leaped' rival series far behind. There is so much shown and explored in very less time.

One odd occurrence is the overlapping of dialogues between the characters in certain scenes, and though they may be doing it to make it look natural, it comes across as being a messy conversation!

If you are ready to overlook these little gaffes, Kumkum remains the best series to skip a siesta for!

Pics by Satej Shinde