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'Rakth Sambandh is an Indian take on Desperate Housewives'
Imagine TV is ready to launch its new show Rakth Sambandh (blood relations) next week. It revolves around five sisters who are married into different cultures and income groups with their father overseeing them during any crisis.
It is the remake of the hit Telugu show Raktha Sambandham but the sensitivities have been tweaked. The show features actors Sayantani Ghosh, Sachin Shroff, Gungun Uprari, Bhargavi Chirmule, Nihar Thakkar, Manish Raisinghani, Sonali Nikam, Mazhar Syed, Dhruv Bhandari and veteran South actor Krishnamurthi as the father.
Sayantani Ghosh, one of the sisters in the show, who makes a comeback after Naaginn, speaks to Rajul Hegde about her upcoming show Rakth Sambandh and much more.
You have not done a show for a while. So what made you take up this show which has many actors?
I did not want to choose any role that was offered to me. I liked the concept because it's fresh. There is no over the top drama and is easy to relate with the audience. I personally like my track in the show as I feel it's close to reality.
It is a story about five sisters who are married off in different places. The story goes on to reveal how inspite of being separated by distance, they share a strong bond and are there for each other in times of need. I play the second sister, Sakshi a software engineer and the most educated among her siblings. Plus I adore the costumes given to my character since they are something that every woman of my character's age would wear
'Naaginn will not have second season'
I have been told that it's an Indian take on the popular international series Desperate Housewives not story-wise but the manner in which all the characters are treated. They get equal prominence and screen space on the show. You can't focus on just one character and sideline others on such shows so even this show will focus on all the five couples who differ from each other like chalk and cheese. At the end of the day, viewers' feedback does matter.
What happened to the second season Naaginn?
When Naaginn concluded, I was told that this is just a seasonal break and we will come back with its second season. We also shot the last episode accordingly to keep the story open for the second season. That has been the primary reason behind me not taking up any new project in the initial four to five months after the show went off-air. But they didn't return with season two probably because the channel has gone into a lot of strategic transformation and currently I don't see the possibility of the show returning.
'Even today people address me as Naaginn'
Were you disappointed to know that the channel is not launching the second season of Naaginn?
Yes because we didn't know that the show is going to wrap up. We were told that it's going into a seasonal break but it turned out otherwise.
The story of the second season was even more interesting and gripping. It had me in double roles and I was sure that the audience would have liked it. I too was looking forward to it but it's always a channel's choice to decide on the future of its shows.
What excites me is that even today people address me as Naaginn and this gives me immense pleasure as your sole aim is to impress the viewers and connect with them. The brighter side to it can be that as an actress, I am getting to play different roles and characters through other shows.
'I was offered many shows but nothing excited me'
Yes. I being the lead actor of second season of Naaginn couldn't take any other daily soap and also I wanted to rest for a while as I was completely exhausted doing TV shows. Taking up cameos was a conscious effort as I didn't want to be out of sight.
Actresses -- who started their careers along with me kept waiting for lead roles which didn't happen to them for various reasons -- are nowhere today. I was offered many shows but nothing excited me till Rakth Sambandh happened. I was also offered the role of the third sister on the show but I wasn't too keen on doing it as she again is a submissive who keeps shedding copious tears.
'Mumbai has been treating me really well'
Mumbai has been treating me really well. I came to the city of dreams four years ago in search of work. I was shooting in Kolkata then and I was called to do Kumkum. After that I was finalised to play the lead in Anurag Basu's Love Story but its shooting got delayed and in the meantime I was offered Ghar Ek Sapna followed by Naaginn and now Rakth Sambandh.
Are you open to do item numbers in movies?
Yes, why not. If you have makers like Prakash Jha, then I would take up the offer (smiles).
Any plans of settling down in personal life?
No plans to settle down as yet
Rakth Sambandh premieres on July 19 at 10 pm on Imagine TV