If you ask me what shows I am watching these days, you will probably hear the names of a bunch of international show. And yeah, I am sure that you all will think that this is another example of too much western culture and that I am being pretentious by only watching foreign shows.
But let me be perfectly honest, I am not doing this because I like it, but more so because there is literally nothing to watch in the Indian television segment at the present moment.
There used to be a time when I would rush back home from school, just to catch my favourite shows. Iconic ones like Dekh Bhai Dekh, Hum Panch, Office Office, Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and more were so wonderfully made that they provided a full house entertainment.
Looking at the state that is Indian television today, instead of angering me, just makes me pity it, to see it reduced to the c*** that we see today.
But the one channel that has truly disappointed me and one that I am actually sad to see the state of is Zee TV. Once upon a time, it was a pioneer of ground breaking and progressive television shows.
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Zee TV has helmed some of the most iconic shows in the history of Indian television industry. With shows like Tara that was not only the first Indian soap opera but also the first Hindi language show to run for 5 years, the standards that Zee TV had set for itself were high. And the director of this show was none other than Anurag Basu who is now a renowned name in Bollywood.
Apart from Tara, Zee also over the years offered gems like Astitva, which showed an urban gynaecologist who enters into a relationship with a man almost 10 years younger to her. Then Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, which introduced Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam and was considered to be the first reality television program.
Zee TV proved that it was not afraid of taking risks, by allowing risqué and bold stories a platform, and in doing so, completely changing the face of Indian television.
But somehow, over the course of time, Zee lost its charm that made it what is was, and surrendered to the same formula that every channel these days is taking up.
In the past few years, I have noticed that Zee has had a steady decline in terms of story, content, and shows. Perhaps their current shows still garner TRPs, but I cannot say that the quantity of the TRPs is matching the quality of the shows.
With current shows like Jamai Raja, Tashan-e-Ishq, Ek Tha Raja Ek Thi Rani, Kumkum Bhagya, Vishkanya and more, I am just disappointed by how awful these shows truly are with their over the top storylines, mindless characters and how regressive they can actually be.
Signing off, I would just like to say that it is sad, to see how far Zee has fallen from its earlier success, wish that it would do an immediate overhaul of all its current shows, and get back its former glory.
I know I left out some other iconic shows that Zee TV is known for, if you do know, let me know in the comments below.
*Disclaimer- The point of the article is not based on TRPs instead it focuses on the content and story of the shows.*
Image Credits: Google Images
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