Small screen’s big plans this festive season

The festive tracks for most TV shows begin from August and go on till January, and the makers of the shows start preparing for the four months of festivities that lie ahead, well in advance.
According to producers, the month of August not only signals the beginning of the festive time for the common man, but also for daily soaps. Apart from planning festive tracks and keeping track of the budget, they also have to ensure that their actors get to spend some time with their families during festivals.
Festive season on and off-screen While the TV industry usually works on a tight schedule when planning their daily episodes, the planning of festive tracks happen at least a month or two in advance. Rajan Shahi, producer of Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, says, “Usually, all my shows portray celebrations in a grand way, but a lot of planning goes into incorporating festive tracks as we have to keep in mind that they don’t look forced in the storyline and look aesthetic and interesting to the viewers. We follow the calendar quite religiously when planning festive celebrations. The planning for festive tracks usually begins a month or two in advance because there are multiple approvals needed from the channel.” Yash Patnaik agrees with Shahi and adds, “In the festive season, you want to shout out to people that it’s time to celebrate. Everybody does it and so it’s a part of their calendar. However, we have to keep in mind that the backdrop of the show and the storyline should fit in with the festivities. If a show is set in Punjab, we won’t show a Ganpati celebration happening there. A Baisakhi celebration would be more apt for that show.”
25% to 30% increase in budgets According to Shahi, the budget hike for the festive sequence is around 25 to 30%. TV producer Sudhir Sharma says that the budget depends on the grandeur, the ratings of the show and the number of cameras and junior artistes being roped in for the show. For instance, according to industry sources, the Ganesh Chaturthi sequence in Madhubala – Ek Ishq Ek Junoon alone cost the makers `40 lakh because it required a huge setup and a number of cameras and junior artistes to depict the importance of the festival in Mumbai. “Usually, the festive sequences are shot within a budget of `5-10 lakh. In most cases, the producers propose the budget to the channel. The final decision rests with the channel, which looks at factors like how the show is performing, the importance of the festival to the storyline and whether they plan to rope in any Bollywood actors for the celebrations,” Sharma says. “Nowadays, many channels are also doing these special episodes where they get together several actors from different shows on their channel and celebrate the festival together. This happened for Eid on many channels, when they got artistes of two-three of their shows together. This is a smart marketing move as it helps generate interest about the shows. For instance, a Jodha Akbar viewer might develop an interest in watching Qubool Hai after watching the actors of Qubool Hai performing on the channel’s festive special show,” he adds.
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Actors also asked to shoot extra hours so they can take leave During festivals, actors also ask for time off to celebrate the festival with their loved ones. That is why they are also asked to juggle their schedules to ensure that the shoot is not hampered and they also get to spend some family time. “It’s part and parcel of an actor’s life to cope with erratic shooting schedules. We request them to shoot extra hours and extend their shifts if they are planning to take leave. Usually, the entire cast is needed for the shoot, so we have to ask them to cooperate,” says TV producer Shashi Mittal.
Shahi adds, “More than the actors, it’s their families who have to cooperate. Sometimes, actors get to celebrate the festival after it has already been celebrated on the show because the shooting schedules are very hectic during the festive season.”
We either celebrate festivals in advance or after the actual day of the festival Roopal Tyagi of Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke says, “I had taken two days off to celebrate my mother’s birthday in Goa in the beginning of August. My brother was also there so we celebrated Rakhi eight days before the festival. As a daily soap actress, I can’t take holidays twice in such a short span of time. So many times, we celebrate before the actual festival.”
Shoot extra hours to make up for absence Mohd Nazim says, “I have already informed my production house that I will be going home to Chandigarh for Eid. It’s an annual event and it’s a big celebration for us, since all our family members get together at that time. In order to ensure that the schedule of the show is not disrupted, I shot extra hours to make up for my absence. If I am shooting for 12 hours on a normal day, I put in an extra six-eight hours to ensure the smooth running of the show.”
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