Kehta Hai Dil Jee Le Zara
Time: Monday to Thursday at 9:30 on
Sony TV
Producer: Shristi Arya, Goldie Behl
Director: Siddharth Sen Gupta
Story: Niranjan Iyer
The story so far - Set in Panchgani, Kehta Hai Dil Jee Le Zara is the story of Saanchi (
Sangeeta Ghosh) who is an unmarried girl at the age of 34. Having lost her parents at an early age she is a mature young lady who has taken over the responsibility of her fathers Jam and Jelly business while also taking care of her siblings - her younger brother and sister. She also has to look after her grandmas; her aaji (
Sulbha Despande) and nani (
Meenakshi Sethi). Both the grandmothers are worried about Saanchi's marriage and are eager to see her married and settled in life. However, Saanchi is keen on completing her duties towards her business and family.
Enters Dhruv, a young lawyer full of passion for life. A fun-loving young man he has many small naughty encounters with Saanchi and is staying as a paying guest at her friend Dilshad's (
Delnaaz Irani) house. Dilshad too is unmarried but unlike Saanchi is eager to find a young, handsome man for herself.
Saanchi is having problems at her factory as she has plans for expansion but loses on a big order as her cousin brother who owns the land that Saanchi has taken on lease to grow strawberries comes and creates trouble. While Saanchi is riddled with her problems on the personal as well as professional front, Dhruv comes as a breath of fresh air, however Saanchi is completely upset with his in-your face behavior.
What works -
Casting - Obviously the casting works! Casting Director Vishal Sharma has done a good job and has chosen the perfect actors for the show. While this was obviously the best choice for
Sangeeta Ghosh to make her comeback, even for Ruslaan it was the best choice to make his Television debut. Sulbha Deshpande as the Marathi aaji and
Meenakshi Sethi as the Punjabi nani, both are fit for the roles. Even the rest of the cast including Saanchi's brother and sister, her friend played by Delnaaz and the office staff all add enough support. Even a one episode wonder, the character who comes in as Shivam, Saanchi's marriage proposal was a good looking guy and decent actor.
Acting - When it comes to acting, Sangeeta is an ace as usual. Her effortless transformation from being the most responsible in the family to a vulnerable woman who has tears choked in her heart is something to watch out for. Showing no emotions on her face yet rejoicing on bagging a big order or crying her heart out when alone or showing a composed nature in front of her family, or giving a mindful to Dhruv when he lies to her, she is a natural actor in a wide range. You almost feel her pain as she talks about her responsibilities to Shivam when just a minute back she looks as if she likes him.
However, it is Ruslaan who is exceptional. Coming from films this guy has no hangovers and is too good at his job. The ever-smiling face, eager to please looks with the naughty tint in his eyes and saying his tongue-in-cheek dialogues, Ruslaan is a natural! Though his character is supposed to be fun loving and loud, he never comes across as irritating. His over-acting in some scenes is actually entertaining. It won't be long before Ruslaan has a huge fan following for being cute, adorable and very, very likeable.
Sulbha Deshpande should be a case study in natural acting and her mannerisms and dialogue delivery look as if she was always the character that she portrays! Even the actors who play Saanchi's siblings are well rehearsed when it comes to their scenes. Delnaaz who is once again cast as a lovable friend does complete justice to her role!
Story - Even though it is the cliched young boy meets a mature, unmarried girl which has earlier been tried and become successful in Astitva - Ek Prem Kahani, this time round it manages to look fresh! The treatment given to the story and the setting is what makes the difference. Niranjan Iyer who has just been applauded for his story for the film D-day, comes up with this gem for Television.
Along with the regular track of an unmarried girl, the story also has the business angle and soon the story should explore the reasons behind the rivalry between the cousins. If we are not mistaken then there should also be a back-story about Saanchi and she may even have a past love interest.
The dialogues by Purva Naresh look effortless when the characters speak them. They are just like what a family banter would sound like in any other household. The words make you break into smiles and laughter at appropriate places.
Sets -The location for the shoot itself is lovely. While a lovely corner of Mumbai's Film City has been replicated as Panchgani it definitely looks like as if it is the beautiful hill station. After watching those big, haveli type sets in every other show the cute brightly painted little cottages surrounded by natural greenery is more than welcome for the eager urban eyes. Since the shoot happened in the monsoons, the rains have been deftly blended into the storyline making the story as well as the look of the show beautiful.
Costumes - Saanchi wearing those lovely cotton kurtas or loose comfy pyjamas at night, Dhruv's red sweater, aaji's crisp cotton sarees and nani's Punjabi suits they are so much in sync with the story line. Ekta Gupta has done a wonderful job with the costumes!
All in all
Kehta Hai Dil... Jee Le Zara definitely has the Shristi Arya touch to it. Shrishti, who gave us not at all typical shows earlier too with unique sounding Lipstick and Twinkle Beauty Parlor manages to touch a chord with this show too.
Moments we like - Right from the first episode there are touching moments like the one when both the grandmas want to show Saanchi the wedding invitation card, when aaji puts oil in her hair and tries to tell her the difference between being ok and being happy, when they all try to emotionally blackmail each other, when Saanchi remembers her parents in times of needs and recollects how she would run to them with her report card when she was in school, like the grandmas lovely nok-jhonk between themselves and later how they both in unison like Dhruv during the mis-understanding and are happy when he says he can stay with them forever thinking that he can be a ghar-jamai which will put an end to all of their and Saanchi's troubles. Funny or emotional the moments are sure to stay with you and we can't wait for the romantic ones to begin!
What doesn't work -
There is hardly anything to not like in the show.
Sangeeta Ghosh does look nice in her Fab-Indiaish costumes but her hair always let loose on one side is a bit irritating. She is a busy lady whether at office or home so one cannot digest the fact that she is comfortable easily managing her long hair while doing all the chores all the time.
Also it does come as a contrast when we see Delnaaz, also shown as 30 plus and as yet unmarried being more than eager to find a groom for herself. Nothing wrong with that but when her eagerness gets transformed into an appetite for a young, handsome boy whom she is planning to get by keeping a young paying guest at home, it doesn't look hilarious. When you are trying to show the serious side of the story of an unmarried young girl it does look a bit odd. Humor and laughter is needed in shows but it could have been generated from other sources. As it is, the grandmas and others in the family do have a subtle humor base and so does Ruslaan's character who goes over the top but thankfully does not irritate.
Our take -
Kehta Hai Dil... Jee Le Zara is a fresh take on a love story between a young boy and a serious mature girl. If treated with care as it has been done so far, the show will do exceptionally well over the coming weeks. The fresh outdoor touch should stay and should be balanced with the indoor shoot. While we all know that the story may soon see a twist with all the problems that Saanchi is facing at the factory and with Dhruv being a lawyer it would be interesting to see what happens next?
