Makers says ‘encore’, actors say ‘no more’

The end of a TV show or an actor’s ouster from it does not mean you won’t enjoy your favourite character’s antics anymore. Makers are keen to bring them back in the same avatar on another show. However, do the actors enjoy this? No, it seems. After Kavita Kaushik’s successful portrayal of a tough cop Chandramukhi Chautala in the show F.I.R, makers tried emulating her signature style in her role of an army doctor in a new show, Dr Bhanumati on Duty. However, it failed and Kaushik walked out of the show. “It was a huge blunder and I apologise to viewers for this debacle,” she says. Actor Shilpa Shinde stirred a controversy when she left a show that saw her as Angoori Bhabhi. Now she’ll be seen in a similar short series, in a similar getup, “but not as Angoori Bhabhi,” she clarifies. “The series is a spoof on the fight I had with the producers of my previous show, hence the same getup. But I won’t repeat the role,” adds Shinde.

TV’s favourite, actor Ali Asgar, whose character of Dadi in Comedy Nights with Kapil left everyone in splits, repeated the look with The Kapil Sharma Show but as Nani. “The loyalty of the audience remains the same,” says Asgar, who adds that there’s a flipside, too. “At the back of the mind, you’re thinking if the character will continue to be liked by the audience or not,” he says.

Dharam Pal Thaukur, director of The Kapil Sharma Show says they failed at attempts to separate Ali Asgar’s role of Dadi from him. “We created Nani and a begum, but people would still call him Dadi. We try to not cash on a hit character. So, we’re careful with Ali’s dialogues and acting,” he says.

Kavita Kaushik as Chandramukhi Chautala and Dr Bhanumati Shilpa Shinde as Angoori Bhabhi in her previous show; (right) in the same getup in a new short series

Actor Ali Asgar as Dadi and Nani on two different comedy shows