Revisiting Kasautii...
With the once popular Kasautii Zindagii Kay set to return later this month, MANASI Y MASTAKAR takes a trip down memory lane
In 2001, Kasautii Zindagii Kay introduced us to lovers who were meant to be together, but never could be... Cezanne Khan (as Anurag Basu) with his dimpled cheeks, rosy lips, and silky straight hair made every girl swoon. And Shweta Tiwari (as Prerna Sharma) with her girl next door charm, became a role model for teenage girls (and the ideal bahu for several moms-inlaw). Anurag and Prerna were the epitome of love for those (children included) who watched daily soaps as a means of entertainment – social media, internet, smartphones were not so popular back then. One rejoiced and cried with Anurag and Prerna, and cursed Ekta when she killed off Anurag and Mr Bajaj (played by Ronit Roy), only to take a 20 year leap with a new actor playing Anurag. The new actor, television’s heartthrob of the early 2000s, Hiten Tejwani, fit the role like a glove. Though you continued to miss Cezanne, Hiten added a new life to the character. Ironically, Hiten comes back as a business tycoon Pratham Mittal, a popular character he played in another Ekta special, Kutumb. Another irony of Kasautii... was that Ronit and Hiten, who played Mr Bajaj and Anurag respectively, essayed the roles of father and son in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi
Bahu Thi: Hiten played Karan, Mihir Virani’s (Ronit Roy) love child with Mandira Bedi. One episode also featured Prachi Desai, who later became a household name with Kasamh Se (another Ekta special) as Bani...
Though the entire star cast of the reboot has not been revealed yet, we do know that Erica Fernandes is the new Prerna, and Parth Samthaan, the new Anurag. There are also rumours of small screen’s popular faces Barun Sobti suiting up as Mr Rishabh Bajaj and Hina Khan stepping into Urvashi Dholakia's stilettos to play the antagonist Komalika. While the promos are garnering a lot of attention, and Ekta is going all-out to promote the Kasautii... reboot, we are just hoping it lives up to the expectations of the serial’s fans.