Daily soaps have become a factory now: Mandira Bedi

Actor Mandira Bedi (below) might be missing from action on the tube nowadays, but clearly the actor is in no rush to take up something that she doesn’t connect with. Having been part of iconic daily soaps, such as, Shaanti and Kyunkii Saas Bhi Kabhi Thi, Mandira, who has witnessed a complete transition in the world of TV, cannot relate to the content shown in the current shows.

“I don’t know what kind of content is being made now! It’s ironic that after being a part of one of India’s first daily soaps, I’m saying this. Production houses have become like a factory, churning out shows. Basically, what you see today is shot three or two days ago. Makers rely on the ratings only. If they go well, they continue with the track, and if they don’t, they shift to another track. It’s very volatile.”

Earlier, show-makers were secure about the kind of content they made. So they would make episodes beforehand, she explains. “The entire show used to be made and then aired. Shanti was 20 years ago and we still had a bank of two months. What we shot today would come on air after two months. And, in between if we wanted to revamp the set, we had time to do it,” she says.

Mandira also points out that actors nowadays have hectic schedules and they can’t plan a holiday. She says, “Back then, we could take three weeks off without much hassle. Today, that’s not

possible.”