TV episode on Gumla tribals' poultry venture

GUMLA: Tribal women from Gumla will soon find a place of pride on national television with their entrepreneurship skill forming the backdrop of a popular TV series - Yeh Hai India Meri Jaan. The appearance of these rural women as characters in the story will lend a rustic charm and a realistic appeal to the narrative. Watch out for the 26{+t}{+h} episode of the serial, which is aired every Sunday from 9pm-10pm, for a glimpse into the lives of these women.
In fact, making a 27- episode serial was the brainchild of veteran film producer-director Saeed Mirza. Through this, he wanted to depict the varied and exciting life of the people of north India.
With this mission, a crew of 30 members led by Mirza, set out to film the district's tribal women who operate the state's biggest poultry cooperative, in September 2012.
After wrapping up shooting in Gujarat, Rajathan, Haryana, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Laddakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, UP and Bihar enroute Chhattisgarh and MP, the Hindi speaking belt of the country and finally Mumbai, they started their journey for the tribal heartland.
Sarita Devi, Sumati Devi and other tribal women who steer the poultry business with a 20 crore turnover will figure prominently in the serial.
The team arrived at Silam village, the centre of the poultry farm after reading an article, 'Gumla cooperative help tribal women stand on their feet," published in The Times of India.
"Yeh Hai India Meri Jaan - offers a blend of real-life stories and fictional characters. In a sense, the serial is in a docu-drama mode," said Swati Das, story compositor-cum-assistant director of the serial on phone from Mumbai.
Commissioned by Doordarshan, it has been made by Open Circle Films, Mumbai, said Mirza from Goa. "Yeh Hai India Meri Jaan focuses on the Aam Aadmi whom we hardly see or hear, an approach that is diametrically opposite from today's serials," added the noted filmmaker and author. Mirza was assisted by two other directors Virendra Saini and Sumit Khanna and assistant director Maurish Singh in this.