Yeh youth maange more

Switch on the television and these are the options for you to choose from – masala reality shows, tear-jerker saas-bahu sagas or comedy shows filled with cliched jokes.
Switch on the television and these are the options for you to choose from – masala reality shows, tear-jerker saas-bahu sagas or comedy shows filled with cliched jokes. Though a large chunk of the audience comprises the youth, all that's being offered for them are an uneven mix of reality shows like Indian Idol and thrillers like CID or a few comedy shows.And, if the Indian youth is waiting for something as interesting as Friends or Seinfeld, then the wait would be for long, as our serial makers seem to be in no mood to serve anything that caters to the younger crowd.
Says Sandeep Sikand, Sony's creative director, "The Indian TV scene is definitely changing but at a very slow pace. It's true that the audience has a limited choice, but there are many new concepts waiting to be explored. I hope people get bored by the daily soaps and switch to something different."
Sab TV recently started four new shows for the youth. Says NP Singh, COO of Sony Entertainment Television, "India is a young country and we need to make shows which they would appreciate. We need to break away from the monotonous saas bahu kitchen politics and think young." These shows will act as a refreshing change for the youngsters who have limited choice.
Even the actors are bored with the old themes. Sweta Keswani who was in Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii and Des Main Nikla Hoga Chaand says,"I was fed up of my roles in these soaps. How long could I have carried on playing those evil and malicious characters?"
Siddharth Basu agrees that there are limited shows for the youth. "Look at the faces and characters on TV, they look like mothballs. You see characters with arrested attitudes and regressive values, refusing to grow up."
Manasi Parekh, who acted in India Calling and is now in a serial called 4, feels there's a dearth of good shows. "We have many emotional dramas but only a few comedy shows. And these dramas are like the staple diet for many. We need to create youth-specific shows."