Sunday, March 4, 2001		Television

EKTA Kapoor sure has father Jeetendra’s drive and knack for making big money. With over 30 programmes running simultaneously on various channels, the market savvy young lady is a veritable fount of energy.

Her latest offering is Karam on Sabe TV, Tuesdays 8.30 p.m. It is once again a ‘family drama’ a genre she has mastered to near-perfection.

The serial is about two families who are looking forward to a future full of happiness and hope of bonding their children into matrimonial bliss.

However, fate has strange designs for Mansi, who is engaged to Jai. One misdeed on part of Jai shatters her and sets her thinking the unthinkable — of dropping all her life’s plans and going her own way.

Then follow a series of incidents that shake up the two families. Will Mansi and Jai emerge unscathed from this mess? Find out in this engaging drama of human emotions and conflicts.

Continuing its regionalisation drive in South Asia, CNN has launched a new programming block, CNN at 10, to suit India prime time viewing.

The half hour block is a line-up of Q&A with Riz Khan (Mondays to Wednesdays); CNN indiadotcom (Thursdays) and Style South Asia (Fridays).

Riz Khan kick-started the show with stories from India and gave viewers an opportunity to ask questions directly to newsmakers interviewed each day by phone, fax or e-mail. The choice of the invited celebrity was immaculate — Shabana Azmi. She is as articulate as any international speaker and has a presence few can rival in the country.

If this was a sneak perview of things to come, the Riz Khan show is sure to give its rivals a run for their programming.

Life’s a constellation of recurring problems, or so Aanchal Ki Chaon Mein on Zee TV, Tuesdays, 9.30 p.m. would have us believe.

The serial centres around a typical middle class family where the parents are deceased and their role has been taken up by the eldest child — Lalita (Reema Lagoo), who works in a private firm and brings up her two brothers’ Ajay, Sandeep and sister Madhavi.

Brother Sandeep weds Radhika, a rich Gujarati girl against her parent’s wishes. The father is furious and swears to break up their marriage. The other brother too falls prey to life’s evils. Sister Madhavi falls in love with an already married man and is pushed into a vortex of suffering and despair.

If you agree with the producers that this is a family entertainer, it’s fine. If you don’t, then pick up your remote and start channel surfing!

For kids — and the older set — this one’s a joy to behold. Sheep In The Big City on Cartoon Network, Sundays, 5 p.m. chronicles the perilous adventures of a sheep trying to make it in a new town.

It’s a classic livestock-out-of-water story about a sheep named Sheep who runs away from a farm and hides out in a big city because a top secret military organisation is after him.

But he has to face typical big city problems — like finding work and an apartment, setting up social life and avoiding being beaten by a rich guy with a stainless steel wig.

Most young urban professionals would relate to many situations Sheep gets into. From falling in love, dealing with the pitfalls of modern technology, to pursuit of status in society.

The storyline combines imagination and real-life situations that viewers across the board will enjoy. A mix of juvenile antics and humour that makes this livestock-driven comedy very watchable.

It’s a gift all music lovers are going to cherish. Whispering Melodies a new album from Tips harks back to the innocent sixties when music was still serious business in Bollywood.

The album contains 14 nostalgic songs re-mixed by Tabun and rendered by Babul Supriya and Chandana Dixit. The gems include Kitni Akeli (Talaash), Tumne Mujhe Dekha (Teesri Manzil), Ek Pyar Ka Nagma Hai (Shor), Dheere Dheere Machal (Anupma) and more. But more than the album it is the video of the song Kitni Akeli which has been shot imaginatively and captures the essence of the golden years of Hindi film music.

This is a far cry from Indian hospitals. It’s all about what goes on behind the closed doors of a trauma centre. Emergency rooms in advanced countries harbour more drama per minute than most places on earth. Those who come here will never be the same again.

Discovery Channel’s Trauma Tuesdays, 9 p.m. goes on location at hospitals to capture the life-and-death urgency of a real trauma bay. The highly popular series returns for its fourth season, to convey the roller coaster ride of crisis medicine.

The series focusses on trauma bays, ambulances and medical-rescue helicopters, drawing viewers into the world of real emergencies where split-second life and death decisions are made.

Doctors and nurses explain how they make their decisions, the advanced equipment they use and the wrenching emotions involved in the battle of saving lives and how thy manage to create a sense of normality in their lives. An immensibly watchable show.

— Mukesh Khosla