Television
To kiss, or not to kiss

The tape-and-trap scandal on India TV may have earned brought back the age-old debate about self-imposed censorship on TV but Zee TV at least has been quick to demonstrate that nothing inappropriate gets slipped in any of the shows and serials it airs.

Take Tumhari Disha for example. The show that is going the Mills and Boons way and which aired sensuous promos of the protagonists, Disha and DK coming closer and closer to each other got a taste of the sharp shears recently.

Viewers who were expecting the two to lock lips are in for a disappointment.

That simply won’t happen now and their chemistry will now only simmer and never crackle.

Some fans feel that channels are not being fair by imposing their morality on viewers.

But others say it is for the viewers to decide whether they want to watch their favourite stars to kiss or not to kiss.

If they don’t, then all they have to do is click the remote to make the censorship happen.

Keep tuned. That’s not the last you’ve heard on the controversy.

At 15, a sinfully evil role in The Crush skyrocketed her to stardom. Since then, her 12-year career has been full of highs like Clueless and Aerosmith Videos and crushing lows like Batman & Robin, Love’s Labour Lost. And through the roller coaster ride Alicia Silverstone has realised one thing — the glam world loves her.

The dream girl in the hit TV series The Wonder Years has gone back to the medium that launched her in the first place. She’s currently seen in the lead role in Miss Match on Star World for which she got a Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance.

"It’s an great role. I play a divorce lawyer moonlighting as a matchmaker for disgruntled clients. The role has managed to bring back some of the rich appeal that people fell for in Clueless," says the two-time MTV Movie award winner.

Considering her films have been biting the dust for some time, Alicia Silverstone would do well to stick to the small screen for now.

What is it that gets the goat of an accomplished star like Anuj Saxena? Unprofessional behaviour, a meandering script or the dilution of characters in the storyline?

A bit of all three. The real-life doctor-turned-CEO of a pharmaceutical company-turned-television star is said to be seething at the way his role is being diminished in Kkusum on Sony Entertainment Television. Life’s been a one-way ticket to stardom ever since he started playing Abhay Kapoor in Kkusum — a role that made him a household name. But now with the news that the soap is all set to become a bone-crunching action thriller, Anuj is bewildered at how he’ll fit into the new scheme of things.

But he’s not looking too worried as he awaits the release of his debut film Lips. He knows that one thing that Kkusum has ensured is that he’ll never be in the boom-and-bust cycle of stardom even if he walks out of this sindoor soap. —  NF

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