Khayalon ki Mallika...

Mischievous, peppy, candid and snappy. With all that, it doesn’t take a genius to know how she manages to get into the shoes of the multifarious characters on screen. She’s done a variety of roles, from anchoring shows to playing the nefarious Mallika on television…Actor Rakshanda Khan talks with Paarth Joshi about the world of television and the fun in playing a negative role

A CREATIVE BLOCK... Unfortunately because of the present format, there is a lot of resistance to creativity in television. The ‘daily soap’ syndrome keeps everybody — from the scriptwriters to the actors — on their toes. It is taxing to come out with five episodes every week. The stress is bound to show! One show a week will put all of us at ease.

TOO MANY SAAS-BAHU SAGAS... The television soaps with the saas-bahu sagas are getting monotonous but then no one can deny that they sell. And the proof lies in the TRP’s. Only when the audience stop watching them, the producers will stop making them. Innovation will only creep in after saturation. Hasn’t Bollywood changed from the boy-meets-girl to crossover cinema? Television too will change. In fact, in the coming decade, television will become more realistic. The high voltage drama will give way to light hearted and simple comedies.

BAD GIRLS HAVE MORE FUN... The negative roles definitely get more attention. I guess bad has some how become good. While the good girls get to cry, the bad ones get to have lots of fun. A negative character gives more scope to detailing. Also in such roles, one can experiment a lot as far as mannerisms and characterisation is concerned.

MORE IS TOO MUCH.. I agree that make up, styling and dressing in some of the serials is definitely over the top. But then, there are number of serials where in costumes are realistic and detailing is considered important. Portraying the perfect look is very essential as it says a lot about the character.