`Sthree' is back
Shilpa Nair Anand
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Vinaya Prasad will be seen again in `Sthree,' the sequel to the first Malayalam mega serial.
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Photo: Vipin Chandran
BACK AFTER A BREAK: Vinaya Prasad.
Hers was the serial (`Sthree') that changed the semantics of television serials. As Vinaya Prasad puts it, she was the original sthree on Malayalam television. Scores of women suffered with her, cried with her and laughed with her. Vinaya's portrayal tugged at the heartstrings of women. `Sthree' will be back on Asianet, which is telecasting the sequel to Yantra Media's serial after it was first telecast eight years ago.
Hesitant acceptance
Vinaya Prasad almost did not do the serial, the first time around. It was the persistence of the serial's director Shyamsunder that led her to do the serial. "I was already doing a serial for Udaya TV and did not want to do another serial. Shyam called me, I was not very keen considering the time factor involved. He then called me after a couple of weeks. That was when I thought I would give it a shot. I made it very clear that I would not do it for more than three months. He agreed, saying that there was always the option of doing away with the character, and so I agreed to do the role for a couple of months." And the rest is television history.
After 10 to 15 episodes of the serial were aired, Vinaya says she realised that Indu had become "a pet in most Malayali homes" and did not want to quit and fortunately Yantra Media thought so too. The serial went on to complete 400 episodes in two years. Vinaya Prasad became a household name in Kerala with `Sthree.' However, besides essaying Indu she has acted in several serials and Malayalam films as well. She recently acted in the Tamil blockbuster `Chandramukhi.'
For her, acting in the sequel to `Sthree' is an honour and pleasure, "the manner in which things worked out can only be called coincidence. I had wrapped up work on a Kannada serial and that is when Yantra Media approached me with the new `Sthree.' I immediately agreed." She reiterates that the gap has not made a difference.
The affection that Indu garnered from those who followed the serial, astounded Vinaya. A 90-year-old woman from Thrissur, who had not left her house in 15 years came to see Vinaya while she was shooting, held her hand and declared that it would not matter if she died as she had met Indu. "That is the kind of affection I have received from viewers and that is the greatest appreciation as far I am concerned," says Vinaya.
Vinaya dismisses criticism about `Sthree' being nothing more than tearjerker. She reasons "Most women have to or are dealing with one difficult situation or another. There is a feeling of identification when women see another woman's sorrow. They realise that it is not so bad after all. And by the way everyone likes a pavam sthree (a simple and naοve woman)."
New version
In Bangalore, where Vinaya is based, Malayalis have approached her asking her, what she calls the "instinctive question" as to whether she was essaying the pavam sthree and some even going as far as to suggest that she should essay the `pavam sthree.'
The new version of `Sthree' is contemporary. The new edition has a middle-aged Indu and Hari and their three children dealing with an entirely new set of problems. And in keeping with the trend in most tele-serials, `Sthree' too has its share of negative female characters. Vinaya's take on that is that attitudes of women have undergone a sea change and that the serial is just a reflection of that change.
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