Those who follow Tamil television serials can hardly wait for next week when new episodes will finally begin airing on channels. With the entry of actor Yashika Anand, what awaits Roja and Arjun in Sun TV’s hit soap Roja? Will Yashika’s character bring in a change in the lives of Roja (Priyanka Nalkari) and Arjun (Sibbu Suryan)?
The TV show became so popular that its duration has now been increased. The serial will now play from 7.00 to 8.00 pm from Monday to Saturday on the channel. First aired in 2018, Roja has completed close to 600 episodes.
What will the new couple – actors Krishna and Nakshatra Nagesh – bring to Sun TV’s Nayaki? What awaits viewers on Zee Tamil’s Sembaruthi? These are some of the burning questions in the minds of Tamil television soap opera fans.
Television serial fans were deprived of any drama ever since the lockdown halted all shooting. With the Tamil Nadu government allowing television serials to resume shooting, new content has been produced, new stars have joined some shows, some actors have been replaced, and new plot twists have been conjured up. The Tamil Nadu government allowed shooting to begin in the first week of June with some safety precautions in place. Up to 60 members are allowed to be part of shoots, increased from an initial limit of 20.
Some actors have been eager to join the sets and resume shooting. Actor Jai Akash, who plays the lead role on Zee Tamil’s Neethaane Enthan Ponvasantham, shares, “I’ve been really looking forward to joining the sets. In fact, I didn’t go to London and stayed behind because I didn’t want to disappoint fans. This serial is just 25 episodes old but I’ve got so much recognition from Tamil fans for my role. I think it’s equal to the response I got from Telugu fans when my film Anandam released."
Just last week, actor Radikaa Sarathkumar, who has Chithi 2 airing on Sun TV, shared that a few actors with health issues have had to be replaced. “#chithi2 and the show goes on. We had to replace actors who are down with health issues. Taken all necessary precautions and being safe is important,” she tweeted.
#chithi2 and the show goes on. We had to replace actors who are down with health issues. Taken all necessary precautions and being safe is important. Soon on @SunTV #primetime pic.twitter.com/ecSgpGNUNw
— Radikaa Sarathkumar (@realradikaa) July 16, 2020
Radikaa, who runs a production house and is the lead on Chithi 2, says, “Running a company is like holding a tiger by the tail. You can’t let it go. Also, this is a serial that has been doing well with the audiences, so we never thought of stopping it. Coming back to work was challenging because there were people with a lot of health issues.”
Moreover, actors Ponvannan, Nikhila and Shilpa from the show have been replaced by Nizhalgal Ravi, Gayathri and Jayalakshmi. “Actor Ponvannan had a lung infection while shooting. We thought he was allergic to something in the caravan at first. Just before we restarted shooting, he was diagnosed with lung infection. It’d be unfair for us to ask him to work. Another actor Nikhila is in Bengaluru and is seven months pregnant. Shilpa had a leg surgery. So we had to bring in replacements for their characters,” she adds.
The actor also tweeted a photo of herself wearing a face mask to show that all precautions are being followed. “I had to drill the importance of being safe into everyone’s head. We’re working with a restricted unit. We haven’t called actors who are older as well. So, the script had to exclude some actors,” she says. The show, which had to break for about four months, will be back with fresh content and new twists to the characters.
Devi Aadiparasakthi will air at 6.30 pm daily. Kalyana Veedu, Kanmani and Nayaki will be broadcast for half hour each from 8.00 pm onwards. Interestingly, Sun TV will also be telecasting a popular show from the 90s called Marmadesam, which had gone on to become a cult hit among fans. The show will air at 10.30 pm daily from July 27.
During the day, Pandavar Illam will air at 12.30 pm, Chandralekha at 2.00 pm and Magarasi at 2.30 pm on Sun TV.
Vijay TV will launch two new programmes – Bhagyalatchumi and Naam Iruvar Namakku Iruvar season 2 – beginning July 27. Bhagyalatchumi follows a middle-aged woman who toils for her family but is never appreciated by them. Namakku Iruvar season 2 will come as a spiritual sequel to the first season with some actors retained. Mayan from season one will continued to be played by actor Senthil while actor Ratchitha of Saravanan Meenakshi fame will play the role of Maha, Mayan’s pair.
In addition to these, the usual serials like Pandian Stores, Bharathi Kannamma, Ayutha Ezhuthu, Senthoorapoovey, Thenmozhi B.A., Eramana Rojavey, Bommukutti Ammavukku, Ponnukku Thanga Manasu, Sundari Neeyum Sundaran Naanum and Anbudan Kushi will continue to play during their respective time slots from Monday to Saturday.
Zee Tamil will begin telecasting TV serials with fresh content as per this new schedule:
Rettai Roja – 1.30 pm
Endrendum Punnagai – 2.00 pm
Raja Magal – 2.30 pm
Neethaane Enthan Ponvasantham – 7.00 to 8.00 pm
Gokulathil Seethai – 8.00 pm
Yaaradi Nee Mohini – 8.30 pm
Sembaruthi – 9.00 pm
Oru Oorula Oru Rajakumari – 9.30 pm
Sathya – 10.00 pm