May 22, 2010 (Sampurn Wire): Where there’s creativity, there ought to be clashes too. Difference of opinion is a healthy thing but care should be taken that no lone voice is dominating all. Television is a medium where you can please only a few but it should never be at the cost of displeasing most.
Surprisingly, this displeasure allegedly took place on the sets of India’s number one sitcom Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah.
The alleged tyrant is director Dharmesh Mehta, while the aggrieved party comprises of writers Raju Odetra, Rajan Upadhyay, and certain actors.
The writer’s bane is that the director chops off their script, which invariably leads to disappointment among those actors who are deprived of footage.
We tried speaking to the concerned parties but in vain. Expectedly, none came forward to speak on this issue, and most of them vehemently denied such disagreement.
However, a little birdie from the sets spilled the beans.
“The issue seems to have been solved now. Earlier, the writers Raju Odetra and Ranjan Upadhyay had literally vowed to quit if the director Dharmesh Mehta continued with his arrogant ways. Mehta would pay no heed to their grievances and simply called the shots as per his wishes. As a result, the writer found their script being chopped many times, thereby indirectly affecting the actors who were deprived of footage. The ones who are always spared with such blushes are the lead actors Dilip Joshi, Disha Wakani and Shailesh Lodha.
Their problems refused to recede and that’s when they threatened to quit the show. The issue was discussed with the channel and production, and it looks like there’s parity between the warring parties for now,”
said a source.
Looks like there’s a temporary truce but don’t be surprised if tempers flare up yet again. After all, this is a common phenomenon in tinsel town.
— Mayur Lookhar / Sampurn Wire
