Confessions of a Drama Queen – Part 2

For every 90s kid, the Doordarshan evoked nostalgia with all their programmes and jingle ads. For me, more than DD, my teenage was defined by the cable channel subscription as described earlier. I kept on shying away accepting that part of me, as its often looked down upon when someone says they watch ITV shows. Being in your 40s, help us form the DGAF attitude so easily, that I am listing down my journey now.

The easiest way for a young introvert mom to catch some me time is to either read books, or watch shows. You don’t need anyone to babysit your kid, and can take time out when they are at playschool or when they play in their own world with their toys at night. Hence it was easy for me to get used to the shows airing on TV, soon after her cartoon time.

Aashiqui 2 was a hit movie released in 2013 and I was addicted to the songs. (Our kid too – we have her recorded rendition of the song as sweet memory!). When “Meri Aashiqui Tumse Hi (MATSH)” was aired in 2014 on Colors TV, it was the song that lured me in. For someone who grew on Ekta Kapoor’s K serials, the story didn’t mattered much. The chemistry of the actors usually was the hook that brings in the audience like me. “Nisha Aur Uske Cousins (NAUC)” was for young college audience and aired simultaneously on Star Plus. The young nok-jhok vibes of Nibir was a relief from the drama on the other show.

As soon as these shows ended, Sony Liv aired two fresh shows “Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi (KRPKAB)” and “Ek Duje Ke Vaaste (EDKV)” in 2016. Both had fresh banger catchy OSTs and if the jodi chemistry was the hook, music was what sealed them for me. Unlike other shows, the story of KRPKAB and its screenplay was very clean and beautiful and mesmerised the writer in me. It was very naturally progressing and though there was the usual Saas Bahu drama, it was not at all dramatic. The conflicts were real, with no unnecessary third angles, infidelity or memory loss, re-marriages. And then in 2017, “Yeh Un Dinon Ki Baat Hai (YUDKBH)” started which brought back 90s nostalgia in me. By this time, the toddler grew up and I had full day to myself. Along with venturing out of home, figuring out my hobbies, and alternate careers, the following years upto Covid passed by smoothly. Now, this year, I have fallen back to yet another show, “Tu Juliet Jatt Di (TJJD)” based on college love story in Chandigarh.

Just like in books, I realised I am attracted to the love stories than fantasy, thriller or crime stories. The shipping of the jodi and their chemistry, then discussing over the plots and scenes with online audience on Twitter, doing the character analysis, guessing future plots and twists, seeing the edits made by fans on Instagram on our favourite songs, appreciation posts on the actors and the actresses, fangirling over them, watching the interviews, smiling, giggling, crying, all adds to the adrenaline experience. Awaiting major plot events, the buildup to it, the trending of hashtags for milestone episodes and crash outs on social media if the track goes downhill, you feel like you are part of a community with a whole bunch of strangers.

If Robin Williams in “Dead Poets Society” talked about Carpe Diem, I did try to make life extraordinary in my own way. Not by doing anything extraordinary but by living on my instinct every single day. And when he quoted “But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.” , I meant it as to observe the feelings in all the people and stories around us. In real and on reel.