700 & counting

Sheetal

When Tenali Rama hit the television screens in 2017, who would have thought it would last so long? 700 episodes and three years later, ask lead actor Krishna Bharadwaj about how long did he think would this commitment last and he quips, “Frankly speaking, I thought it will be a six-month gig, let alone a year. And I am as amazed as the viewers are about the show exploring so many angles and pulling out all the stops to make it interesting each day.”

The show is entering its third adhyaay and Krishna is already doing a double role by playing the father Rama as well as his son Bhaskar. Now, with Bhaskar having his entire family with him, one can only wonder if Krishna will be seen in triple role any time soon. He answers, “There are bigger challenges for him and Rama with Pralayankar always being one-up on them. There is a lot in store for the viewers with the upcoming episodes of Tenali Rama as Rama is back to solve the cases in Vijayanagar in his very own quirky style, and also prepare his son, Bhaskar, for his life ahead.

Owing to the massive affection and support from the audiences, Tenali Rama is also celebrating its successful completion of 700 episodes. To celebrate this success, the team of Tenali Rama visited Chandigarh. Overwhelmed on witnessing the love and support from the viewers, Pankaj Berry, essaying the role of Tathacharya says, “The air of Punjab itself has something in it. I was excited to come to Chandigarh and meet our fans here. It means eating delicious food like chhole kulche and gol gappe.” Born in Kalka, Haryana, Pankaj did his graduation from the Department of Indian Theatre, Panjab University, Chandigarh. He says, “I am also doing movies. One of them is a Punjabi film titled Bingad Di Vohti. I plan to visit my department in Panjab University and meet some old friends.”

While Pankaj is exploring mediums other than TV, Krishna is happy with the show offering different roles and sequences to him. He says, “A story-based show like this, where each story lasts for five to six episodes, has a lot to offer.”