Show Review: Family drama ‘Sanyukt’ on Zee TV

For long, Zee TV has been home to family dramas. The latest in the line of such shows is ‘Sanyukt’. Produced by Saregama Productions, ‘Sanyukt’ was launched on September 6, 2016, replacing the show, ‘Meri Saasu Maa’. The daily soap airs in the early prime time slot of 7.30 pm, Monday to Friday.

While watching the show, one might be reminded somewhat of the Amitabh Bachchan-Hema Malini starrer ‘Baghban’. Like the movie, ‘Sanyukt’, too, is the story of a father and his four sons and the strained relations between them.

The show revolves around the lives of the Mehta family clan, their relationships with each other, their joys, sorrows and eventually their love for each other. Govardhan Mehta, the family patriarch, is a simple and traditional man and lives with his wife, Ila Mehta. They have four sons – Parimal, Niranjan, Rahul and Sameer and one daughter, Devyani, who is married. Uday, Palak, Bijal, Nikita and Punita are his four grandchildren, who complete the Mehta family. Govardhan Mehta has a dream of living together with this family, resolving past grudges and uniting everyone. Will he succeed of making his ‘house’ into a ‘home’? This forms the crux of the story.

The show begins with caretakers of the Mehta family home decorating the haveli to welcome Govardhan Bhai mehta (Kiran Kumar) and his wife Ila Mehta (Shubhangi Latkar), who are paying a visit after three years and will soon be celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary. Upon his arrival, Govardhan greets his faithful servant like a family member.

Once he enters the haveli, he starts recalling the old days when the entire family used to live together under one roof, when suddenly he is boisterously greeted by his grandchildren.

Govardhan’s sons are introduced and it soon becomes clear that there are underlying tensions. Rahul, his middle son, insults Govardhan while under influence of alcohol, which hurts him a lot. But Harsh's wife Gayatri tries to save the situation by saying that his son actually loves him and it was this love that made him come to the family get together after receiving just one phone call.

‘Sanyukt’ also shows how Govardhan and his wife Ila keep the romance alive between them with a tinge of naughtiness, when he asks her to dance for him to an old Hindi film song, ‘Leke Pehla Pehla Pyar’.

So far, the show has steered away from showing any saas-bahu conflicts, instead focussing on the father-son relationships.

Adgully feels that ‘Sanyukt’ has a relevant concept, and given today’s fragmented and nuclear families, will surely strike a chord with the viewers. Veteran actors Kiran Kumar and Shubhangi Latkar earn brownie points for their strong portrayals. The entire concept is being portrayed effortlessly on the small screen. It will be interesting to see how the story develops in the coming weeks.

Main cast:
Kiran Kumar as Govardhan Bhai Mehta
Shubhangi Latkar as Ila Mehta
Harsh Vashisht as Parimal Mehta
Namrata Thapa as Gayatri Parimal
Mohit Sharma as Niranjan Mehta
Urvashi Sharma as Rita Niranjan Mehta
Mahinder Singh as Rahul Mehta
Suraj Kakkar as Sameer Mehta

For more twists and turns, keep watching ‘Sanyukt’ on Zee TV @7.30 pm, Monday-Friday.