TV Show Review | Veera: Refreshing change from the monotony; Rated 3 Stars
The most anticipated launch of ‘Veera’ premiered on Indian television on 29th October 2012 on Star Plus at 10.30 pm. This new offering from the channel stresses on the most important human relationships in life. ‘Veera’ glorifies the husband/wife relationship along with another equally important one which can be considered the building block of a family i.e. the bond between a brother and a sister. In its endeavour to keep exploring multifaceted relationships, Star Plus has come up with this show emphasizing on the brother-sister bonding. In a world driven by materialism, family bonds have diluted. There is usually an agenda attached with building and maintaining relations. The joint family system has evolved into nuclear families and facing the challenges that come with it have fragmented families further.
Strained relations, mundane pressures breaking marriages and dysfunctional families are a simple manifestation of the complex lives that an average householder is living or candidly struggling with. In these testing times, the love between Veera and Ranvijay becomes a beacon of hope for people. Veera is a story of complex human relations but narrated through the simple lens of the innocent love between Ranvijay who becomes a mother-figure for his little sister Veera.
This show has been shot outdoors in Punjab which gives a refreshing feeling to viewers. Veera, her family and her relationship with Ranvijay is what this touching story is all about.
The story is set in Punjab where in the opening scene we see prayers being offered at a gurudwara in the village of Pritampur. The scene shifts to a local dhaba where a young boy is seen snatching something before he flees the scene. It is our protagonist Ranvijay, the role played by little Bhavesh Balchandani. He has a fascination for collecting bottle caps and that is what he seems to have stolen from the dhaba! A cute eight year old Ranvijay is portrayed as an emotional and endearing character. He observes his friends celebrating the raksha bandhan festival along with their sisters. He realizes the need for a sister and yearns for a sibling he can share his life with. The parents, Sampooran Singh and Ratanjeet Kaur a loving couple (Sudhanshu Pandey and Sneha Wagh) too discuss how important it is for a child to have a sibling given the fact that Sampooran Singh too was an only child. Ratanjeet is a proud wife, loving, caring mother and a positive woman who values her self respect. Sampooran too a loving husband and a responsible father is the Sarpanch of the village who is respected by one and all.
A diversion in the story takes place when Ranvijay’s father being the Sarpanch is asked to resolve differences between two neighbours in a tussle in Pritampur.
Ranvijay goes to meet his friend Dalbir who is seen tending to his little sister. He enquires from him as to how he too could get a sister for himself. Dalbir innocently tells him that babies come from hospitals. Ranvijay wastes no time and heads towards the local hospital. He is on the lookout for a baby and spots one all alone in one of the rooms of the hospital. Ranvijay is fascinated by the cherubic child. The parents are apparently busy with the doctor to take instructions for the child’s well being. When they return to their room they are shocked to find their baby missing. To their utter dismay they find the bed empty and several bottle caps lying on the bed which perplexes them.
The parents in order to resolve their predicament plan to complain to the Sarpanch (Ranvijay’s father ) and make their way to his house. Little does Sampooran Singh know that his innocent son has brought home a little baby and is in awe of the little one!
The episode ends leaving viewers eager to know the outcome and reactions especially that of Ranvijay’s parents who have absolutely no inkling about his need for a sibling. An impressive story with Ranvijay playing his part well .He has portrayed natural emotions and delivered his dialogues with ease. There is an air of innocence and sincerity about him and is an endearing child. In this poignant drama where children are the main characters there is an exceptional display of acting talents.
Children and adults being the target audience the former can identify themselves with Ranvijay who has done justice to his role. The serial will appeal to children since the protagonists themselves are kids dealing with pressures they face in everyday lives. But the time slot in this case could be shifted to an earlier slot given the fact that most children retire early in order to attend schools, classes etc. the next day and may not be able to watch it at the late hour.
The social evils prevalent in society today too have been captured in this episode especially when the new parents find their baby missing from the hospital. It is a common occurrence nowadays to hear of new born babies being kidnapped in hospitals. But here in ‘Veera’ we are pleasantly surprised when we realize that the baby is safe with Ranvijay!
Instead of pitching it as a regular brother-sister story, the show brings a new element to viewers. The marketing campaign has been around the line of the show which is ‘Anokhi Ma’. The show is of a different genre and league and presented very differently. The location is Punjab where festivity and warmth is natural for people of this region. Of late there are many saas-bahu shows on television and this seems a refreshing change from the monotony that we have been subjected to. Considering the fact that this show is about strained relationships, rocky marriages, troubled family ties, routine pressures and hollow materialistic existence, will this be a sad show? Only time can tell.
A tale of a brother and sister’s bond will be evident in the ensuing episodes. To know more about Veera, her family and her relationship with Ranvijay watch the show daily to witness how the emotional drama unfolds to bring touching moments on our small screens!
Adgully gives ‘Veera the show with a difference’ 3 stars out 5 stars!