Srinagar, June 26 (IANS) A chapter of Indian mythology will soon unfold on the small screen with a visual translation of the life of Karn through TV show “Suryaputra Karn”.
Being shot here since the past over two months, the show will narrate the story of Karn, a character from Hindu epic “Mahabharata”. It will also take the audience through his life after Kunti left him and his childhood days with his foster parents.
Producer of the show Siddharth Tewary, known for the show “Mahabharat”, asserts that the journey till now has been thrilling and difficult.
“The actual location is two hours away from Srinagar. It has been a difficult journey for me and my entire team to make the show so far. With the show, we are trying to give premium content. It is time we give quality content to TV audience. The medium is so big that we can’t avoid it,” Tewary told IANS.
A sneak peak into the show was given with the screening of a promo at the event on Thursday. The visually appealing clip was high on energy as emotions, action, larger-than-life shots and scenic location in the backdrop seemed to add a whole new dimension.
Terming Karn as a “tragic hero”, actor Aditya Redij, who will be seen in the title role, said that bringing out all the layers of Karn’s life was challenging.
“He is an epic character. I will try to do justice to it. I feel lucky to represent the iconic character at such an early stage of my career. I’m happy and nervous at the same time as playing Karn is a huge responsibility. I’m fascinated by the layers of Karn’s life. It will be a challenge to portray all those layers on TV,” Aditya told IANS in a group interview.
Other cast members like Mouli Ganguly (Radha– Karn’s foster mother), Anand Suryavanshi (Adhirath), child artist Uzair Basar (Radha’s son) along with Aditya turned up at the event in their character’s look.
Aditya, who has done serials like “‘Na Aana Is Des Laado” and “Bandhan”, is undergoing rigorous training to mould himself into the character of the Sony Entertainment Television show, which will go on air from Monday.
“I had to lose 8 kg to look a little younger. I’m following a strict diet. Also learning things like sword fighting and horse-riding. I’m also doing my own research on Karn by reading ‘Mrityunjay’ by Shivaji Sawant,” the actor said.
Aditya hopes to brush up some history facts through the show.
“One of the reasons to do the show was to get acquainted with our mythology. I didn’t know about Karn. In fact, I have not seen (the show) ‘Mahabharat’,” Aditya, who will begin shooting for the serial in Gujarat, said.
Gaurav Seth, marketing head of the channel, feels that the show will set a benchmark for other mythological shows on TV.
“With the scale of production, sequences and locations of Srinagar, we hope this will take narration of Indian mythologies on television to the next level,” Seth said at the press meet.
(The writer’s trip was at the invitation of Sony Entertainment Television. She can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in)