Zee TV's Punar Vivah: Re- marriage still a big no in Indian Society?

Zee TV is one entertainment channel that has always worked on concepts relevant to social issues. Before its new show Punar Vivah, Zee has creatively shown issues related to women through shows like ' Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo, Saath Phere, Ghar ki Lakshmi Betiyaan and so on.

Punar Vivah produced by Shashi-Sumeet Mittal, takes us through the journey of a man and a woman, who have faced a debacle in their first attempts at marriage, and are brave enough to give life a second chance. The issue of re-marriage is a very vital one in Indian society. Unlike women, re-marriage for men is still not a big issue.

To understand the issue at depth and the impact it holds, Zee organized a panel discussion with Vijay Shekar, Head, Zee News, Shashi Mittal, Producer of Punar Vivah, Dr. Archana Jambusaria, Counsellor , KumKum Chadda, Editor National News at Hindustan Times and Dr. Syeda Ruksheda, Psychiatrist and Psychotherapist on the panel.

Mittal began the discussion by explaining the concept of the show Punar Vivah. "The concept of Punar Vivah was evolved from the surrounding where I have stayed for a while and is based on something that has happened. Punar Vivah showcases the pain a man/woman has to go through before and after marriage, and we tried to touch upon that problem." Adding further, Mittal said, "The treatment of the show is positive, progressive and mature. It's not a preachy show that aims to propagate remarriage or drive-in a serious, social message. It also shows that men and women both need a companion and support."

Shekhar on the other hand debated, "Is this a fact, that women actually need a man. Can't she live her life without husband in today's time? Today a woman is smart and capable enough to give a bright future to her child and can manage herself too."

Ruksheda, a Psychatrist by profession agreed with Shekhar and added, "One's life would be complete with lover, husband/ wife or a partner, but there is not any rule that one should get married to get this. The problem lies not only in re-marriage but also when you are single/ divorcee or married. Mumbai is a city different from rest of the world, here things are different as people are more broadminded and are open to accept what they need. Parents are open to their children now and discuss the issues."

Jambusaria, pointed out that, " Re-marriage is not the only issue as people who are married face problems and just stretch their relationships. And when they are not happy with their marriage they look forward to extra-marital affair which is very common these days. The problem lies that people are not open to what they need - they think of their society, family and children before them. One should understand that, "you are the leader of society, society is not your leader'."

Sukesh Motwani, Head - Fiction, Zee TV, explained that, "While doing the research, people actually started relating their emotions to the shows concept. We have tried to touch all the aspects of re-marriage issues with the message and entertainment." Adding further, Motwani said, "Television writing is usually dramatic in nature with subliminal messages. Through Punar Vivah, we want to cater to basic human need. As we all know that story telling always thrive on conflicts and so we have to paint few characters negative to make the story impactful. The challenge that we have faced is, "how sensitively we sell the concept and the story on after-marriage' and "are we able to pass the right message on depiction of women through our show'".

During the panel discussion, a clip of the show was shown which explained that the process of convincing for re-marriage is a difficult task for both, the individual and the family. While they have gone through a dilemma in the past, it is difficult for a man and woman to think getting married the second time around. In such situations, children play very crucial roles as the decision lies with them. But today kids are accepting the fact of re-marriage.

The show delves into the dynamics of remarriage, showcasing the trials and tribulations that are a part of re-adjusting to a second life partner.

Conclusively Mittal said, "We got success in 6th episode and we can term it as victory, our lead actress Krutika got a call from one of her aunt's saying that, one lady actually wants her daughter-in-law to get married and live her life, it's all thanks to the concept of show. We would be taking this discussion across in India, following which, the next panel discussion would be held at Ahmedabad soon." | By Ranjana Gupta [ranjana(at)adgully.com]