Revenge is TRP king

Recently, there were several online requests to grant euthanasia to Puttagowri! Die-hard fans of Puttagowri from the five-year-old mega serial Puttagowri Maduve are familiar with this ‘most powerful women’ on Kannada television, who cannot and will not die! On a lighter note, the humble request for assisted-suicide by the online communities was all a part of the serial being trolled for its recent mind-blowing sequences wherein Puttagowri escapes death even after falling from a hill into a deep jungle. She also later escaped the ‘coils of death’ when encountering a deadly snake, and the deadliest cut of them all — she manages to stay alive even after a ghastly attack by a ferocious tiger! Miraculous escapes from death to return seeking revenge have been the main tools of several mega-tales. And the audience seems to have been enjoying this drama unfold. Bengaluru Chronicle reports on these miracles and the revenge saga. 

“I would normally see the action sequences of Super Star Rajinikanth and Telugu star Balaiah in movies being trolled for fun by the online communities but Puttagowri seems to have overtaken even them! With her latest miraculous escape from death, she has become the ‘most powerful person’ appearing on the front page! I am not a great fan of TV serials but after hearing about it, I ventured to watch the deadly episode where Puttagowri accidentally falls from a hill into a deep jungle. Miraculously she doesn’t die, and even more miraculously, is barely hurt! Even her costume is unruffled and footwear intact. I wondered whether she took a dive into a pool. What follows is beyond an ordinary man’s imagination. She escapes death from a snake, tiger, and later from some ‘wild’ people too. I am now a big fan of Gowri. I have watched these episodes with so much interest,” smiles Sanjana Murthy, a bank official and serial lover.

Interestingly, Ramji, who has been directing this drama for over five years, maintains that he is undisturbed by such trolls and justifies the popularity behind the serial. He had reportedly explained that it is not the first time his serial has been trolled online!

Subramanya, a TV analyst feels that in most TV serials, logic takes a back seat, or is completely missing! “The audience simply loves senseless and illogical sequences — especially women who constitute a large chunk of watchers. As long as the protagonist and the villain stay alive, the TRP stays alive! In most cases, even after the death of a character, he or she makes a miraculous comeback to seek revenge and the saga continues. Look-alikes, memory loss and avarice — such permutations and combinations at at their creative best. If you are a tele-serial lover, logic never applies,” he adds.

Coming back to Puttagowri, in an earlier episode, she conquers death even after being ‘diagnosed’ with cancer! She does not even die when buried alive by the antagonists.

“In almost every teleserial, revenge works well and keeps the audience in constant suspense. However, when the audience thinks that they have had enough, the stories come to an abrupt end, along with a much-needed death!” Subramanya signs off.