At present, both the small and big screen Kannada industry work in tandem with each other. While previously the movie industry looked down up the local TV industry as a poor cousin, things have changed now with the popularity of Kannad serials. Later, when Internet enabled entertainment came into exisitence, it resulted in small and bigger screen collaborations with a common goal, which was to retain their audience. Hence, interchange of talents and makers on both sides kept the audience interested.
This is why experts believe that a lot of movie stars are being roped in as judges, hosts and mentors and even as guests to boost programmes and shows on television. In turn, the film industry would get sufficient air time for promotion of movies, and later telecast it on TV for a decent price, which has now become a prime source of profitable revenue for the film producers.
It even started making inroads into regional television too, and Kannada TV has seen numerous talents appearing on both mediums. Recently several movie stars have become major attractions in serials, where they play guest roles. The latest to join this bandwagon of actors from film to TV as guests is actress Ashika Ranganath, amongst others. “I straightway made my debut in movies, and I had never workedfor television. It was a great opportunity to work for a TV soap. It was a fun filled experience to play a guest star for a special episode in the serial,” says Ashika, who adds that she even got to perform a special dance number on the occasion for the serial Sarvamangala Mangalye on Star Suvarna.
She adds that the makers of the serial approached her for a guest role, as the soap witnesses a twists in its tale during Dasara celebrations. It is not just about a star actors being invited as special guests, the local film industry is inspired by Bollywood promotions, where the entire film team becomes part of special episodes featuring to promote their film.
“Recently, the team of Life Jothe Ondh Selfie were part of a special episode on Brahmagantu serial. Serials have become more commercial now. It is no more just atte sose sagas. Many such exercises are taken up to sustain viewership and stay on top of the TRP game,” shares director Prashanth.
Acttess Shanvi Srivastava who did a guest act in Seetha Vallabha feels that television is a good platform to boost one’s career and that it is a different experience to perform for a telly audience. Actress Manvitha Harish who is busy with Nagathihalli Chandrasekhar’s next directorial wraps up by saying that small screen actors enjoy immense recognition, and hence it is a great opportunity to be a part of such projects as guests. She did it for the serial Muddulakshmi.
