Television celebs who drop in on households at prime time have a huge fan base. A few of the enthusiastic viewers logged in to tell us why they hate Barun Sobti and love Sanaya Irani so much.

Ever since Iss Pyar Ko Kya Naam Doon? on Star Plus ended, viewers have been requesting daily soap directors to cast Sanaya Irani and Barun Sobti together in a new show, ‘coz they simply can’t make do without their fave jodi every day. Now we know that Barun quit television to try his luck in movies, like so many TV stars do, but this decision did not go down too well with his fans. They believe that Barun is being rude and ungrateful to his ardent fans by ditching them…really? We picked our favourite comments that express this sentiment to a T.

Sunil Thakur: Barun Sobti is a quitter and his fans are crazy, becuz they end the ipkknd show becuz of Barun Sobti and he didn’t give a damn about you fans, when you were crying for him to return, did he return NO. Barun Sobti did what he wants and he doesn’t care what you wanted from him and he won’t listen to his fans. Barun and Sanaya are history get over it and bring in an new ASR man who we all trust and who is reliable like Mohit Sehgal or Harshad Chopra and not Barun Sobti he is unpredictable and untrustworthy.

Uslam: Barun Sobti we are going to give you or your family something to remember us IPKKND fans by and you will never ever forget us. We hate you so much because of IPKKND show has ended because of your fans and you Barun Sobti and your family will have to pay for it. If our IPKKND show is return with Mohit to be ASR then bygones would be bygones.

On the other hand, some who are bonkers about Sanaya Irani don’t wish to hear anything even remotely negative about their favourite young lady. When we said that we’d like to see the ‘talented’ actor do something different, anything besides rom-coms, readers responded aggressively with abuses et al, defending their fave star.

Sadaf: Sanaya Irani is an incomparable actress on Indian telly right now. Not one actress on TV does as well as her. It is torture to watch the other actresses after you have watched Sanaya. Enough said.

Prachi: I doubt who made u writers and who have given u jobs, u dont know ur work properly. Sanaya is d most versatile actress on tv so think before writing crap and oh sorry how u will think it need brain and u dont have that. Plz never come in front of me I will slap u. Sanaya is d best actress on TV.

Uffff… need we say more?

“I am shooting for a TV serial after a year. There are a lot of mixed emotions, but I am enjoying it because I am shooting with the crew of Sasural Genda Phool,” the 24-year-old said.

The actor will be seen in Zee TV’s new show Badalte Rishton Ki Daastan, where she will be performing at a party.

Apparently the crew working in Zee TV’s Badalte Rishton Ki Daastan was the same team behind Sasural Genda Phool, which aired on Star Plus. Ragini, who went on to host Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, said, “I was missing the crew and not only the show. We had spent a lot of lovely moments together.”

The actor, niece of comedy star Govinda, is currently hosting the kids reality show India’s Best Dramebaaz for Zee TV.

Star Plus, along with Big Synergy, is coming back with the second season of their kids show, Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain this August. The Indian version of the American game show, Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader? was launched in 2008 with Shahrukh Khan as its host. But this time, we hear, the Baadshah won’t be the emcee given his super busy schedule and prior commitments.

The show didn’t manage to gather good TRPs during its debut run, and therefore the makers might not have really planned to take the series forward. We wonder what secret success formula have they cracked to come up with Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain season 2 after a gap of five years! And since SRK won’t be the host, wonder who’d replace him in this kids quiz show.

SRK or no, we hope the makers have worked their way into getting the content right this time around, ‘coz that certainly will decide the fate of the show. And do tell us BollywoodLifers, which B-town star should replace SRK in Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain 2?

Every show is vying for the top slot in the rat race for TRPs. While some succeed, a few are bound to face the flak. Soumya Seth and Rohit Khurana’s new show, Dil Ki Nazar Se Khoobsurat is currently going through a similar phase. The promos of the show promised great things, but it has been a complete letdown.

The serial has not been providing any drama or excitement, and the chemistry between Aaradhya (Soumya Seth) and Madhav (Rohit Khurana) is almost non-existent. In addition to all this, its 7.30 pm time slot clashes with Star Plus’ now popular show, Saraswatichandra. Going by the ratings, it’s a case of extremes – Khoobsurat received 0.6 TVR, while Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s show got 2.6. With such tough competition, it is bound to face a further drop in numbers.

But this hasn’t dampened the lead actor’s enthusiasm. Rohit believes that the serial is just shaping up and will eventually pick up pace and the numbers too. We sure hope so! ‘Coz if Khoobsurat doesn’t raise the bar, we are afraid the channel may just chop it off – now we wouldn’t really want that, no?

Let’s hope the makers take our warnings seriously and up the quality of their content. Right!

Finally the awaited moment of Nach Baliye Season 5 has arrived – the season’s winner of the coveted trophy will be announced Saturday night. Twelve weeks of hard work will finally pay off and the winning jodi will take the glittering prizes home. Having showcased some of the most amazing performances by non-dancers, the reality show surely had it’s ah-ha! moments and has come to its nail-biting finale.

Here are the final four teams who are going to perform for the last time in tomorrow’s episode (March 23, 2013) on Star Plus before the final results are declared.

Jai Bhanushali-Mahhi Vij: The most consistent and deserving jodi of the Nach Baliye finale contenders. Since their very first performance – Radha on the dance floor – there has been no looking back for this couple. Most times declared the highest scoring couple, Jai-Mahhi undoubtedly are the jodi most expected to take the trophy home.

Ravi Dubey-Sargun Mehta: Having started on a rough note this duo is the most inconsistent. But gradually they picked up pace and managed to make it to the finale – especially after their tango performance. When asked about the most memorable moment they had, Ravi fondly shares his: the day he proposed to Sargun…onstage!

Neelu Vaghela-Arvind Kumar: Despite being the senior most jodi, Neelu and Arvind have also been the most entertaining. Their opening act fetched them a standing ovation from the judges and since then every time they have stepped on to the stage, it’s been a treat to watch them perform.

Jaisheel Dhami-Suhasi Goradia Dhami: Probably the most sweet and romantic jodi of the lot – this couple has had some memorable performances, never once repeating any dance form.

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Saraswatichandra became the talk of the town from the moment that the meticulous filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali announced his big plans to make a television show that combined sensibilities of Devdas and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. The two-week old show has garnered attention for its unique launch, interesting star cast and larger than life sets, but does it really pull in the audiences? Not so much, apparently! In the cut-throat game of TRPs, Saraswatichandra has managed to get a rating of 2.1. The serial has not managed to overthrow its competition, in spite of all that publicity and buzz around it. Unfortunately, the show –which we can now confidently say is indeed a takeoff from SLB’s Hum Dil… and Devdas, has nothing new to offer. While the chemistry between Jennifer Winget (Kumud) and Gautam Rode (Saraswatichandra) is sizzling, it’s still not converting into big numbers.

Daily soaps like Diya Aur Baati Hum (5.9 rating), Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai (4.4) and Balika Vadhu (4.2) are still ruling the television roost by a huge margin. However, Saraswatichandra has managed to beat Ram Kapoor and Sakshi Tanwar’s serial Bade Acche Lagte Hain (1.9), which is a big step, especially considering how popular the portly Mr Kapoor and his biwi are!

Giving the makers the benefit of the doubt because it’s still a new show, we think the numbers could go up as soon as the romantic track between Saraswatichandra and Kumud starts moving along – right now it is all projected, slated for another day, coming soon. We hope the creative heads put their thinking caps on very soon to inject more spice into the soap. Or else Bhansali’s dream to run the show for seven or more years is going to remain just a dream, no?

In spite of the low rating of the show so far, the numbers somehow are still in favour of Star Plus (265) – the channel has received the highest ratings compared to other channels, thanks to weekend shows like Nach Baliye (2.2 – 3.6) , Arjun (1.4) and other Saturday-Sunday soaps. Zee TV (226) managed to bag second place followed by Colors (220), and Sony (170). Let’s see how the game changes next week!

Bipasha Basu was seen on the sets of Arjun, bonding with the cast and crew of the show. The all-men unit of the Star Plus show was tongue-tied in the presence of the beautiful diva who wore a little black lace dress. After all, it’s not every day that they come across such a beguiling lady, right?

Bipasha was seen chatting with Shaleen Malhotra, who plays the lead character of Arjun in the weekend soap. The serious and brooding actor, who plays a cop, couldn’t stop smiling in Ms Basu’s presence.

But we wonder why the makers of Aatma chose to promote the film on a crime serial instead of a horror show! Guess we’ll know only when we watch the episode!

What would have been an interesting touch to the whole promotional gig is Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s presence. But looks like Bips - the commercial face of the movie – will have to be the one going all out to promote this horror flick.

Saraswatichandra - Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s first TV show was launched on February 25, replacing Mujhse Kuchh Kehti…Yeh Khamoshiyaan in the 7:30 pm time slot on Star Plus. It stars Jennifer Winget, Gautam Rode, Monica Bedi and others. About the serial the producer-director SLB says, “I just have one wish that we make a good serial, the actors do a good job and it runs for 2,000 episodes…and may it become the biggest and most memorable serial!”

We are sure the soap opera will have great production values, the actors will do a decent job too and it will indeed go a long way. But will Saraswatichandra run for seven years, which is how long it would take to last as long as Bhansali wants – now that is a debatable topic, don’t you think?

Imagine watching a show that is essentially a blend of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Devdas for seven long years! Frankly, we can’t even picture it in our heads…in a manner of speaking, that is. Then again, if Ekta Kapoor’s Kyunki… Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi can beam into living rooms for eight years, why can’t Saraswatichandra last at least that long, no?

We shudder to think about the fate of the show seven years from now. For all you know, just two years down the line, SLB may find inspirational dope pouring in from his films Guzaarish and Black to support the oh-so-long storyline of the tele-serial. Wait and watch…

A little while ago we saw Sanaya Irani struggling to cater to the needs of her onscreen guests in Ram Kapoor’s Welcome – Baazi Mehmaan Nawaazi Ki. And do you remember how the truck-loads of goof-ups she committed as a perfect host? And on the same show, but a different episode, we also spotted Aishwarya Sakhuja struggling to put a decent meal together.

Now these two would make such perfect sahelis, no? A teeny-tiny while after this thought crossed our minds, we discovered that the two ladies have been roped in for two separate serials on Sony Entertainment Television. Connecting the dots with our optimistically speculative pencils, we realised ki these two might well be on the road to being best friends. Possible?

So the buzz is that Sony is all set to begin two shows, and Sanaya has been chosen to play the lead in the one with a funny bone. Interestingly, our khabru is of the opinion that Sanaya’s new show will be similar to Sakhuja’s last serial Saas Bina Sasuraal. Ahem ahem. Now isn’t that another reason why the two ladies should really stick together?

What’s more, Sanaya – while saying a happy yes to this Optimystix production – said a resounding no to a show that was being produced by Nautanki Telefilms for Life OK.

Why, babe? Care to share the reason behind this growing fondness for Sony? Or is this a result of trying to follow your soul-sister Aishwarya’s footsteps?

While Sanaya comes up with a satisfactory answer to that one, you tell us, readers: Do you think Sanaya Irani could do justice to a funny role?