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Ever since actor Abhay Deol announced his television debut as the host of Zee TV’s ‘Connected Hum Tum,’ the unique concept of the show has created quite a stir in the country! After all, it is for the very first time that Indian viewers will see six real women sharing their lives and baring their soul on international television! The six participants have agreed to take hand-held HD cameras and record themselves in their own houses, capturing all that they say and do in their most personal space. They will film themselves as they go to work, step out to shop or attend a class. These six courageous women of different ages and on the brink of exciting crossroads in their lives, will put their innermost hopes, fears, insecurities, mistakes, triumphs, joys and sorrow out there for the world to see!
Naturally, there has been much speculation as to who these women are. While some predicted these women to be socialites or celebrities, others guessed that they might be some kind of achievers. Everyone has been curious to find out who they are – what is it that has inspired each of them to live their life in public glare? And why has the channel chosen them specifically amongst millions of other women? The cat is finally out of the bag as Zee TV today unveils the six courageous women of ‘Connected Hum Tum’.
Preeti Kochar, 33, dentist, belly-dance instructor, often written about as “the dancing dentist”. She is the mother of a two year old, has a husband she loves and a mother she wishes hadn’t neglected her in her childhood. A multi-tasking superwoman, she juggles her responsibilities at home with her clinic as well as her passion for dance! Preeti wants to tick all the boxes – the conventional ones of ‘wife’, ‘mom’, ‘dentist’ and ‘daughter-in-law’ as well as the unconventional ones of ‘independent’, ‘bold’ and ‘dancer’. As a result, Preeti is not able to leave one profession for another. She craves the love she was denied in childhood, so she fears rocking her marriage too much. Yet her marriage prevents her from being as free as she’d like to be! She asks herself:
“Women marry for love and care – do I really get that in my marriage?”
Mahima Chaudhary, 25, struggling actress. The starry-eyed small-town girl hails from a large jat joint family in Meerut. Having lived forever in the shadows of her super-achieving sister, Mahima wants to make a mark of her own. She has been living in Mumbai for the past year, trying to make a career in the glitzy world of films with no support from her typical, traditional family. Adding to the woes of her family, she has a boyfriend in Delhi who does not belong to their caste. Since things aren’t quite working out for her in Mumbai, her boyfriend, just like her family, has been coaxing her to return and get married. Yet she resists, as she must continue to strive for her dream, and perhaps something else. Will Mahima’s family accept her dream of becoming an actress? Will she be able to overcome the chasm between her family, her boyfriend and herself and redefine her future?
Pallavi Burman, 30, fashionable shopaholic, brand manager. She’s done all the right things. She studied hard, got a career in place and married a boy her parents chose. She barely knew him and things did not work out. So, though her family could imagine no worse fate, she sought a divorce. Her parents were deeply embarrassed and she ended up blaming herself for ‘not trying hard enough.’ Settled well professionally, she’s getting married again to a guy she met at a friend’s party. And this time around, she’s determined to do everything even “righter”! But she asks – why should it only be upon a woman to make a marriage work?
Madhavi Mauskar, 53, foreign languages expert, corporate trainer. She’s lived a life of unconventional choices. With two divorces under her belt, she’s hit rock bottom and bounced back! Her daughter is pregnant and Madhavi is about to be a grandmother for the second time. And like a bolt out of the blue, her first ex-husband wants to get back with her. Does he really want a life with her? Or does he just want some closure? We watch as she tries to figure out the resolution of this long and complicated relationship – and makes a choice she will be happy with.
Sonal Giani, 26, an activist, theater producer. She grew up in Goa, the daughter of an army officer. She lives with her twin sister and the two of them are very close. Sonal is a producer-in-charge at a theater production and is even about to act in a small movie for the first time. Sonal is in a serious relationship and wondering if the parents of her lover will accept their unusual, unconventional bond and give their love story a happy ending!
Malishka Mendonca, 34, Mumbai’s No. 1 radio jockey. Successful, self made woman, who’s looked after her family right from a young age after her father passed away. Yes! She’s made it big today but the question for Malishka is – what next? Can she dare to risk a change in her career? Will she find a suitable man to settle down with? It’s not easy, as the man must combine stability with sizzle, practicality with romance, a guy who is both “cool and with it” while being grounded and down to earth. Guys like that are in short supply, especially for strong, successful women. What will Malishka choose? The romantic path or the pragmatic one? Will she find a man who fits the bill or will she reassess her bill instead?
Each one of us has a Preeti, a Madhvi, a Pallavi, a Sonal, a Mahima or a Malishka in our lives. We encounter them at home, at work, at various points of time as we go through life. Whose story will you connect most with? Will the trials and tribulations of a struggling actress move you? Or will you identify better with a woman wanting to make her second marriage work at all costs? Will you relate to the challenge of finding a suitable match for a strong, successful woman or will the dilemma of ‘conventional versus unconventional’ faced by a doctor who’s also a belly dance instructor remind you of your own predicaments? Tune into ‘Connected Hum Tum’ to find out!
Zee TV is all set to deploy its marketing artillery to promote this big-ticket launch with a never-before-seen format. Forging yet another first in the Hindi GEC space, the channel will soon create a YouTube gadget which will serve as the primary point of engagement for the viewers. The gadget will have video profiles of the 6 participants, uncut videos, unseen footages, episodes, social media feeds, etc. It will also have polls and discussions on the theme of every episode. The title song of the show, being a fresh, catchy video shot with host Abhay Deol, Zee TV plans to promote it aggressively on audio visual mediums, across social media platforms and on YouTube.To spark off discussions about the format of the show amongst the discerning online audiences, Zee TV will soon conduct a Google Hangout and organise a bloggers meet with the six participants of Connected Hum Tum in Mumbai.
The channel is also creating parallel content to promote the show such as interesting short videos on the concept of why it is so difficult for men to understand women and the same will be promoted on Youtube. Once the show is on air, there will be live engagement with the audiences during the telecast of an episode. ‘Connected Hum Tum’ is now on Zee TV, Sky 788 and Virgin Media 809 at 9.30pm and will air every Monday – Friday. Stay Connected to Zee TV!
