Siddharth Malhotra goes back to TV after ‘We Are Family’

NEW DELHI - The big screen experiment over, “We Are Family” director Siddharth Malhotra is back to his first love, television, and says he will bring four serials by the end of the year.

Siddharth, son of actor-producer Prem Kishen, worked in television for 15 years and produced serials like “Sanjivani”, “Ssshhhh…Koi Hai….”, “Ayushmaan” and “Krishna-Arjun” under his banner Cinevistaas Limited.

“It’s not just one show on Sony that I am coming up with. Two of my shows are already on air in the south and three more are ready to come by the end of this year in collaboration with the STAR networks,” Siddharth told IANS in an interview.

“The shows in collaboration with the STAR network are in the pipeline; of the three, two are romantic-comedies and one is a thriller.”

Asked what the difference was in the formats of the show, he said: “Earlier television was progressive, now it is regressive. The concept of the one-hour show has vanished in the present time. There is a lot of emphasis on the pre-production stage, which was never done on such a big scale though it is very important.”

His latest offering for the small screen is a thriller titled “Tera Mujhse Hai Pehle Ka Nata Koi”. Shot in Manali, the show is about a damsel-in-distress with a suspense angle and will go on air on Sony from Monday.

“It’s about a girl who finds her partner in the wrong person, who is supposedly her enemy. She eventually discovers that she has a past with him, which has been kept away from her,” he said.

In terms of content and technology, Siddharth claims his serial is no less than a film.

“This show is not less than a movie because it’s edgy and fast in its approach. The use of digital format and high definition quality techniques have widened its scale. Also, the team behind the camera is very qualified and strong.”

There were reports that he would bring together real life uncle-niece Rishi Kapoor alongside Kareena Kapoor in his next big screen project.

But Siddharth denies it saying: “It’s all made up. It’s rubbish. I haven’t approached Rishiji or Kareena for any film. Though I would love to cast if the script demands in future. But the reports which are rotating as of now are all false.

“I am currently working on a script which will at least take six months to get completed. I am not working on any movie as of now and have put everything on hold till year-end.”

However, he confirms his contract with filmmaker Karan Johar hasn’t expired yet.

“Yes, I will be working with Karan Johar; that is because I am in contract with him.”