Television’s influence today is far reaching. Recent reports of fans imitating the actions portrayed in various shows and soaps have had both a positive and negative impact on the audience, especially the younger lot. Recently, a seven-year-old girl died after she allegedly set herself on fire. Her parents who had complained to the police suspected that a fire dance scene from a television show had influenced the child to imitate, and unfortunately led to the loss of her life. Today, action stunts and fights which were usually the characteristics of movies, have made their way into the small screen with several modern day television soaps. Bengaluru Chronicle reports.
The presence of a gang of villains in serials like Puttagowri Maduve, Agnisakshi have included chase and fight sequences shot with state-of-the-art technology. A new serial titled Brahmastra which revolves around a love story between a Kannadiga boy, and a Telugu girl also had some fight sequences in its early days. Even in Brahmagantu, a small portion of the action sequences were shot very picturesquely.
“Television came to its existence and the early days saw how important it was to visually reach the audience by disseminating information. It slowly picked up and turned towards entertainment as the proportion of its reach increased drastically. Now, in the present day, TV is going beyond regular entertainment. New permutations and combinations to attract the audience has led to various new experiments. From a time when there was hardly any action, today’s focus is on melodrama. These days, shows and programmes are no less than a movie,” says senior film critic Subramanya.
He further adds that apart from reality shows, even television soaps have started incorporating several aspects of movie making.
Taking it a step further, digital usage for action choreography in fantasy and epic dramas are the latest trends. “Serials like Nandini, Naagini, Nagakannike, Shani and several others use digital special effects to make the show look fantastic. Choreography of such stunts and special effects is a challenging task. It requires a good budget and the production house is willing to spend it for the sake of reaching the audience with a new look, and added attractions,” says Prashanth, a director.
Insofar as stunt choreographer Vikram is concerned, he says that these days, it is not just movies but even TV soaps that are giving importance to action. “Stunts are as big as in the movies. Chasing sequences, minor tussles are choreographed as the script demands. But, it’s slowly picking up even on TV. Maybe one day, a complete action-packed serial will hit the industry. It is still an industry which is high on emotion, and drama, but the drama is getting bigger and bigger with the presence of action and stunts,” he wraps up.
