Hiten Tejwani on TV show ending abruptly: My reputation won’t be harmed

Television is unpredictable and every actor who works on the medium knows that but this month, Hiten Tejwani had a bitter realisation. His TV show, Gupta Brothers, was yanked off air in less than three months of launch.

“In my career of 20 years, I have seen many shows going off air but earlier, shows at least got a year prove themselves, make a connect with the audiences and tell the story. Now, people expect results in one month. I was not upset with the show ending, but taken aback. I wish it was better handled. Not just the actors but people behind the camera, many daily workers, they should have been informed, so they could line up other jobs. Even, I was refusing other projects, because I was shooting a daily, so one knows you don’t have time to spare,” he says.

Tejwani rues the fact the contracts are skewed in favour of employer, and giving notice to cast and crew would have helped. “I don’t know what was the contract between the channel and the producer. When actors want to quit, they have to give a notice period of three months, so the story can be changed and a replacement can be found. It is fair but it should be the other way round too. This was too abrupt,” states the Gangaa actor.

Trying to understand the decision, he explains the show was getting good ratings and was number two on the channel and that they should have got at least six months of air time. “My reputation won’t be harmed but had it been a newcomer, it would have affected him hugely. I have been here for 20 years, I have seen it all and can handle it,” says Tejwani, who has shot for a short film, which focuses on population control. .

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