Returning with new season of Dev, Ashish Chaudhary reflects on the ups and downs in his journey on television
Ashish Chaudhary
The first season of Dev did not rake in TRPs. Did you analyse what went wrong before kicking off season 2?
Dev is a difficult show to write. I believe it couldn't get the numbers because of the absence of continual good writing. We had to change the tracks and the tone of writing to meet production requirement. If you consider international shows, they are all shot before going on air. Altering the show's track according to the public preference should be done away with.
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Where do you think we lack when compared to international shows?
In audience preference. Research shows that our show was a bit too pacy for viewers. Most serials that run on TV are extremely slow. But now that a lot of people have moved to video on demand, things are changing.
You became a household name with Ek Mutthi Aasmaan. Yet, you dissed the show.
I feel that the show could have still run. I do regret walking out of it, because a lot of people lost their jobs after that. But I was not creatively satisfied. Today, when I see Karan [Patel] and Shabbir [Ahluwalia] setting a benchmark with their shows Yeh Hai Mohabbatein and Kumkum Bhagya, respectively, I feel I wouldn't mind being in that space. [But, on the bright side,] I got to do Fear Factor because I left Ek Mutthi Aasmaan. Fear Factor is the proudest thing I've done for my children. I also bagged Dev because of it. So, I have no regrets.
Why haven't you and wife Samita [Bangargi Chaudhary] teamed up for a show?
She has made it clear that she is not interested in acting. People might think that she doesn't get offers, but it's not true. She has worked as a stylist and an event coordinator, and had decided that she wants to be a homemaker once she got married.
She has seen you through the darkest phase of your life.
I remember crying a lot after 26/11 [he lost his sibling in the terror attack]. When she saw me crying, she told me, 'You are not the man I married. If you want to cry, cry alone.' I was terribly hurt, and angry with her. So, I decided never to cry in front of her. But, she was trying to make me strong. Now, I can't cry even if I try.
How do you keep the romance alive?
By having children. More children implies more romance. I always believed a family completes you. See, romance dies with time. What sustains is respect, sacrifice, compromise, and understanding — you don't need anything more.
What is the worst fight you two have had?
We had a massive fight when we were on a holiday in Goa. My son, Agastya, was about four years old. We were arguing in front of him and because he was witnessing it, neither of us was willing to back down. The lesson we learnt was that you never fight in front of your child.
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