Indian television's most popular child artiste caught in conversation with the 19 year-old who has just replaced her, and a 23 year-old young man who plays her husband. Avika Gor, Pratyusha Banerjee and Shashank Vyas in an exclusive chat with Sunday Mid Day

One has been there, done that; the other is still finding her feet. The first is a pro at handling the press,
the other fumbles while talking about her big break. The first has been around for 500 episodes, the other is just two weeks old on television. Ironically, the first is 13, the other is 19.


Pratyusha Banerjee who plays debutant Shashank Vyas' wife Anandi
on daily soap Balika Vadhu, takes over from child artiste Avika Gor.
Pics/Nimesh Dave

Television's favourite child star, Avika Goru00a0 is done playing Rajasthani child bride Anandi on Balika Vadhu. The character is grown up, and that means Avika had to make way for an adult artiste. After months of casting and primetime suspense, Jamshedpur girl Pratyusha Banerjee arrived on screen.

What the two have in common is an on-screen child groom Jagdish (lovingly called Jagya) played by Avinash Mukherjee, who made way for an older Shashank Vyas, 23, this week.

Quite the ladies' man, the debutant handled both ladies with ease, winking, "I don't want any problems."
There's a crackling chemistry between the two. "Shashank is a very dear friend. We did a scene together during the auditions not realising what we were getting into. I was told I was playing a character called Bijuriya," laughs Pratyusha.

"I has no clue about playing Jagya either," admits Shashank. The two apparently sailed through the audition, and later went mall-hopping. "We hit it off well. There were other guys too but Shashank and I gelled."

Later, when Pratyusha received a call about the 'new Anandi', Shashank was among the few she shared the news with. "And he turned around and said he was playing Jagya!" "Yes, that was quite something. Imagine, jiske saath mein mall mein ghoom raha tha, she was paired opposite me!"

Three actresses were shortlisted for Anandi's role, with the channel letting viewers decide who would get the part through a contest. "Pratyusha asked me to SMS for her, which I did," he says.

The chat shifts to parents, and that's a sore point for Shashank who has lost his mother. Pratyusha whispers to us that she is no more. "But she is watching him and must be very happy," she says, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze.

The two know there is a legacy to live up to thanks to the TRP hogger that the show has been since it was launched in 2008. They go into raptures discussing the "efficient and hard working crew and co-actors".

"When they are putting in so much of effort, we can't afford to be lazy, right?" says Shashank, who hails from Rajasthan "jo bahut saal pehle peechhe chhoot gaya, before I moved to Ujjain and Indore to study."

But what the two friends have decided is not to let pressure bog them down. "We are aware there's a lot to live up to. But we are not letting it bog us down. We are looking at it like it's a new show."

15 minutes with Avika Gor

When the whole world loves you
Arriving on set straight from school, Avika settles down quickly for a chat. Poised, and sometimes a tad too diplomatic, the class eight student of Ryan International says she has happily moved on from playing iconic child bride Anandi on the hit daily soap.

Were you disappointed when you heard about the leap in storyline?
No, why should I be? Avinash (plays her husband Jagya on the show) and I were meant to shoot for just 80 episodes anyway. The writer ended up giving us 500! The story has reached a point where the kids had to grow up. My dad explained to me why the leap was essential, and I was fine.