COLOMBO: India’s newly appointed Human Resources Development Minister Smriti Irani is a familiar face in Sri Lanka, thanks to the mega serial Mahagedara, the dubbed Sinhalese version of the smashing Indian soap Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.
But she is known in the island not as Smriti Irani, but as “Tulsi” the powerful central character she played in the 600-episode serial, which held Lankan audiences in thrall day after day for an unprecedented period of time. “Tulsi becomes Indian minister” said a newspaper headline.
“Tulsi became a household name in Lanka after Mahagedara began to be aired on Sirasa TV in 2005. She has a big fan following here,” said Ramesh Uvais, editor of the film and TV supplement of Daily Mirror. “When Mahagedara (Great House) was being aired, audiences would skip other programmes,” Uvais recalled.
Blogger “landlikenoother” says that he would avoid visiting his sister between 8.30 and 9 pm because she would be glued to watching Mahagedara.
Hindi soaps dubbed in Sinhalese have captured the Sinhalese community’s imagination. It was Aditya Ray, CEO of Sirasa TV, who introduced this genre and boldly put them on prime time. He persisted even after the government imposed a levy on imported serials to help local talent. Within the first year of the introduction of dubbed versions of mega Indian soaps, Sirasa TV had become the most sought after channel at prime time.