Pick any Indian TV channel at random Zee, Star, Colors, Imagine, it’s the same menu, same ingredients, same taste.

Here’s the recipe Heroine: Miss goody two shoes, ghar ghrahast well versed in the puja paat, bhajan singing, family seva, mindless, selfless, in some case totally illiterate ready for athaychaar by relatives, spouse and in laws after all that is the fate every Indian woman or so the channels would have you believe Hero: Devoid of self confidence, usually mama’s boy or daddy’s puppet. Will marry to please parents and society putting aside all personal preferences. Support cast: Overbearing or meek parents/in laws Mischief making relatives Obnoxious, over familiar house help Storyline: What storyline? Marriage is in name only; any intimacy is taboo the story can only progress if the couple is celibate because mischief maker or in-laws have warned of dire consequences if there is any kind of intimacy. One must always make personal sacrifices for the good of the family and to uphold its honor no matter what (Pavitra Rishta) On the other hand having 2 wives (which the last time I checked is illegal in India), living under the same roof and being pregnant at the same time is perfectly acceptable (Sajan Ghar Jana Hai) Getting the husband to sleep with another woman to produce the ‘heir’ is also acceptable. Artificial insemination ever heard of that? (Raja ki Aayegi Baraat, among others) Do most Indian women go to bed at night with all their jewellery and heavy saris and full makeup? Are they so scared that without all that they will be unrecognisable in the morning? Why cant these over these dressed women ever wear an apron while cooking (I know its not in the Indian culture to wear this) bit for goodness sake we all know what Indian cooking involves . Can’t we be a bit more credible? Or, do all Indian women secretly subscribe to this and the TV channels are only to happy to cater to this voyeurism. Why can’t channels put and end to serials that have far outlived themselves, ‘Humari Devrani’ doesn’t have the Devrani and Raja ki Aayegi Bararat has lost the main protagonists ages ago. Choti Bahu is dragging on and frankly speaking Devika’s nauseating devotion is hard to swallow, first it was to the parents and sister so Dev was spurned, they it shifted to his family and he was less spurned, now the devotion is shifted to him and she is spurned. Too much devotion and way too much spurning - Calls for mental Indigestion Please change the menu and the ingredients Sandi Saksena