Hope we can put a little fear into the masses and make them believe that crime is not good: Shivaji Satam

Sony Entertainment Television’s longest running series CID (Fireworks Productions) completes 1000 episodes today (27 September 2013). At a time, when a serial bids adieu within months of its launch, the show has managed to achieve this milestone. And one man who has shouldered the show most effectively is Shivaji Satam aka ACP Pradhyuman. It is said that during the show’s early days, Satam, who has been part of it since the inception, carried costumes and props on the back of his Lambretta scooter. He has accepted every challenge thrown at the cast and has come out with flying colors. In the world of TV celebrities, he’s a mix of Superman, Thor and Batman. Excerpts from an interaction with the veteran actor: Achieving this huge milestone must be a great feeling for you? I am really overwhelmed with the response the audience has given us. Completing 1000 episodes is really a great achievement for the whole CID team. I wish and pray to keep growing in the same flow and complete another 1000 episodes. For me, every episode was an enjoyable experience and it was through this show that I gained a lot of popularity. I love the entire team and congratulate everyone for their equal support and contribution for reaching this goal. I would also like to thank all my fans, Sony Channel and an amazing production house (Fireworks Productions) for the immense support and appreciation. What makes CID a unique concept as compared to others? Well, CID, in itself is a fantasy show; I mean it is an officially branded fantasy. All our audiences relate to the characters and that’s why they watch the show. Over the years, the characters have become much more real for the audiences even though they are larger than life. So, automatically they feel that what these characters do is real. It’s just an acceptance in the audience’s mind. What special will the viewer’s get to see in the 1000th episode? CID is the only crime fiction show which has been running since 16 years and has managed to win the hearts of millions by its power-pack episodes. It has been always known for its innovative ideas when it comes to keeping audiences glued to their shows with interesting new cases. The 1000th episode will not disappoint its viewers; it is already known that the episode will have the CID team investigating on such a dangerous island where their life would be at stake. Would you like to comment on the off-screen bonding between all the actors of the show? (Smiles) Even marriages don’t last that long nowadays and that’s what the team of CID has managed to do. It takes a lot of commitment and dedication for your work to be able to overlook differences and work together for sixteen years. In CID, we are like just another family. After so many years, we have come to know each other so well that we know inside out of each one of us. We don’t put on any airs like celebrities do. We are like any other middle-class family and believe in the same things. All of us including Aditya, Daya, Freddy and I feel that we are brothers from a different birth. What is the basic message that you aim to communicate with the show? Our main aim is to educate people to go to the police to report any crime. By and large people don’t want to go and report of any crime to the police because it’s not as simplified as you see it on TV. But still we encourage people to do it. You can’t generalize that the police don’t work; there are a lot of cops who take their jobs very seriously and are doing the right thing. Also, at the end of every show, we keep on suggesting capital punishment for the criminals despite the fact that we hardly have any death by hanging happening in our country. Hopefully, we can put a little fear into the minds of audiences and make them believe that crime is not good, it never pays and at the end of the day one has to pay for it. What prompted you to do a special series of the ever-popular show CID? Though the programme is very popular and has lasted for 16 years, it's very important to keep on innovating in terms of presentation and story-telling. One of our USPs is outdoor location shoots. While others find it difficult to have regular outdoor shoots, we are very comfortable with it. And the channel also supports us wholeheartedly in terms of finance. We have achieved most of our targets; getting a rating of 5 plus was one of them.