'Jassi' TV Has India in Its Grip

'Jassi' TV Has India in Its Grip

By Nyay Bhushan

NEW DELHI (Hollywood Reporter) - A young, bespectacled female television character from Latin America has become the unlikely center of a runaway cultural phenomenon in India.

One of India's most popular TV soaps, "Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin" (There Is Nobody Like Jassi) is a localized version of Spanish telenovela "Betty La Fea" (Betty, the Ugly One) that originally aired on Colombia's RCN network.

Not only has the soap boosted ratings for Sony Entertainment Television's flagship Hindi channel SET in India, but it has spawned a merchandising and marketing bonanza that ranges from a postal cover envelope (a rare honor by the Indian Postal Department) to mobile ringtones, games, a designer clothing line of her Punjabi suits and self-improvement books.
Since early April, when Jassi's fans saw her Cinderella-like transformation into a supermodel, India's beauty industry has been doing a roaring trade with Jassi merchandising -- from weight-reduction clinics to contact lenses.

One of the associated brands, VLCC, a national chain of weight-reduction clinics, even introduced a hair and skin treatment package called Aap Jaisi Koi Nahin (There Is Nobody Like You), an obvious reference to the show's title.

More than just an Indian success story, "Jassi," now in its second season, has shown that emotions transcend cultural boundaries when it comes to localizing foreign programing concepts, SET India CEO Kunal Dasgupta said.

"The show's concept was first suggested to us by (Sony Pictures Television International president) Michael Grindon back in 1999, who wanted us to adapt the (Colombian) show in India," Dasgupta said. "He kept reminding us that the character would work here." SPTI licensed the format of the soap from Colombia's RCN and is selling the format internationally.
"Jassi's" premise seems a perfect fit for Indian cultural values. The clumsily attired Jassi comes from a simple, middle-class North Indian Punjabi family and lands a job as a secretary in a Mumbai fashion house, reporting to her handsome but stern boss.

Model-turned-actress Mona Singh, who plays Jassi, said she knows why the character connects so well with the Indian psyche.

"I myself come from the same background as Jassi and had no acting experience when I first auditioned for the role," she said. "What drew me to the character was Jassi's down-to-Earth personality and her devotion to her family. These are the kind of values that are cherished in India.

"Thanks to Jassi, people have realized that appearances mean little. Today, everybody says that they want a daughter or an office colleague like Jassi."

The soap has provided a welcome ratings boost to SET, long overshadowed by STAR Plus, archrival STAR India's Hindi flagship channel. Within three months of airing, "Jassi's" ratings elevated the nearly 10-year-old SET to the second position as the most popular satellite channel with a market share of 32.4 percent. The advertisers followed suit, leading to a dozen regular sponsors and in-show placements that have included the promotion of a hit Bollywood musical, "Hum Tum" (Me and You), which featured leading actor Saif Ali Khan in a cameo appearance.
The show's commercial appeal went into overdrive when Jassi's character was recently transformed from a plain Jane into a ravishing fashion model known as Jessica. Cosmetics brands, among other lifestyle products, elbowed their way to ride the Jassi/Jessica hoopla.
This also saw SET capitalizing on its other success story, "Indian Idol," the local version of the popular global talent show. The first "Indian Idol" winner, Abhijeet Sawant, ended up performing a song on "Jassi."

So will Jassi manage to retain viewer interest in the hundred-odd channel universe of Indian television? Said Tarun Katial, vp of SET India: "Beyond just the appeal of Jassi's transformation, the show has a strong story line that forms its core. Everybody is interested to know what happens next with Jassi."

This includes the blossoming of Jassi's onscreen romance with her Prince Charming boss. But whether that happens or not, millions of viewers know that the shoe fits perfectly when it comes to Jassi.

- Reuters/Hollywood Reporter


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Looks sometimes help, says Mona Singh

Date: Lucknow, April 15, 200514:55 IST


The transformation of Jassi from an "ugly duckling" to a gorgeous model proved that while looks don't really matter, they are sometimes required to get ahead in life, according to actress Mona Singh of popular teleserial Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi.

"I believe that looks do not really matter but if the situation demands you to use them to your advantage, you should go all out for it," Singh said.

She said while Jassi has transformed, she has not changed as a person and her feelings were still the same for her family and friends.

The make-over from bespectacled Jasmeet Walia to beautiful model Jessica Bedi was required to teach a lesson to characters Armaan Sir and Mallika Maa'm who had caused immense hurt to her, Singh pointed out.

Singh said she was very nervous before the long-awaited transformation as her "original face" had never appeared before the camera. But the fear evaporated as she received a very enthusiastic response from the audience, she added.

"The good thing was that the make-over did not happen over-night and was a gradual process making it look quite natural and justified after all the upheavels the character had faced," she said.

"I am very proud of the character and would never like to break its image, no matter what the repurcussions are," she said.

Singh said at present she was only interested in the television medium as it provided strong women-centric roles and a relatively easier chance to become successful. However, she was not averse to feature films and would consider an offer if it was challenging enough.

"If I get the chance to work with my favourite actor Shahrukh Khan, I would not think twice," chuckled Singh.

The actress denied there was any casting couch in the television industry and said that it was talent alone which counted in the journey to success.

"While the small-town girls may prove to be gullible in such situations, the larger picture is extremely clean," she added.

While it was not clear how long would 'Jassi' run on the idiot box, producer-director of the serial Tony and Diya Singh have already thought about signing Mona Singh for their next television serial which was still in the conceptual stage.

Courtesy: Press Trust of India

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'Jassi' needs Shahrukh to make it big in films

Lucknow, April 14 (UNI): After capturing the imagination of millions of audience with her act in the television soap 'Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin', Mona Singh aka 'Jassi' now craves for a foothold in Bollywood, but admits she would need Shahrukh Khan to make it big in films.

"I really admire SRK for making it to the top without any godfather in the film industry and hope if cast opposite him, his charm would work for me too," she quipped.
However, 'Jassi' was quick to add that she does not intend to say goodbye to television anytime soon.

"I am very much a part of TV and enjoy working for the small screen. Although, TV schedules are tiresome than films, but at the end of the day it is the satisfation that counts," she observed.
She was in town for 'Transform with Bausch & Lomb' campaign today.
On the truth about casting couch, Mona claimed she had never come across any such thing so far.

"To succeed in any field including films, it is the talent that counts in a person," she added.

'Jassi' claimed aspirants from smaller towns and cities had a rather wrong perception about the glamour world and think that one could succeed by means other than talent.

When asked if beauty was the essense of women, Mona averred it was only skin deep and what matters was the inner beauty.

"Outer beauty is temporary and fades with time. But, the real beauty is perennial," she added.


Courtesy: The Hindu

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Jassi looks for a new career

Jassi looks for a new career
By: Subhash K Jha
March 22, 2005

For more than a year now, Mona Singh has played the bumbling Jassi in Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin, adapted from the hugely popular Colombian telenovela, Yo Soy Betty La Fea. Jassi’s instantly recognisable soda-bottle glasses and unfashionable fringe became working-class icons, seeking to highlight an ordinary girl’s extraordinary dreams.

But now, after it’s protagonist’s much-hyped makeover, is the soap winding down towards a conclusion? Singh’s contract with Sony Entertainment Television expires in May this year. What will Jassi do next?

“I haven’t thought about it,” says Singh, just back from Mauritius. “I haven’t had the time. I guess I’ll take a long break in May… it’s been a really hectic time for me. This is the time for me to build on my career.”

Singh says she has no plans to act in another soap. And apparently, renewing her contract is not on the channel’s agenda.

“I want to do a soap as different and pioneering as Jassi. I’m getting a lot of film offers; I’ll consider a new soap, and maybe films, after my contract with Sony expires. But I’ll never quit TV. The medium has turned me into a household name. In cinema, you’re forgotten after three hours.”

But will viewers accept her as another character? “I don’t want them to forget me as Jassi, even when I stop doing the role,” says the actress. “I’ve done so many different things within this one role. I couldn’t have hoped for a better chance to prove my talent.”

What about Jassi’s dramatic transformation? “Not so dramatic,” says Singh. “I’ve been sleeping peacefully with my braces and glasses for more than a year. I don’t think I’m tired of them.”
But why the makeover? “Jassi had reached a dead-end. Her love life was a mess. Her feelings for Armaan had been crushed and she had more or less overdosed on self-annihilation and needed to feel whole again.”

“I’m very excited about my new look. It was important for Jassi to gather self-confidence, to look like the entrepreneur she is. Queenie Dhody and Seema Khan are working on my appearance. And I already can’t recognise myself in the mirror!”

Courtesy: Mid-Day

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