We at Balaji don't look at age when casting - Ekta Kapoor

Ekta Kapoor is grinning from ear to ear. Despite critics downplaying her shows, it's still Ekta's K serials that are sitting atop the TRP chart. The Queen of soaps has now charted a new road. After Kahe Na Kahe, Ekta has come up with another show, Kya Dill Mein Hai which is an 80 episodic story. At the launch of Kya Dill.. tellychakkar spoke to an ecstatic Ekta. What separates Kya Dill Mein Hai from your other shows? Often when I've created any show, I've always kept the commercial interest in mind. However, for the first time, I'm purely going by instincts. Kya Dill…. comes straight from my heart. Not for once did I contemplate on the commercial aspect. The moment I thought of it, I decided to go ahead with it. I've put my heart and soul in this thus I expect it to be appreciated by the viewers." From the look of it, Kya Dill.. bears resemblance to Saawariya in its look, while its plot reminds us of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Comment. I beg to differ. However if I were to tell you the difference then you wouldn't watch. Thus one should watch it to find out the real story. Though it's a love story, every show of yours presents a Gujarati, Punjabi or a Bengali family. Why are others neglected? We don't make our shows based on any race per se. I've produced many shows in Tamil Nadu, Kerala. I have given hits such as Kalyani and Kudumbam. We are merely giving the people what they want. It's a simple demand and supply thing. An average Indian telly viewer watches your shows on weekdays and zooms into the various realities shows on weekends. Don't you think that by having this show on a weekend you could lose your viewers? I can explain this by citing a personal example. My late grandmother used to tell me that she wanted to see a romantic drama on a weekend. I'm sure there are many like her. Also, I want to point out that Kya Dill.. is not a typical soap where you see alterations in tracks. This is a fixed 80-episode story. If one misses few episodes, he/she will lose track of the plot. Thus skipping it will only prove to be their loss. You've roped in a 15-year-old for this show. Won't many such girls give up their studies and come to you for work? When I first heard of Abigail, the first thing that I told her is that she has to work hard on her studies. However, we at Balaji don't look at the age while casting. All we want is that the person should be inclined to work hard and should posses that fire in the belly. I was pretty disappointed when one of the publications reflected me in bad light for this. Youngsters should concentrate on studies but at the same time, the choice is theirs. 9X and Balaji. There appears too be great bonhomie between the two. So far it's been great going between us. We've had lot of creative discussions with them and so far they've liked our proposals. The kind of growth that they've achieved in such a short span of time is nothing less than a miracle. It can only get better from here. Finally, your protégé Prachi Desai is back on Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. Happy? I'm really glad that Prachi's back on the show. She's put in lots effort for Jhalak... We are behind her and I appeal to all to vote for her. Her code is 52525. Laughs!