With her list of daily soaps - India's K-dramas - Ektaa kept Indian TV buzzing like never before.
It would not be wrong to say that Ektaa Kapoor, the Balaji Telefilms honcho, is a force to be reckoned with in the Indian entertainment industry. Born on June 7, 1975 to actors Jeetendra and Shobha Kapoor, she turns 50 this year, and on her special day, let’s recall how she has managed to redefine the realm of Indian TV industry with her iconic shows over the years.
Well, over the last quarter of a century, Ektaa Kapoor has managed to shape Indian television in her own way, and despite an army of critics, she has remained at the helm and carved out an empire for herself. For those caught unaware, in the 1990s, Indian TV was dominated by shows like Tara, Ajnabee, and the twin successes—Shanti and Swabhimaan. And in between those, Ektaa got all the attention to herself with shows like Mano Ya Na Mano and Hum Paanch. However, it was Ghar Ek Mandir and Kora Kaagaz that turned the tide for Ektaa, who became the messiah for the melodrama-craving Indian audience.
With her list of daily soaps - India's K-dramas - Ektaa kept Indian TV buzzing like never before. Despite their absurd storylines, she made a template of an Indian soap structure, and made Smriti Irani, Sakshi Tanwar OG TV stars. Following them were the likes of Mouni Roy, Sushant Singh Rajput, Ronit Roy and many more. Her shows, following the format she created, remained hits for two decades.
In the 2000s, the letter 'K' became her lucky mascot, and she launched several hit shows like Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, which broke all records. Other shows on the list were Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kabhii Sautan Kabhii Sahelii, Kaahin Kissii Roz, Kalash, Kasautii Zindagii Kay, Kahiin To Hoga and many more. By 2001, she was producing more than 30 hours of TV shows per week. She has been a creator of more than 130 Indian soap operas.
In fact, it cannot go unnoticed that she did turn primetime TV into a women-first platform since her shows were led by women – the Tulsis, Kusums, and Prernas, who all became household names. They became the highest-paid stars on television as well.
However, her success was marred with criticism as well, because of its regressive content. It was more of a formula over quality. The presence of misogyny and superstitions with women being at the front but hardly having any agency led everyone to question her work. With Naagin, she ventured into the realm of supernatural soaps as well.
Now over the years, she has entered the OTT world and offers pulp fiction on OTT with AltBalaji. And she has been into Bollywood film production since 2001, with films like Kyo Kii... Main Jhuth Nahin Bolta, Mission Istanbul, Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, and Shor in the City, under her banner Balaji Motion Pictures.
