A househusband (stay-at-home-dads or the more stylish house-spouse), a man who keeps the house — with or without a work-from-home option — while his wife steps out to work, is a rarity even in the most socially-advanced countries. So, it is a refreshing change that a television show in India has this role reversal as its crux — “Mrs Tendulkar” on SAB TV, which kicked off a fortnight ago, is winning hearts.
Reality bites
Produced by Hats Off Productions, a Mumbai-based production house helmed by JD Majethia and Aatish Kapadia, “Mrs Tendulkar” has actor Deven Bhojani in the lead role of Mrs Tendulkar, called so thanks to his househusband status. The story, partly comic and partly feel-good, is of a family consisting of wife, husband and their three children. The wife becomes the branch manager of a bank, and the family moves into a society inhabited by the bank's employees. To a community that is accustomed to seeing the wife toil at home and the husband as the breadwinner, this comes as a jolt.
“We started out with a concept of a society where neighbours are co-workers too. This situation has a different impact on your life. We were toying with the idea of a role reversal where the husband works under his wife, which, for many, is difficult to digest. But, one of our writers Mukul Abhyankar came up with the idea of a househusband, a writer who works from home,” reveals JD Majethia, who jointly built the concept with Mukul. Aatish then came in as a script advisor.
Thinking ahead
The producers as well as the channel were pretty certain they didn't want a mere sitcom. “We wanted to make a progressive show,” he says.
Mrs Tendulkar (Deven Bhojani) tells his wife that he always felt a tinge of regret in his mother's voice when she saw other women working and being appreciated for their talent. While she couldn't pursue her interests as she had to look after the house, he had decided to help at least one woman follow her dreams.
The show has opened with a TRP of 2.2, a high for the Sony network (with Sony Entertainment Television and SAB put together). “Mrs Tendulkar” airs Monday to Thursday at 9.30 p.m. on SAB TV.
