It?s time that marquee names from the big screen stop looking the other way, when it comes to TV scripts. 2014 signalled a pertinent change, television has reportedly grown enormously; the turnover of television is believed to be Rs 22,000 crore, while that of the Indian film industry is Rs 12,000 crore. The small screen's wide reach and hefty remuneration is getting too tempting for film actors to refuse.

The channels see stars as a value add-on for their programming or for a vital plot turner, as was the case in Ek Nayi Pehchan. Padmini Kolhapure made her small screen debut in a pivotal role as Pallavi in the recently concluded Ek Nayi Pehchan, which starred her best friend Poonam Dhillon. The latter?s Sharda is a simple Gujarati housewife, although unlettered, she has the home running like clockwork. Her husband?s sari business is named after her, but he demeans her at every opportunity. Sharda?s lack of education bothers her daughter-in-law, who insists on getting her saas not just literate, but English savvy too. As Sharda gains confidence, in steps Pallavi, the other woman in Suresh Modi?s life. Sharda now leaves the house in search of her new, own identity. Pallavi?s introduction was vital for the story line and to depict Sharda?s moving towards independence and self sufficiency.

One more big screen name has stepped onto the small screen is Sonali Bendre. She plays the pivotal role in Ekta Kapoor?s new show Ajeeb Daastaan Hai Ye on Life OK. Her costars are ?Apurva Agnihotri?and Harsh Chhaya -- television?s best known talent. Quick to the cut, Ekta Kapoor has wasted no time with back stories and slow paced introduction. Shobha?s husband Samar, a high profile politician is caught in a sex scandal. Whilst he?s in prison, Shobha forges ahead to get a job and get on with life with her children. The plot has a triangular twist. Will Sonali?s six month long dilemma to do the serial prove to be the challenge she?s rising up to? At a time, when the GEC space is crowded with the usual saas-bahu soaps, Ajeeb Daastaan... will raise many a question about a woman's right to economic independence. It's a deviation for Ekta Kapoor in more ways than one ? she?s put herself out on a limb with a finite narration.

Life OK?s Laut Aao Trisha is helmed by another marquee name ? Bhagyashree, who is pitted against some of television?s fine talent. Television is offering cinema actors a career challenge they otherwise wouldn?t have checked it out. Yudh, which was Amitabh Bachchan?s debut on television?s fiction genre, also starred Sarika; neither actor would have had such an offer in cinema. Earlier Anil Kapoor?s 24 had Anupam Kher, Shabana Azmi, Anita Raj, and the actor-producer himself in plump major roles. All these series have a common factor ? they are finite. Which is why they have appealed to film actors, who would otherwise be daunted by the hectic long schedules; and faced with time constraints? Sure, the stars have had a few let downs like Karishma Kapoor and Raveena Tandon?s shows were neglected by the viewers largely because of the channel?s insignificance. But that hasn?t been a deterrent.

Furthermore, television doesn?t allow for typecasting as such. If an actress like Padmini Kolhapure plays the other woman, she doesn?t risk being offered only such roles. Though TV is a mass medium, it doesn?t lend itself for impresioned public memory as films do. In the latter medium, the actor is hard pressed for shaking off an image; eg: the late Amjad Khan, though a wonderful actor could never shake off the Gabbar Singh image; on the other hand Vinod Nagpal went beyond his character as ?Basesar Ram, the alcoholic father in Hum Log.

Can we now look forward to a healthy infusion across networks of finite fictional shows, which showcase a mix of film and TV actors? Quality shooting and writing is a vital ingredient that goes without saying. Who knows, the day isn?t far, when our television and film stars will walk hand-in-hand on the red carpet like they do at the Golden Globes. According to Anubhav Sinha, a one time TV stalwart, TV in the US attracts movie stars because of the innovative scripts and the economics of the shows. But small steps are heading in the right direction. What's really needed is that content and production values should escalate way beyond the regressive mindset that currently rules, with daily kitchen dramas. In India,?? fiction shows still fail to attract the busy stars because of the lack of a challenging a script. But times are a-changing.