:: Mumbai Age

Doctors succumb to soapy love

NIDHI SETHI | NEW DELHI

Dill Mill Gayye is not a sequel to Sanjeevani," declares producer Siddhartha Malhotra, who formally announced the release of the serial at a press conference held at the Taj Mahal hotel on Thursday in the capital.

The plot revolves around the hospital and deals with the lives of five interns, Dr Anjali (Sunaina Gulia), Dr Sapna (Muskaan Mehani), Dr Armaan (Karan Singh), Dr Atul (Pankitt Thaker) and Dr Riddhima (Shilpa Anand).

"The only similarity between the two is the name of the hospital and the presence of Mohnish Behl. Unlike Sanjeevani which was all fun and excitement in the beginning but turned out to be another Dil Toh Pagal Hai as the serial proceeded, the latest offering won’t deviate from its theme," says Siddhartha.

Far from being a soap-opera comprising only kitchen politics, the serial aims at portraying the struggle of young people in a quest to become doctors. They face different challenges at various stages of their internship ranging from medical cases, jealousy, emotional breakdowns, frustration and achievements in their inter-personal relationships.

"I actually learnt how to tackle situations demanding utmost attention on the sets. It was truly a learning experience," says Sunaina Gulia, a Miranda House and IIMC passout, who plays Dr Anjali’s role. Dr Anjali is Dr Shashank’s (played by Mohnish Behl) daughter, who is under constant pressure to be a competent doctor like her father.

This time Dr Shashank returns to the hospital Sanjeevani as the dean. He dons the role of a strict disciplinarian who makes his students realise that life is serious business.

As the serial proceeds, these young doctors get to know more about each other and consequently love blooms between Dr Armaan and Dr Anjali.

"I am Dr Armaan Mallik for my viewers. A spoilt brat from a very affluent family, I am not interested in medicine. My parents force me to take this up. But as soon as I join Sanjeevani, my whole perspective changes and I now aspire to be one of the best doctors around," says Karan Singh.

The show will go on-air from August 20 on Star One.