Exclusive: TV Stars Aditi Sharma, Adnan Khan Reveal Their Biggest Takeaway from ‘Kathaa Ankahee’

New Delhi: A show about love, guilt sacrifice and redemption, ‘Kathaa Ankahee’ revolves around ‘Katha’, a single mother who is in dire need of money for her son Aarav’s treatment of blood cancer. ‘Viaan’, on the other hand, is a cold-hearted man who has had bitter experiences with women in the past. When their paths cross, Katha is compelled to give in to Viaan’s demands, which entangles both of them in a very weird relationship and they both just can’t escape each other. What happens next forms the crux of the story. The show stars Aditi Sharma in the titular role of Katha while actor Adnan Khan portrays the role of Viaan. 

During an exclusive interview with Zee News Digital, Aditi and Adnan talked in-depth about what made them say yes to the show, what is the biggest takeaway of doing television and how do they deal with pressures. 

Q – Since ‘Kathaa Ankahee’ is not a regular daily soap, What made both of you say ‘yes’ to the show? 

Aditi – I was okay to do television if I was offered something different and ‘Kathaa Ankahee’ is one such show. I loved the concept of the show and how the story is not lovey-dovey one between Katha and Viaan. 

Adnan – I am not much of a future planner; my previous show (Ishq Subhan Allah) had just got over and I was looking for new opportunity to act. Since Sony has been very different with their content so I was open to explore and try their shows. Secondly, the production house is very big and there are excellent actors (Points at Aditi) so that made me say yes to the show. 

Q – Since both of you have worked in films and web series and there is a lot of difference between television and other mediums, so does that experience affect your choice on television? 

Aditi – I look forward to right content. Yes, we do have to compromise on quality while doing television because of time constraint which does not happen in films or web series. But if you make television a practice then it's beautiful. It has a mass reach and people recognize you based on the character so that’s the biggest takeaway from tv. There’s a part of me that I have invested in the character and I become very defensive about it. 

Adnan – Since I am not much of a future planner, I don’t think too much about it. Aditi said to me, “We have characters within us and the shows come and find us.” So somedays I am literally thinking like them. 

Q – Since it's an adaptation of the Turkish show ‘One Thousand and One Nights’, so have you guys watched the original show? 

Adnan – It was a strict no. I didn’t want to imitate them so we chose not to watch it. 

Aditi – It was mutual decision by the team. We wanted to take it as a fresh story since it has been changed according to the Indian standards. But I just want to watch once our show gets over. 

Q – Its’ been two months and it is doing really well, so what do you think is the USP of the show? 

Adnan (Points at Aditi and laughs)- She is the USP. 

Aditi – I think our director is amazing. So even if the characters are doing weird things, they are very real and that’s what striking a chord with the audience. 

Q – Since your past shows ‘Gangaa’ and ‘Silsila Badalte Rishton Ka’ deal with sensitive issues like child widow remarriage and infidelity, do you really make a choice about stories that can create an impact? 

Aditi – It attracts me as a person. There has been one common point to all the characters I have played on television till now. So in a good way, the characters choose me and I choose them. This is my third show and I have been really motivated and attached to my characters. On a sub-conscious level, yes, I do like issue-based shows. 

Q – Since television has predominantly been a female-oriented industry, how do you stand out as a male actor? 

Adnan – I feel you can break barriers with your performance. So that’s not something I even think of. You just give the best you can. 

Q – There’s a lot of pressure to maintain the TRP on a regular basis and you guys must have faced that at different points in life. So how does it affect you?

Adnan – In my previous show, we started on such a high note that I never realized the importance of a high TRP. So, when it started dipping, it was kind of demotivating and everyone was turning around the blame game. But then the realization hit me that you have to give your best irrespective of the ratings. We are here to perform first of all; fame, money and TRP come later. 

Aditi – I feel whether there are 50 people watching or 800 people, that should not decide your performance, you got to perform the same always. So, I don’t take the pressure of it. Yes TRP decides how long the show will go on but it doesn’t bother me. 

‘Kathaa Ankahee’ streams every Monday- Friday on Sony Entertainment Television at 8:30 pm and digitally on Sony LIV.