Juhi's laughing & how!
eality shows have proved to be a boon for many television actors. These shows not only give them an opportunity to break away from the monotony of playing the same character for several years but also showcase their talent on a dance floor or comedy platform. Juhi Parmar who is playing the main protagonist in Kumkum for the past six years is not a regular on reality television circuit. She was supposed to participate in Nach Baliye. But since she is not married and neither is she in a relationship, Star Plus had decided to find a partner for her through auditions. When some of the participants objected, the idea was dropped. A few months ago, Juhi was seen crooning on Say Shava Shava, in a nine-day singing competition between television actors. Now Juhi has joined Comedy Circus.
While the show was launched seven weeks ago, Juhi joined Comedy Circus recently as a wild card entrant. Why did she join the show a month after it started? "Actually I was offered the show at a time when I was taking a complete break from work for a month. I was keen on doing Comedy Circus but the break was also very important for me and I went ahead with my holiday. But when I came back I was approached again and I agreed for a wild card entry," she explains. However, when Juhi was approached first for the show she didn't like the idea of doing stand-up comedy and had refused to do it. What made Juhi change her mind?
"The producers persisted and showed me a few episodes of the show's first season. I liked the concept. It didn't seem run-of-the-mill. Often we actors do long running soaps and get typecast in a particular slot. But this was a good opportunity for me to show the comic side of my talent and I agreed to join the show," says Juhi who made such an impressive entry in Comedy Circus that judge Archana Puran Singh told her that she was wasting her time doing soaps. But Juhi disagrees, "It was a big compliment from an actor who has done many comedy roles with great aplomb. I think what she meant by 'wasting time doing soaps' is that there is much more to me than just acting in soaps which has not been explored yet. But the problem is we don't get the opportunity to experiment with different genres of acting."
Juhi, though is happy doing the serial that made her a household name. "Kumkum has been a satisfying and fairly exciting experience. The character went through varied shades and I have shown my versatility by playing a double role which was followed by Kumkum losing her memory. I think within one character I have played several sub-characters. Now after reincarnation, I am playing a younger Kumkum with a touch of comedy and lighter moments," she elaborates. But Comedy Circus is a different ball game altogether. "It is a non-stop one-take four-minute performance laced with humour, gags and comedy," she adds.
How does she find the competition and who she thinks are her tough competitors? "Competition is tough and all the contestants are good. I am quite impressed by Krushna, Apara (Mehta) and Kamya(Punjabi). But I think Krushna and his partner are really amazing," says Juhi who doesn't want to speculate on her chances of reaching the finals. "I really can't say. But so far I have had a roller-coaster ride. I started very well, didn't do well the following week but I scored 30 out of 30 in the third episode. I am not saying I am the best or that I won't be voted out. But I wouldn't like to be voted out because of a bad performance. I will get out after giving a good performance."
She doesn't think stand-up comedy is really difficult. "It is difficult but not very difficult. I think singing is more difficult which I discovered in Say Shava Shava," she says. She also doesn't need hours of rehearsals to learn her comic lines. "As an actor I am used to learning ten-page dialogues in a short time. Memorising lines is not a problem with me at all. But yes, doing a well-coordinated job and performing as a team needs little bit of work," she clarifies. Suddenly, Juhi finds herself laughing a lot both on the show and in the serial. "There are lots of lighter moments for me. We were a bit skeptical about the reincarnation theme but it has worked very well for the show. After a long time the TRPs have improved and I pray that ratings stay above 3 TVRs," she smiles. Quiz her whether she is likely to do any other show in the near future and her reply is a firm no. "Kumkum takes lot of my time. Besides, I like to do one show at a time. I did two seasons of Antakshari which was followed by Shava Shava. And now I am doing Comedy Circus. My plate is full," she signs off.
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