MUMBAI: First time soap producers, Miditech must be patting their back. On the very first day of launch, Saara Akash, the lavishly produced young and yuppy series, has managed to notch a TVR of 7.3, marking the 16th spot in the CS4+ rankings by TAM. Across all India TAM markets, the average TVR for the soap reads 4.4, putting the series in the 48th spot.
If television ratings are to be believed, the audience has lapped up the fresh and lively fare being dished out by Star every Thursday night at 9 pm.
A refreshing break from the kyunkis and the kahaanis, the one-hour-long Saara Akash is positioned as a love story with life in air force as the backdrop. Shot at the Indian Air Force base in Mumbai and Pune, the story revolves around five air force pilots, who have just finished their training.
Given the warm reception of the serial, all the preliminary changes in the cast that includes big television names like Parmeet Sethi, Kiran Kumar, Manish Goyal, Shakti Anand, Anuj Saxena and Maanav Gohil now seem worth the effort and time.
Exuberant about the soap's performance, Miditech creative director Anil Jha says, "The ratings are very encouraging. The publicity by Star TV has evoked enormous response."

In early august, before the launch of the soap, Star had run a promotional campaign in Mumbai and Delhi where it managed to collect from men, women, students and senior citizens an overwhelming 150,000 signatures and messages for the Indian Air Force. For every signature collected, Star Plus has volunteered to deposit one rupee in the Indian Air Force Wives Association Fund. The book containing these signatures will be kept at the Indian Air Force Museum in Palam, Delhi.
The serial, Jha feels, has managed to generate interest because of its unique backdrop and also because people have liked the blend of characters in the story.
The series surely looks fresh and young and the ratings look good for now. Nevertheless, it may be too early to say whether it's just initial curiosity or the series can actually sustain interest over the slated 26-episode-run.

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