Shekhar Suman, the indefatigable master of talk, is producing two shows for Zee TV under the banner of his newly constituted production house, Seven Thirty Entertainment.
Simply Shekhar, the talk show that 'goes one step ahead of Movers and Shakers' and which was being eyed by Star, has been snapped up by Zee.
While Suman says Simply Shekhar 'begins where M&S ends', he is clear that the core will remain 'fearless stand up interspersed with humour'. To be aired twice a week from 30 July, the half hour show will have a guest section a la M&S, which will feature "not movers but people who have already moved" - in other words, people who have already become achievers in their own right. The show will also have a live audience and a band comprising three girls and three boys which will, in all probability be called The Head Band (Remember M&S' Rubber Band?)
Suman's production company has subcontracted the show to InHouse Productions, which had produced Movers and Shakers. While the sets and the format of the show is "drastically different" from M&S, the show will occupy the same time slot of 10:30 pm. A team of eight scriptwriters is working with Suman to drum up the pithy dialogue, while TV Vinod, who has earlier handled MTV shows and ground events, dons the director's cap. Suman credits himself with the concept and the snazzy teasers and promos that will hit the channel soon, though. When quizzed about his choice of channel, Suman says that the channel is not as important as the "people with the right mindset" who have been open to his ideas about the show. So, Zee gets Simply Shekhar as well as XYZ, an action thriller series that will premiere in the first week of October on the channel.
The show, that will have its moments of humour, is being shot at several overseas locations including Malaysia and Australia and will feature a "leading actress from the film world" in the lead role, says Suman. Zee plans to telecast the show four times a week. Suman, who is currently busy with his forthcoming films Chor Machaye Shor and Ek Se Badhkar Ek and an album where he has lent both his voice and lyrics, says XYZ is about a crack team of detectives (X played by Suman, Y by the unnamed Bollywood heroine and Z by a dog called Zorro) and their exploits. Anant Mahadevan has directed some of the initial episodes.
