What’s it about?Just when you thought that Indian television was making more youth-oriented shows, your self-sacrificing female protagonist makes a comeback. Written by Purnendu Shekhar and produced by Sunjoy Wadhwa of Astitva, Balika Vadhu and Saat Phere fame, Jyoti is the story of a sober, but brave girl

Jyoti Sharma, who hails from a middle-class family and has been working from the age of 16 with an orphanage in order to take care of her family’s financial needs. Being the oldest sibling, all the responsibilities come on to her and like most women on our small screen she willingly shoulders them with ease.

Who’s in it?Although the society around us has taken strictly to family planning, our television soaps just don’t seem to be paying heed. The Sharma family is one such example, with four offspring,including three girls — Jyoti, Sudha, Sushma and a boy — Deep. Jyoti’s mother Padma has been a victim of much oppression during the early years of her marriage and shares a very strained relationship with her physically challenged husband, Kamal Kishore. Jyoti’s friend Kalpana adds a little fun element to the otherwise run-of-the-mill show.

What’s hot?What is striking about the show is that the characters look real and identifiable. The costumes on the show are also very sober. No gaudy Kanjeevarams, no flashy jewellery, rather simple churidar-kurtas and cotton saris. May be we could blame the recession for the drastic change but we aren’t complaining. The main protagonist Jyoti, played by Sneha Wagh, looks promising. Also, it is quite refreshing to see new faces on television rather than the faces from the Balaji camp.

What’s not?Although the serial may not be a saas bahu drama as of now, it seems to have all the ingredients that could make it one. The plot doesn’t seem strong enough to boost the TRPs for the channel, and in some places it looks like a rehash of the Ekta Kapoor produced Kkusum. Few shots in the serial look like they have been shot in a studio and no efforts have been made to give the locations a real look.