Which is why she decided to take it up in the first place. She'd given her permanent laugh lines enough time to recoup from her hectic Kya Scene Hai days and was ready to accept a new challenge. "I wanted to have a long gap between my previous chat show and the next one. It is important for all television artistes to be wary of over-exposure or they could commit suicide. I didn't want to do a show that would get lost in the milieu of 500 others," she says.

However, when Plus Channel first approached her, the concept of the programme was different the kind that might well have got lost in the welter of other shows. Plus wanted a show on design, style and lifestyles in the film industry. Wily Archana wisely advised them against it. "It wouldn't have got beyond five episodes because stars will not let you shoot extensively in their homes. I told them that if the show depended more on Me and less on Them, it could work," she recalls. And judging by the response so far, it has worked.

Uncensored takes a look at the funny side to the filmis, Archana says, magar pyaar se. "For example -- we laugh at the mummyji factor in the industry. But don't we all go to our mothers for advice or seek their permission before we do anything? So why should it be different with the stars?" And apart from taking a few wide-smiled digs at stars and their ways, Archana also tries to reveal lesser known facts about them that often don't make the headlines. "These people have some amazing qualities that everyone should know about. But no one bothers to find out because they are not gossip-worthy," she says. Like what, you want to know but don't ask since she' already providing an answer.

Like, there's an human face to the industry. So the show tries to drive home the point that film stars can also be normal. "People don't want to know that Amitabh Bachchan also goes to the loo -- they believe that he just gets up and goes out in a three-piece suit. Nothing else happens in his life," Archana complains.

So far, she has managed to hold things together with her characteristic aplomb and non-stop verbiage. And the compliments haven't stopped flowing. "The best response I've got so far is people saying `we haven't seen anything like this before' and `only you could have pulled off a stunt like this,'" Archana reveals with a hint of pride.

While Archana is working hard to make sure that she gives people a show that's different, she has no qualms about directing and acting in a formula sitcom like Jaane Bhi Do Paro (DD2). Even here, she insists that the serial does have some logic and taste. "I hope these very factors don't work against it and bring the TRPs down," she laughs.

In the comedy, Archana plays the lead role of Paro a housewife, married to Rakesh Bedi's strict, stentorian, ultra conservative Dr.Upadhyaya who with the assistance of her madcap friend (Neena Gupta) tries to come out of the shadows.

Archana admits that Indian sitcoms are too loud. She did try to break the mould and adopt a Hrishikesh Mukherjee's brand of subtle humour in the first few episodes. Soon she realised that it wasn't working. "With so much channel-surfing, viewers will not wait for a punchline for more than half a minute. So rather than trying something hat ke, and being taken off after four episodes, I'd take my chances of being lumped with the rest and at least sustain my audience," she says matter-of-factly.

Next on the cards for this business savvy actress-anchor-director is to start up her own production house. "Both Parmeet (her husband) and I are sought after artistes in the industry. So it makes sense to produce our own shows," she says. But the husband-wife duo haven't really taken any concrete steps in that direction so far. "Our acting dukaan is working fine right now. So we don't want to juggle acting with production yet," she says.

And if you think that's not enough to keep Archana busy, then there's the odd film that she picks up. Like Raja Hindustani which not only boosted her ego, but also fetched her some rave reviews. "Today, thanks to TV, I can afford to demand my price in the film industry and turn down bit roles," she says.