It's a sad but real fact that Zee TV and Drishtant Media's Aap Ki Antara is on a downhill ride. The TRPs have slowly reduced after the leap. We spoke to the actor Darshan Pandya who plays Aditya to figure out the reason for the show's declining popularity.

Darshan it seems has been pondering over the issue way before we questioned him. He says, "First of all the timing got changed from 8.30 PM to 10.30 PM. The whole audience segment changes with such a drastic change in time. Secondly, people used to watch the show with their children, which does not happen much now. Reason being, children go to bed early as well as the fact that the child star cast of Aap Ki Antara has been replaced with a tween cast."

Darshan elaborates, "A new audience always requires more time to accept you. Plus even the late night audience had some idea of AapKi Antara with the old cast and not the new one. The time change along with the leap, completely shook the ground of the show."

As an afterthought Darshan adds, "I feel the leap should have happened without the change in timing, this way the older audience would have gotten a chance to grow on the flavor of the new cast."

In spite of disappointment, Darshan justifies the decision of time change. He says, "We always felt that the decision taken by the channel and production house is right. But this time it turned out to be wrong. It's disappointing. But mistakes happen and this decision turned out to be one. However, the team is making efforts to improve the TRP's with an interesting storyline."

The buzz is that the further track will show Vidya putting out all her efforts to get Antara admitted back in the school. She will go on a hunger strike in front of the school gates and this will eventually make the authorities take in Antara.

We too really hope that the ratings improve, as Aap Ki Antara is a path breaker on television!!

Reporter and Author: Susan Jose