DC: Filmy melodrama unfolds on the screen-KMH

Karan and Kritika

Unlike the West, the concept of serials taking a break and returning with a fresh season and a better script hasn't caught on.

Ekta Kapoor's Kitni Mohabbat Hai, featuring the lead pair from season one, Karan Kundra and Kritika Kamra is predictably melodramatic and filmy. The two lovers, who begin by hating each other, fall in love and manage to overcome family opposition to get married. So why does the family oppose this relationship?

Cos Arohi's grandfather was responsible for Arjun's mother's death. The truth is still hazy as the plot is yet to be revealed. Arohi, who discovers this information, tries to keep it a secret. But Arjun figures it out

That's when the twist and turns begin. Arohi's dadaji gets shot at a family party in his home.

Now, Arjun did have plans of bumping him off but an intruder quickly enters the home and kills him. Arjun assumes that he had shot dadaji and obviously the family wants him punished.

Arohi, who is madly in love, and was present at the scene of crime, insists that Arjun is innocent. In typical melodramatic fashion, she indulges in lengthy dialogues with each family member trying to convince them of the reality as seen through her eyes.

However, the family is not convinced and she is asked to choose between them and Arjun. No prizes for guessing who Arohi chooses. She walks out of her home, defiant but determined to support the man she loves. Arohi has support though. While the elders may be opposed to Arohi's decision, her cousins stand by her. Now, the extended clan is rather ditsy and dumb.

These assorted cousins can't act for nuts and are prone to mouthing such silly dialogues that you really wish you could ask them to shut up. So, amongst the younger lot, Arohi carries the pressure of performing on behalf of her onscreen cousins. Arjun acts well only when he has to play the besotted lover and this has little to do with his acting abilities. Karan and Kritika have been dating each other for a while and the onscreen chemistry is very evident.

Arohi manages to hire a drunken but brave lawyer who once managed to win a case against her family lawyer. But, a few scenes later, the lawyer is murdered much to the audience's relief. His tiresome drunken act was far from impressive.

Arjun is served a life sentence and Arohi's world is shattered. Surely, there will be more rona, dhona, fights, screams and melodrama to follow. That's what TV soaps are all about today!