From Sunil Grover's Gangs of Filmistan to Shubharambh, shows that were pulled down due to the pandemic

The ongoing pandemic situation led to many changes worldwide this year, everyone went through a lot of ups and downs. Various industries and companies faced losses, and the television industry was also not spared from it. A plethora of TV shows went off-air this year owing to the pandemic. A few of them were running since before the lockdown and a few others were also introduced post lockdown. Issues like low TRPs, high-budget, shoot safety, actor’s dates and many more made the makers decided to shut them down. Take a look at the list of shows that went off-air.

Gangs Of Filmistaan was pulled off in less than 2 months. The show starring Sunil Grover, Sugandha Mishra and a few others began on August 31 this year and went off the air on October 24. Talking about the abrupt ending of the show, producer Preeti Simoes told TOI, “We had Sunil Grover’s dates for only this time period. We had good actors on the show and it was entertaining. The show was being telecast on a prime time slot on weekdays and competing with social dramas as well as the IPL on other channels, so all that also has to be taken into consideration. We are happy that the show entertained viewers and made them laugh during these tough times of the pandemic. It gave everyone a reason to laugh.” (Photo: Instagram)

The drama series starring Mahima Makwana had been launch only in December last year and will be going off-air by the second week of November 2020. The reason for the show's end is low ratings after the pandemic. Lead actor Akshit Sukhija talking about the suddent end of the show said, “I am upset that the show is ending, but at the same time, I am looking forward to exploring myself as an artist by taking up versatile characters. I am open to everything, be it TV, web or films. I feel that every show takes you on a new journey and teaches you many things. So, I am fine with moving on and excited to embark on a new journey with a new character”

Lead actress Mahima also displayed her disappointment for the same and said, “As someone associated with the show for almost 10 months, this is very disappointing. The set had become my second home -we were shooting 25 days in a month for 14 hours at a stretch. I have invested my heart and soul in the show, I am feeling very low! Having said that I realise that at the end of the day only TRP decides the fate of a show. Over the last few weeks, our show's TRPs have been poor. The show's makers made changes in the script, introduced new characters, but nothing seems to have worked.” (Photo: Instagram)

The historical comedy show, which had only started in August this year, was wrapped up in mere 2 months. Talking about the abrupt ending of the show, Charu Asopa had stated, “The lockdown period has been tough for everyone in the industry. Post lockdown, we were trying different things and adjusting to working in the new normal. Although the show was inspired from previous seasons, the format and script were different. We are all shocked at the moment and wondering how they decided to pull the plug suddenly because we had put in a lot of effort.” (Photo: Instagram)

The second season of Ekta Kapoor’s popular drama series ‘Kasautii Zindagii Kay’ started two years ago and ran successfully for almost one and a half years. The lockdown led to a three-month break in the show, post which it started facing issues of low ratings. The makers witnessed a major drop in the ratings and took it off-air. Lead actress, Erica Fernandez, who played Prerna in the show told TOI, “Every good thing comes to an end, and daily soaps are no different. To make way for a new show, the older show has to come to an end.” She also talked about the difficulties faced due to COVID during the shoots. Erica said, “There were many restrictions on the set after shooting resumed in June. Issues like social distancing and lesser crew members hampered the industry a lot.” (Photo: Instagram)

A spin-off of ‘Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai’, ‘Yeh Rishtey Hain Pyaar Ke’ was launched in March 2019. The show was loved by its avid viewers and fans but was taken off-air in October this year. Producer Rajan Shahi had announced the shut down of the show. The news about this created a fuss amongst the fans, who wanted an extension for the show. So much so, that one of the fans even slit her wrist after the new of it going off-air was out. (Photo: Instagram)

This show set against a Muslim backdrop began its journey in March 2018. It faced a dip in the ratings post the COVID lockdown, due to which the makers decided to take it off-air. Eisha, who played the role of Zara, said: "I am thankful to all our fans for having showered us with immense love and adulation. I have loved every bit of this wonderful journey and I am going to surely miss shooting for the show. This show was indeed like my baby." (Photo: Instagram)

Ishaaron Ishaaron Mein began its journey in July last year and was doing quite well on TV. The series went on a halt in March 2020 due to the COVID pandemic and later it was announced that it will not make a return to the TV screens. (Photo: Instagram)

Ekta Kapoor’s Pavitra Bhagya that had started in March 2020 only and the lockdown was pulled down then. It was put to halt on March 19 this year and had begun in July after a gap of three months. Later the shoot was again halted, as lead of Kasauti Zindagi Kay Parth Samthaan, who had tested COVID positive, had shot in the same sets. Later a few issues were being faced by the cast and crew, and the low rating added up to them, which led to the cancellation of the show. (Photo: Instagram)