Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi's Apara Mehta on Smriti Irani's revelation about shooting despite having a miscarriage, says "Usse aana bhi pada hoga aur karna bhi pada hoga"

Veteran actress Apara Mehta, who played Savita Mansukh Virani in the iconic television serial Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, agrees with her co-star Smriti Irani's recent claims of being called to shoot on the sets of their show hours after her miscarriage, explaining that this occurred because "TV shows don't have a bank and telecast copy has to be sent."

Apara opened up about how Smriti Irani was shooting at the time of birth of both of her children Zohr and Zoish Irani. She shared, “I know that she was shooting with us up to the previous day of Zohr’s (Smriti Irani’s elder son) birth and came back on the fourth day to shoot because kya hi karein? In fact, both times, when her daughter Zoish was also born, she came back to work.”

Apara shared that not only Smriti but all the actors had to keep their personal lives aside while working on a daily soap, "Whenever any of us fell sick or anything, they came to our places, put on a little bit of makeup, put a wall at the back, and we have shot."

Earlier, Smriti Irani had claimed that she was called for the shot and was asked to return despite telling them that she had a miscarriage and wasn't well. Apara reacted, “I know Smriti spoke about the miscarriage. By the time this happened, my character was already dead on the show, but I know it for a fact ki usse aana bhi pada hoga and karna bhi pada hoga.”

Apara also opened up about the struggles with the TV industry and one cannot blame a single incident. She shared, “There is a requirement of commitment in this industry, but you have gone through something personal also, so it is a difficult life to be on TV. The whole chain goes up in such a manner, that you can’t blame one person - the actor, production house, or the makers, because it is a very long chain and a vicious circle. The scripts and story tracks have to be decided, and if something does not work then it has to be changed, so you have to churn out and send the telecast copy.”

Apara revealed that there are no bank episodes ready for telecast to provide any leverage to the actors, “TV requires a lot of dedication from actors, beyond everything, and that is how it works. No show had a bank during that time. It is slightly better these days, as there is sometimes a bank of 2-3 episodes. The telecast has to go, come what may. We have all gone through different ups and downs in our lives, yet we have shot and the telecast copy has gone."