It was Smriti Zubin Iraani's decision to name the project 'Virrudh' as the protagonist, Vasudha, has to go against all relationships.

The tagline, of course, was given by the channel (Sony) when they heard the story and felt that the protagonist was so much like Abhimanyu of Mahabharat who gets stuck in the 'chakravyuh'. That she herself should play the female Abhimanyu was also the channel's decision.

Vasudha is a woman who is mature, unmarried and someone who is more serious about her goals in life. "It is my fortune," smiled Smriti, "that they thought I was the one who could do justice to the character."

Smriti is all set to get her new serial, 'Virrudh,' on air. It is not only being produced by her, but she also plays the protagonist. The serial deals with a concept that has not been dealt with before on television and Sony has pinned all its hopes on it. The serial will be on air from the 26th of March, 2007.

Revealing some more about the serial where producer plays protagonist, Smriti said 'Virrudh' was all about this lead character who is totally a papa's girl. She adores and respects her father so much that she cannot bear to see or hear anything against him.

He is a demi-god for her and she has blind faith in him. It takes some time for the truth to dawn on her; she realises that because of her blind love and faith all her other relationships are getting alienated.

"I play Vasudha, the lead protagonist in the serial," said Smriti. "She is the most loving daughter of this businessman Dhirendra Raisinghaniya. Dhirendra depends and trusts only her. The fact that Vasudha is an illegitimate daughter had been acknowledged by Dhirendra and led to her immense admiration for her father.

But this is not the truth," she elaborated. "Things take a turn when she realises the truth about her father. The rest you watch in the serial."

What would be the serial's USP, then? The concept does seem something new, and not dealt with before on television. In that sense, it is truly 'different'. It is yet again a story about a daughter and the relationships around her.

But it is not the usual saas-bahu-beti-ba stuff which we see on television. The strong storyline has been executed by an excellent cast which has risen to the challenge. That is why, perhaps, the title has a tagline which says, 'Har Rishta Ek Kurukhetra'.

A question does come to mind though. Like all other serials, will this one too change track from the line revealed at the outset? Or like all otehr serials, it will begin taking off in all sorts of directions and undergo changes?

Like Smriti's first production, 'Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Aasman' they promise to keep the storyline as delineated at the start. "It is the story and the concept which will take the serial ahead," said Smriti. "We have a technically strong crew. They will definitely do a good job."

'Virrudh' was conceptualised a year ago. The story is such that it cannot be stretched ad infinitum and nor does it flaunt any flowery language. Smriti bided her time and waited for the right moment, the right opportunity, the right cast and of course the right slot. She got it right all at once and 'Virrudh' was in the womb.

Smriti didn't feel that it was necessary for actors to become producers to prove their real worth as most of them do get their just wages. She herself always looked out for meaty roles and did get a rather wide variety to prove he worth. But, she claimed, that she was also blessed with a creative mind, and so went ahead with my creation and became a producer.

And that's not the end of it. Smriti also sits on the edit desk. Does it point the way she will go shortly, that is, into direction, too? Seems unlikely, at least for the moment. The reason is that Smriti doesn't feel confident enough that she has "the technical knowledge to become a director".

She was confident that she could write a script, act and produce, but direction was something that she would prefer to "leave to the experts". But how long before she feels expert enough is anybody's guess.

Time already is at a premium for Smriti Zubin Iraani. She is doing two dailies and one weekly at the moment. Is she as good a time manager or will the family back home keep waiting to see her...at home, that is?

Her confidence is evident when she says emphatically, "Yes, I will be and I am managing it. It all depends on how you manage your time. If you want to, you can." So, time manager is another post Smriti has taken to with confidence!

There is something in the pipeline for the super time manager already, but she refuses to divulge anything right now. "All I will tell you is that it is not for Zee TV." - SAMPURN