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MUMBAI: On the 17th of October, as the whole of India is bathed in the radiance of Deepavali, Amrita TV lights the wick of an array of splendid programmes, to illuminate the day in the warm glow of premiere entertainment.
The ?Festival of Lights? is kindled by a special episode of Udayamritham at6.30am, put together exclusively for the propitious day, followed by the sunny super-hit Hello, a Mohanlal starer at 9.00pm.
At 1.30pm when the sun burns like a giant lamp in the afternoon skies, Amrita TV telecasts Deepavali Jalsa. In Kerala, Deepavali is celebrated on a more muted key than the rest of India; so to tune in to the real pitch of the festival, Jalsa travels to the heartland of Deepavali in the State, to the Gujarathi community concentrated in Cochin & Kozhikode and gets a feel of the actual pulse of the fiesta that is celebrated in a blaze of lights, firecrackers & sweets .
The sparkling highlight of this year?s Fete is the Grand Finale of AmritaTV?s Vanita Ratnam-3, the sole reality show for young mothers in Malayalam Television at 3.30pm.
At 7 pm, when every home is resplendid in the luster of a 100 oil lamps, comes Deepa Prabhayil, a heart-to-heart conversation with Kaniha, the royal consort of Mammoty in ?Pazhassi Raja? the most expensive Malayalam film made till date. She shares her experience of being a part of the trilingual biographical blockbuster , the making of which stretched over 3 of her birthday celebrations ;narrates her thrill and nervousness of being Kaitheri Makam, Mamooty?s Queen & the difficulties encountered during the shooting sessions scheduled in deep forests .
The fireworks that draw patterns in the inky night will also cast gleams of light on the past life of Sreenivas , famous playbacksinger & music director in Njan Sreenivas at 7.30pm. He talks at length on his struggle to make a mark in the competitive world of Music; how he ?converted? from chemical engineer to playback singer; the awards that came in search of him;his special relationship with A.R.Rehman & Ilayaraja .
As the Sreenivas interview draws to a close & the fumes from the spent crackers suffuse the air, another glorious Deepavali from Amrita TV will be consigned to memory.
