In the heydays of the soap, back in 2000, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi introduced in its story a character - Baa - who was the epitome of love and warmth; she would forgive the worst of enemies, embracing them as her own. At the same time, she was fair and just and would call a spade a spade even when the kids of her own brood did wrong.

Cut to 2009, Baa is passé. Instead, the grandmother of your favourite daily soaps are scheming, menacing characters, like Ammaji of Na Aana Iss Des Laado or Dadisa of Balika Vadhu, who are not only orthodox in social practices but often conniving enough to play the villain.

Purnendu Shekhar, the writer of Balika Vadhu, does see it as a paradigm shift but attributes it to the story structure. “Many shows these days address social issues especially in our rural interiors. And usually it is the older women in the household who, due to illiteracy, blindly follow practices like child marriage or female infanticide. Hence they become the evil factor on the show,” he explains.

Producer Rajan Shahi of Sapna Babul Ka…Bidaai on Star Plus agrees. He says that often the grandmother — like the Naani on his show who dislikes one of her granddaughters Ragini because she has a dark complexion - is only a victim of her situation. “The naani grew up with a belief system that to have a dusky girl child is a bane for the family, and she is purely following it, never mind whether the child is her own blood.”

... contd.