“ Madhubala-jee has possibly blessed my ‘Anarkali’ character in mega-hit  ‘Taj-Divided by Blood” on ZEE5”, says Aditi Rao Hydari ! What can viewers expect in Season 2 ‘Taj-Reign of Revenge’ ? --- by Chaitanya  Padukone  

Veteran yet evergreen macho star Dharmendra ( who plays the charismatic Baba Sheikh Salim Chisti) came on time, and put  in a brief appearance at the star-studded  late evening party hosted by ZEE5 , to celebrate the super-success of their immensely popular OTT show  Taj – Divided by Blood

Being an emotional actor, Dharam-paaji shared ,” One of the major reasons I agreed to play this cameo character, was when I came to know that Naseeruddin Shah, who is like my younger brother, was playing the lead character of Akbar. Need to leave now, as I also have to go elsewhere. My role may be brief, but it is meaningful and impactful in this spectacular ZEE5  Taj OTT show. My best wishes and blessings are there for the success of the second season, “ said Dharam-paaji, waving out to  the media-paparazzi trailing him

As if to add  an element of  suspense,  revered senior star-actor  Naseeruddin Shah ( ‘Akbar’) was missing-in-action at the success-event. Explaining Naseer-bhai’s absence eminent producer Abhimanyu Singh ( Contiloe Digital) disclosed that he ( Naseer-bhai)  ‘has had a hectic-tiring schedule of performing for his drama-play and shooting-dubbing etc. As otherwise he is always like their extended family.

As expected, the cardinal scene-stealer at the Taj success events was gorgeous yet modest  Aditi Rao Hydari ( yes, she plays ‘Anarkali’ who gets shockingly eliminated by her own son in the first season).. Appearing ecstatic yet chilled-out over the phenomenal success of her show she said, “Honestly I find it difficult to speak about myself and praise myself. It’s so gratifying to know that  the viewers response of love and adulation  to the first season of TAJ  on ZEE5 has been so overwhelming. Everyone is now looking forward to the second season starting May 12th and I am also here to stand apart and cheer them for the next season as well. When I was playing ‘Anarkali’, I sent up a silent prayer to the legendary actress who made Anarkali immortal on screen. . Somehow I think I am blessed by the iconic beauty Madhubala-jee who played ‘Anarkali in the epic movie ‘Mughal-E-Azam’(1960). My character Anarkali is so courageous and stands by her love, “ smiled Aditi who is also being appreciated for her riveting role in yet another recent OTT show ‘Jubilee’ !

Besides Aditi, the celebrity star-cast turn-out included a galaxy of  female artistes including gorgeous Anushka Luhar (“Maanbai”),  stunning Sauraseni Maitra ( ‘Mehrunnissa) and  evergreen Shilpa Kataria Singh ( who plays her on-screen glam-mother) . While the macho handsome male actors included style-icon  Taaha Shah ( ‘Murad’), Aashim Gulati ( ‘Prince Salim’), Deepraj Rana ( ‘Maharana Pratap’), Pankaj Saraswat ( as ‘Abul Fazal)  and of course Shubham Kumar Mehra ( as Daaniyal Mirza )  Sharing their comments and  views on the success of  the ‘Taj’ OTT show director Vibhu Puri, producer Abhimanyu Singh, Manish Kalra--CBO of ZEE5 and Nimisha Pandey Curator and Content Head of ZEE5  According to Manish Kalra of  ZEE5, their Taj show has literally created history in the OTT zone,  as it has already crossed a phenomenal figure of over 601 million watch minutes.

In a statement released by the makers, Naseeruddin Shah has said, “ Taj – Divided by Blood is the story of war, succession and power set against the backdrop of the Mughal empire. The show unveils the inner workings that played out in the hallowed chambers of King Akbar’s empire. While many have recreated the Mughal history but Taj – Divided by Blood has taken an unexplored and unchartered take on it hence making it compelling for old and new viewers. A brilliant team from India and  across the globe has brought this series to life”

Speaking about the next Season 2 of  Taj--Reign of  Revenge on ZEE5, starting May 12,  talented director Vibhu Puri exclusively shared. “ We have shot Taj like a proper spectacular mainstream historical feature film. It  deserves to be ideally seen and enjoyed on the large screen, just as we screened the teaser-trailer today for the media. The next ( 2^nd) season of Taj will be bigger, better and much more dramatic. While the first season was more about the fights between the three brothers, in the next season it will be a brave yet scheming fight for succession to the throne.. As to ‘who’ will be the next Emperor succeeding Badshah Akbar.  Rebel and valiant fighter Salim will be brought back into the kingdom, as also advised by Peer Sufi Baba Chisti (Dharmendra). There could be a mighty clash of ideology between two generations.  You never know, we may possibly include flashbacks of  mesmerizing Anarkali’s character and even add musical elements by way of a sufiyana-qawwali song   Whenever there are scenes of  wars and fierce clashes of  revenge, brutality in inevitable. But we also have sensuous romance, amazing dialogues and performances, beauty and grandeur of  classy period costumes and lavish sets,” explains seasoned yet confident director Vibhu Puri.