Move over saas-bahus and reality shows as history is set to repeat itself with serials on the lives of historical figures making a comeback on the small screen.
Historical serials first shot to fame with shows like 'Bharat Ek Khoj' and ' Chanakya'. The former was shot by National-award winning director Shyam Benegal and was widely appreciated for.
Its representation of the book written by India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and included a starcast of stalwarts like Roshan Seth and Naseeruddin Shah.
Shah later also acted in and as 'Mirza Ghalib', a show directed by famed lyricist and film director Gulzar.
These programs provided the spark for historical serials and were followed by the 'Chanakya', a serial directed by Dr Chandraprakash Dwivedi that followed the life of one of the most influential political theorists in ancient India.
Actor turned director Sanjay Khan continued the trend with his shows like 'The Sword of Tipu Sultan', 'Akbar the Great' and 'The Great Maratha'. These programs graced the idiot box with their representation of historical classics into a format that suited the mainstream.
But too much on the same platter resulted in the diminishing of historical serials from the small screen and the saas-bahu sagas took over. This year, two historical serials, 'Jhansi Ki Rani' and 'Meera' will take the audience back into the pages of history and will attempt to draw the youth with their presentation.
"Jhansi Ki Rani is a character that has inspired generations, it will inspire the young girls of our country and will enliven consciousness about her," says Nitin Vaidya, Business head of Zee TV.
The trend for youth getting the limelight in historical serials started with soaps like 'Dharti Ka Veer Yodha' Prithviraj Chauhan and 'Dharam-Veer' and since then there has been no looking back.
"When I was small I wanted to become someone like Rani Laxmibai and I believe by portraying this character I would be able to inspire young girls like me," says 13-year-old Ulka Gupta who plays 'Manu' (Jhansi ki Rani) in the serial.
Another show on the television circuit that has caught the eye of audiences is Meera, which has been pitted against Jhansi ki Rani in the race for TRPs.
"Meera is quite different from a regular historical serial because it is more of a love-story and with 'Krishna' involved it will be liked by people of all age-groups," says Meenakshi Sagar who has written and produced the show. Industry experts feel that making a historical serial is not an easy task and requires a lot of research and hard work apart from choosing the right location to match the script.