Chandra Nandini

Chandra Nandini is an Indian Hindi-language Historical fictional drama television series which started airing on Star Plus on 10 October 2016 till 10 November 2017.[2] It was produced by Ekta Kapoor under her banner Balaji Telefilms and is directed by Ranjan Kumar Singh.[3] Starring Rajat Tokas as Chandragupta Maurya and Shweta Basu Prasad as a princess Nandni, the story-line is loosely based on the life of Chandragupta Maurya.[4][5]

Chandra Nandini
GenreHistorical Fiction
Drama
Created byEkta Kapoor
Shobha Kapoor
Based onChandragupta Maurya
Written byR M Joshi
Neha Singh
Directed byRanjan Kumar Singh
StarringRajat Tokas
Shweta Basu Prasad
Siddharth Nigam
Country of originIndia
Original language(s)Hindi
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes286
Production
Producer(s)Ekta Kapoor
Production location(s)Mumbai, India
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time22 minutes approx.
Production company(s)Balaji Telefilms
DistributorStar India
Release
Original networkStar Plus
Picture format576i(SDTV)
1080i(HDTV)
Original release10 October 2016 (2016-10-10)[1] –
10 November 2017 (2017-11-10)
External links
Website

Synopsis

The story is about Chandragupta Maurya, the founder of the Mauryan empire, a great warrior and ruler, known for uniting the Indian sub-continent. However, the show focuses on his love story with a princess named Nandni. The show starts with a voice over of mother India saying about Chandragupta Maurya and Nandini. Suryagupta Maurya and Moora the parents of Chandra have their romance. An invitation comes from Magadh for a festival. When they go there queen, Avantika of Magadh cheating her husband loves a barber named Nanda. When Suryagupta finds it, Nanda kills the king of Magadh. Then, Nanda kills Suryagupta but Suryagupta saves his wife. She gives birth to a boy. Moora hides her son in a cattle pound and escapes. But, Nanda arrests her and keep her in prison. However, A woman named Kanika finds Moora's son in the cattle pound and named him as Chandra and adopted without knowing his real identity.

8 years later

Chandra grows up and lives with his adopted parents. Moora is still in Nanda's prison without knowing anything about her son. She vows that her son will kill Nanda. Nanda and Avantika had a daughter named Nandini after 9 sons. Meanwhile, Chandra leaves home because his adopted mother suffering from her husband because of him. Chandra reaches to Magadh and meets a teacher named Chanakya who tries to save Magadh from Nanda. Chanakya sees Chandra's talents and understand that Chandra is the future king who save Magadh from Nanda. Then, he keeps Chandra in his presence and teaches him.

9 years later

Chandra is all grown up and becomes talented more than other students in Chanakya's presence. Nanda's daughter Nandini is also grown up and ready for a marriage. But that marriage is cancelled and Nandini marries Chandra to save her mother and kin. Love grows between Chandra and Nandini. But many problems are created by malayakutu and Helena. And Nandini’s twin sister Roopa tries to kill Chaaya and pushes her. Dhurdura sees her doing it and as they didn’t know about Nandini’s twin sister they blame Nandini for it. While exposing Roopa, Nandini and Chandra are married again but this time full pledged. Chandra and Chanakya use Roopa for catching Nanda and Nandini misunderstands Chandra for trapping her father using Roopa Nandini tried to warn Nanda. Mistaking her to be Roopa Nanda stabs her. Chandra saves Nandini but Roopa gets killed. Chanakya gets disturbed seeing the close relation of Chandra and Nandini. Durdhara is now 7 months pregnant and apologies Nandini for her mistake. Chandra and Nandini try to get intimate but Chanakya disturbs them saying that he should get ready for war against both of his father-in-laws (Nanda and Selucus) as they are planning to attack him together. Chandra convinces Selucus not to fight against him as his army is not big enough as Selucus. He decided to make Helena the chief queen and banish Nandini from kingdom as per Helena’s wishes. Helena threatens Durdhara to kill her if she spokes against her. Durdhara became sick. Helena informs Chandra and Nandini about Durdhara's condition and they both go back to Magadh to see her. Helena mixed poison in Durdhara's food and she becomes more sick eventually. Chandra and Nandini see Durdhara and become worried. At last Durdhara dies. When she was asked about her death at her last time she mistakenly pointed at Nandini while pointing at Helena.Everyone becomes shocked at Durdhara’s response. Helena provokes Chandra against Nandini and tells him to banish Nandini out of Magadh. Nandini later came back for revenge



Cast

Main cast

Recurring cast
  • Tanu Khan as Empress Helena Maurya - Seleucus I Nicator and Apama’s daughter; Chandragupta Maurya's first wife; Adonis and Alice’s mother.(2016–17)
  • Saanvi Talwar as Former Chief Empress Durdhara Maurya - Chandragupta Maurya's second wife; Bindusara's mother; Charumati and Dharma's mother-in-law; She is killed by Helena. (2016–17)[6]
  • Siddharth Nigam as Crown Prince Bindusara Maurya - Emperor Chandragupta Maurya and Empress Durdhara’s son; Nandini's foster son; Adonis and Alice's half-brother; Charumati & Dharma's husband.(2017)
    • Ayaan Zubair Rahmani as Young Prince Bindusara (2017)
    • Maahi as baby Bindusara (2017)
  • Manoj Kolhatkar as Acharya Chanakya, Guru of Chandragupta Maurya and Prime Minister of Magadha.(2016–17)[7]
  • Avneet Kaur as Crown Princess Charumati Maurya; Bindusara's first wife; Chandragupta and Durdhara's daughter-in-law.(2017)
  • Prerna Sharma as Dharma Maurya - Bindusara's second wife; Nandini's foster daughter; Chandragupta and Durdhara's daughter-in-law (2017)
  • Arpit Ranka as Mahapadma Nanda - Former Emperor of Magadha; Avantika's husband; Nandini and her nine brother’s father; He was killed by Chandragupta (2016–17)[8][9]
  • Mansi Sharma as Avantika - Former Empress of Magadha; Mahapadma Nanda's second wife; Nandini and her nine brother's mother. (2016–17)
  • Vidya Sinha / Niyati Joshi as Senior Queen - Suryagupta’s mother; Chandragupta's grandmother; Bindusara, Adonis and Alice's great-grandmother (2016) / (2016–17)
  • Papiya Sengupta as Rajmaata Moora - Chandragupta's mother; Helena, Durdhara and Nandini’s mother-in-law; Bindusara, Adonis and Alice’s grandmother. (2017)
  • Sheeba Chaddha as Apama- Former Queen of Greece and Helena's mother. (2016–17),[10]
  • Chetan Hansraj as Prince Parvatak Malayketu - Princess Chhaaya's second husband. (2016–17)[11]
  • Sanjeev Siddharth as Amaatya Rakshas - Mahapadma Nanda's Prime minister. (2016)
  • Rohit Choudhary as Vakranas.(2016)
  • Urfi Javed / Piya Valecha as Princess Chaya - Chandragupta's sister. (2016–17)
  • Ishaan Singh Manhas as Satyajeet - Chhaaya's first husband. (2016)[12]
  • Lokesh Batta as Prince Dhana Nanda - Mahapadma Nanda's son. (2016)
  • Rushiraj Pawar as Sona Nanda - Dhana Nanda's son. (2016)
  • Danish Bagga as Pandugrath - Mahapadma Nanda's seemingly mentally disabled son. (2016–17)
  • Geetanjali Mishra as Empress Sunanda - Mahapadma Nanda's first wife. (2016–17)
  • Vibhuti Thakur as Kanika - Chandragupta's foster mother. (2016–17)[12]
  • Kristian Hedegaard Petersen as Seleucus I Nikator (2016)
  • Andrea Ravera as Megasthenes
  • Khushboo Shroff as Gautami
  • Ankur Malhotra as King Ambhi (2016)
  • Vikas Salgotra as King Porus (2016)
  • Gaurav Khanna as Seleucus I Nicator (2016-2017)
  • Amrapali Gupta as Rajmaata Moora - Chandragupta's mother; Helena, Durdhara and Nandini’s mother-in-law; Bindusara, Adonis and Alice’s grandmother. (2016-2017)
  • Shikha Singh as a Princess (cameo role) (2016)[13]
  • Pooja Banerjee as Princess "Vishaka" Vishkanya. (2017)[14]
  • Ahad Ali Aamir as Rajkumaar Bandhir. (2017)
  • Abhishek Nigam as Prince Bhadraketu - Parvatak Malayketu and Princess Chhaaya’s son, nephew of Chandragupta, Chitralekha's husband. (2017)
  • Pragati Chourasiya as Chitralekha - Princess of Champanagar and wife of Bhadraketu. (2017)
  • Gautam Nain as Prince Adonis - Chandragupta and Helena’s son; Alice's brother, Bindusara's half-brother (2017)
  • Nirisha Basnett as Princess Alice- Chandragupta and Helena’s daughter; Adonis's sister; Bindusara's half-sister; Kartikey's wife. (2017)
  • Sheezan K as Kartikay - Prince of Champanagar; Alice's husband.(2017)
  • Charmi Dhami as Princess Tilottama - Maadhav and Maalti’s daughter. (2017)
  • Lavina Tandon as Mohini - an Enchantress. (2017)
  • Athar Siddiqui as Bheem Dev - Mohini's husband. (2017)
  • Garima Arora as Madhuram
  • Vikas Singh Rajput

Production

This is regarded as one of the costliest series produced by Ekta Kapoor under Balaji Telefilms.[15] In 21 September 2016, a press conference was held in Mumbai with the presence of Producer Ekta Kapoor and some actors including the leads Rajat Tokas and Shweta Basu Prasad.[16] Director Santram Verma who directed the pilot episode of the series opted out after it and was replaced by Ranjan Kumar Singh.[17]

In October 2016, about 300 horses were auditioned for a sequence for the lead Tokas.[18]

Speaking about his role male lead Rajat Tokas said, "I am really looking forward to portraying the mighty king, Chandragupta Maurya. His and Nandni’s story is very different from what we’ve seen on TV so far. Theirs is a love story written with hatred."[19] Female lead Shwetha Basu Prasad ssaid, "This show marks my comeback on TV after quite some time. The character of Nandni is that of a strong princess, whose emotions and struggles, every woman would resonate with."[19]

In 2017, the storyline of the series took a leap.[20] During which Siddharth Nigam joined the cast as Bindusara, Avneet Kaur as Charumati.[21][22] The series ended in 10 November 2017, due to fluctuations in its viewership, with Chandragupta becoming a Buddhist monk.[23] The shooting of the series was completed on 2 November 2017.[24]

Training

I will be paying attention to some of the nuances of that era and that character with the body language of a warrior princess, which will soon require me to learn sword fighting and horse riding. I have been reading on Magadh and Mauryan history a lot these days.

— Shweta Basu Prasad [25]

Filming

The initial scenes of the series was shot in the ancient locations of Magadh and Pataliputra in Patna.[26] But, the series was mainly filmed in Mumbai.[27]

Reception

India Today quoted the series as more masala, less history and reviewed, "The creators of the show have taken generous amount of creative liberty with the original story or history. The actors are not that bad; in fact, they are pretty okay.The palace looks super-animated, like it has just been put on the screen as an afterthought."[28]

The Times of India stated, "Going by the trailer, Shweta Basu fits the role of Chandragupta's wife perfectly. When it comes to showcasing opulence, there is no one who does it better than Ekta Kapoor. Right from the costume to the setting, one can expect grand locations and beautifully decked men and women."[29]

Adaptations

The series was dubbed in Tamil and Kannada aired on Star Vijay and Star Suvarna .[30] In Sri Lanka, the show is broadcast in Sinhala on the Swarnavahini network. In Hindi the series airs in Malaysia on TV3.

Historical accuracy and inaccuracy

While the character of Chandragupta and some of the wars and conflicts shown are almost historically accurate, the character of Princess Nandni of Magadha itself along with her twin Roopa is considered completely fictional by many sources.[31] Most historians said, Chandragupta married only twice, first to Durdhara who died while giving birth to Bindusara and years after he was married to daughter of Seleucus I Nicator (Helena as per the show) in a war-peace treaty.[31] Queen Nandni as per the show is described as daughter of the real Mahapadma Nanda which is contradicted as there is no historical evidence. It has been said Nandni's characterization is based upon most of Durdhara character derived from historical texts, novelization and poetries.[31] However there are several historical sources have been mentioned the existence of Queen Nandni, among them one evidence has found in 350 BC Greek Historian Megasthenes' book called Indika as he served as an Ambassador in Royal Court of Chandragupta Maurya.[32] According to this Book Queen Nidarus (presumably Greek accent of Nandni) was Mahapadma Nanda / Dhana Nanda's daughter who was given to Samrat Chandragupta as a war-peace treaty.[32] In that book, she is mentioned as a great warrior and a leader.[32]

References
  1. "Watch: Chandra Nandni premieres tonight; here's where the royals live". The Indian Express.
  2. "Chandra Nandini to go off air in November". The Times of India.
  3. "Grabbing his chances". The Hindu.
  4. "Historical angle". The Tribute.
  5. "Shweta Basu Prasad in 'Chandragupta Maurya'". The Times of India. 25 February 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  6. "Saanvi Talwar to enter 'Chandra Nandini'". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  7. "Chandragupta Maurya gets its 'Chanakya'". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  8. "'Chandragupta Maurya': Arpit Ranka of 'Mahabharat' fame to play key role in Rajat Tokas' show". International Business Times. 3 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  9. "Arpit Ranka injured while shooting for war scene", The Times of India, 15 November 2016
  10. "Sheeba Chaddha set to return to small screen with Chandra Nandni". The Times of India. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  11. "Chetan Hansraj takes special martial arts training for TV show". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  12. "Ishaan Singh Manhas to enter 'Chandra Nandini'". The Times of India. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  13. "Shikha Singh to enter 'Chandra Nandini'". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  14. "Pooja Banerjee on doing Chandra Nandini: I was dying to do a negative character". The Indian Express.
  15. "Ekta Kapoor's historical drama Chandra Nandni might just be her biggest show, see pics, video". The Indian Express.
  16. "Chandra Nandini press conference". The Times of India.
  17. "Director Santram Verma not a part of 'Chandra Nandini'". The Times of India.
  18. "300 horses auditioned for 'Chandra Nandini' sequence". ABP News.
  19. "Ekta Kapoor brings the untold tale of Chandragupta Maurya and his queen Nandini". The Times of India.
  20. "'Chandra Nandini' to take a leap". The Times of India.
  21. "Young Ashoka aka Siddharth Nigam to play Bindusar in Chandra Nandini; watch". The Times of India.
  22. "Avneet Kaur joins 'Chandra Nandni' opposite Siddharth Nigam". ABP News.
  23. "Ekta Kapoor's Chandra-Nandini is all set to be replaced by Ikyawann, read on". The Times of India.
  24. "Shweta Basu Prasad shares a heartfelt note on the last day of Chandra Nandini". The Times of India.
  25. "Shweta Basu Prasad returns to TV as a warrior princess in Chandra-Nandini, calls it the right time". The Indian Express.
  26. "First Look: Rajat Tokas is back as Chandragupta Maurya in Chandra Nandini". The Times of India.
  27. "Rajat Tokas, Shweta Basu Prasad of Chandra Nandini get stranded due to Mumbai rains". The Times of India.
  28. "Chandra Nandni Review: Ekta Kapoor's new show is more masala, less history". India Today.
  29. "Chandra Nandni: 5 reasons to watch Ekta Kapoor's historical saga". The Times of India.
  30. "Chandhra Nandhini to be aired at 7.30 pm". Times of India.
  31. "Real truth behind Chandragupta's birth, his first love Durdhara and journey to becoming the Mauryan King". 17 October 2016.
  32. "Indica by Megasthenes - Britannica.com".
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