A massive fire broke out on the set of Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin at Film City on Friday evening. While no casualties were reported, the entire set was gutted. The fire also affected the sets of two other shows, which were next to it. The incident has put the focus on how safe TV sets are where shoots take place day and night, and what precautionary measures need to be taken, especially during fire sequences.

Producer J D Majethia, who is the Chairman of Indian Film and Television Producers Council, says, “There are guidelines regarding licences and approvals before starting to shoot on a set. These norms are adhered to by producers. We have to keep fire extinguishers on the sets and also ensure that they are renewed every year.”

The problem, makers say, is that the sets are largely made of wood and other such materials, which catch fire quickly and spread rapidly. “Sometimes it’s human error or it could be that an open wire may have caught fire due to a short circuit. It gets difficult then to find out what really went wrong,” he adds. 

The need of the hour is to upgrade equipment on the sets. “We need to get lights that do not require too many wires because open wires are risky. As an industry, we must look at options, which can make our sets safer. This has to be a collective responsibility, from the producer to every unit member because a single error can put everyone in danger,” shares J D.

The recent fire has become a cause for concern. Says an actor, who was shooting on a set close to the Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin set, “It was very scary. If we panicked seeing the fire, we can imagine what the people on the set of Ghum Hai. . . felt. We need a safe workplace. Yes, all sets are insured and the makers may recover a lot of their monetary losses, but an incident like this can be very stressful.” 

Kishori Shahane, who is a part of Ghum Hai. . . , says, “There is no disaster management at Film City. They should be far more responsible because many film and TV shoots take place here. They need to be better prepared during unforeseen situations like a short circuit, gas leak or fire. ”

Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) President Birendra Nath Tiwari, says, “We have mentioned this on numerous occasions and written to Film City authorities, bringing to their notice that the sets erected are old with no proper exits and covered on all sides. Also, fire audits should be conducted regularly by the concerned authorities. We can’t put people’s lives at risk and this applies not just to television shows, but all shoots that take place. I am also reiterating that an ambulance should be parked at Film City to tackle any unfortunate incident.”

— Neha Maheshwri

Around 2015, there were several fire incidents on TV sets. They have reduced in recent times, but the fire on the set of Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin has brought the issue to the fore once again. Here’s taking a look at fire incidents over the past 10 years...

- Pandya Store, February 2021

- Kumkum Bhagya, July 2020

- Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi, October 2015

- Jamai Raja, December 2015

- Tu Mera Hero, September 2015

- Satrangi Sasural, June 2015

- India Poochega Sabse Shana Kaun, February 2015

- Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, October 2014

- F.I.R., December 2013

- Comedy Nights With Kapil, September 2013

Mumbai: Fire broke out on the sets of ‘Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin’ at the Goregaon Film City at around 4.30pm on Friday, and spread to three other studios where shooting was in progress. The fire was extinguished at 10.17pm.

“While one of the studio sets is large, the other three are smaller. Nobody suffered any injuries in the fire. The cause of the fire is a matter of investigation,” said deputy chief fire officer of Mumbai Fire Brigade Harish Girkar.

The fire brigade had initially declared it as a level-II fire, but later declared it as level-III after fire spread to other sets where shooting of other serials was in progress. According to officials, the fire gutted electric wiring, installation, bamboo, tarpaulin sheets, wooden articles in four studio sets and also dried trees, grass, leaves, and shrubs in an area spread over 50,000 metres.

Production house Cockcrow and Shaika Productions issued a statement on Friday night announcing that it would “set up an inquiry” into the mishap. It said, “The members of the cast and crew of ‘Ghum Hai. . . ’ are safe and unharmed by the unfortunate fire incident at the set today. We are taking all the necessary steps to ensure everyone’s safety. While we will setup an inquiry to go to the root cause of the fire, our focus is also to work towards providing continuity and keeping viewers engaged.”

“Over 1,000 people, including artistes and workers, were present on the sets when the fire broke out. Most of these production houses and channels do not adhere to fire safety rules while shooting,” said Suresh Gupta, president of All India Cine Workers Association.

Gupta sought a high-level inquiry into the incident and sought action against the producer, production house and channel, among others.

Sandeep Kumar Rai, a light man at a set, said, “I was using the toilet when I saw the fire on the sets of ‘Ghum hai. . . ’. Within minutes, it spread to others sets too, which were far away.”

Faizabad-born actor Yogendra Vikram Singh became a household name after he played Samrath in Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin. He recently bid goodbye to the show and though he is emotional about his track ending, he is also happy that he got a call from his favourite actress Rekha.

He says, “It was Rekha ji who had introduced my track in the show. It was an emotional moment when she called to tell me how she liked my journey in the show and that she was going to miss seeing me in it. It really made my journey more worthwhile. In fact, not many people know this, but my character had to die very early in the show. However, because it was so loved by viewers, it got an extension. Now, I have finally made an exit.”

Yogendra, who has been part of films like Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, Baabarr, NH10 and Saand Ki Aankh among others, says he is happy working on the small screen. “With just one TV show my followers increased manifold on social media. Such is the power of this medium. Ab woh din aa gaye hai when people recognize me and now I don’t have to introduce myself to people every time. It is a good feeling,” he says.

So what next? “I would now like to play a lead character in a TV show, whether it is a positive lead or a negative. Plus, I have a film titled Woh Ladki Hai Kahaan, too, and a couple of OTT projects as well,” he says.

Actor Yogendra Vikram Singh is on cloud nine these days. Well, the actor not only got a chance to meet his favourite actress Rekha a while ago, but the two even exchanged some funny banter. “It was Rekha ji who had introduced my track in the show Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin. It was a surprise for me to meet her at the wedding reception of Neil (Bhatt) and Aishwarya (Sharma). The best part of the encounter was that Rekha ji herself recognised me and shared anecdotes from the episodes that she saw. I was completely in awe of her when I saw her and interacted with her,” says Yogendra.

Having been a part of films like Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, Baabarr, NH10, Mirza Juuliet, Trapped, and Saand Ki Aankh, ask Yogendra about his television stint and he says, “I was skeptical about doing TV earlier as I had a lot of misconceptions about the medium. For example, I thought shooting hours are really long in this industry and that the quality of shows is not that great. But then aisa nahi hua when I started doing Ghum Hai...Over these months, I have realised that actually it isn’t so difficult to do television. In fact, the medium with this one show has made me a household name.”

Does he feel that men have lesser screen space on TV as the medium is said to be dominated by women? “I don’t think there is a blanket rule for TV. At the end of the day, it all depends on the script. The issue about screen space can happen on any television. I don’t think much about the screen space and I am happy with my share of screen time in the show,” he says.

Yogendra Vikram Singh was recently reintroduced in the TV show Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin and the actor is glad to be back. “I have come back to the show after eight months. I was away for so long, but I was still getting queries from inquisitive fans about my return. This medium made me a household name after doing just a few episodes,” he shares.

Yogendra started his career with the movie NH10. He then did films like Trapped and Mirza Juuliet. Talking about how he got into television, he says, “Mirza Juuliet was directed by Rajesh Ram Singh. That’s where I met him. He offered me the role in Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin; he is one of the producers of this show. Before coming on board for Ghum Hai... I was in Dubai doing a Broadway show as a lead actor for two years. After a while, I got bored, resigned from there and returned to Bollywood and did films like Saand Ki Aankh and Gunjan Saxena.”

Born in Faizabad in UP, Yogendra completed his B.Sc from Lucknow University. It was during his college days that he started doing theatre. “One of my friends had introduced me to theatre and I immediately developed a liking for the medium. I wanted to join the National School of Drama (NSD) or the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). I remember how hard I prepared for the entrance of NSD, but I couldn’t clear it. I eventually got through FTII Pune,” he says.