Sahana (TV series)

Though K. Balachander had been toying with the idea of making a sequel to his 1985 film Sindhu Bhairavi for over 10 years since the early 1990s, he eventually abandoned the idea as he believed people would compare it unfavourably to the film. Near the end of the TV series Anni, produced by his company Minbimangal, he went searching for an idea for his next series and rediscovered the sequel to the film he had written years before, albeit not very diligently.[1] The title of the series Sahana is a reference to the Carnatic raga of the same name.[2]

Balachander initially wanted the main cast of the film to reprise their roles in the series. Sivakumar was unable to return as JKB as he was committed to another series. Suhasini was willing to return as Sindhu, but Balachander decided on recasting. Executive Subha said, "You cannot separate JKB and Sindhu. Sir (Balachander) felt if we are going to have a different JKB, let's have a different Sindhu too". The role of JKB went to Y. G. Mahendran. He considered it a challenge to portray JKB, due to his reputation as a comedian. Balachander and his unit were initially unable to locate Sulakshana, who played Bhairavi in the film and had long since retired from acting, and decided to kill off Bhairavi. However, Sulakshana learned about the project and approached Balachander, saying she would portray Bhairavi. The script was rewritten to have her character alive. Sulakshana said, "[Bhairavi] is still the same soft person. The only difference is she is older and the mother of two children. There is more understanding between JKB and Bhairavi now -- she doesn't fight with him". Carnatic singer Anuradha Krishnamoorthy, who had never acted before, was approached by Minbimangal to portray Sindhu. She was reluctant to accept the offer, due to her lack of interest in acting. But after her husband persuaded, she met Balachander, who promised to ensure that her commitment to the series would not affect her concerts; Anuradha then agreed to the role.[1] Newcomer Kavya Shekar was cast as the title character after one of her father's friends recommended her to Balachander.[3]