Made In Heaven - 2019

Introduction

Made in Heaven is an Indian romantic drama series that chronicles two south Delhi-based wedding planners, Tara and Karan, who run the agency Made in Heaven. The series first premiered in 2019 and was created by Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti of Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara fame. Made in Heaven is Amazon Prime Video’s fourth original fictional Indian series. 

Table Of Contents

• Details

• Plot

• Release Date

• Reviews

• Cast

• Crew

• Character Analysis

• Season 2 Predictions

• Behind The Scenes

• Awards

• Conclusion

Details

Plot

PlayTara Khanna and Karan Mehra are two Delhi-based wedding planners who together run the agency Made in Heaven for elite Delhites. Tara is married to Adil Khanna, the heir to a family of industrialists. Despite not lacking financially, Tara prefers to work and is ambitious about running her own agency. Karan, meanwhile, is a closeted homosexual and struggles financially.

Each episode focuses on the wedding of a new couple. The series highlights the tension arising out of the fusion, albeit not smooth, between traditional values and modern aspirations against the backdrop of lavish, big-fat Indian weddings.

As they navigate a fiercely competitive wedding planning market, Tara and Karan get entangled in the lives of the bride and groom. Their occupation also leads them to reflect on their own lives and struggles. As the series progresses, Tara and Karan’s history and aspirations emerge through flashbacks, and they are forced to deal with their past and align with their present circumstances.

Release Date

The official trailer of Made in Heaven was first released on 15th February 2019. The series aired on 8th March 2019 on Amazon Prime Video. All nine episodes of the series were released on the same date.

The second season’s filming was supposed to commence in April 2020. However, the pandemic delayed the schedule, and filming for season 2 was finally wrapped up in April 2022. Made in Heaven Season 2 is expected to air sometime in 2023 on Amazon Prime Video.

Reviews

Made in Heaven has primarily received positive reviews. Many critics praised the show's honest take on the dark side of Indian marriages. It has also been praised for character development. 

Made in Heaven has been rated 8.3/10 on IMDb and 89% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Casting

• Sobhita Dhulipala as Tara Khanna

• Arjun Mathur as Karan Mehra

• Kalki Koechlin as Faiza Naqvi

• Jim Sarbh as Adil Khanna

• Shashank Arora as Kabir Basrai

• Shivani Raghuvanshi as Jaspreet Kaur (Jazz)

• Natasha Singh as Shibani Bagchi

• Vinay Pathak as Ramesh Gupta

• Manish Mishra as Pant

• Neel Madhav as Arjun Mehra

• Dalip Tahil as Kishore Khanna

• Natasha Rastogi as Bindu Khanna

• Manini Mishra as Vimala Singh

• Ayesha Raza Mishra as Renu Gupta

Crew

• Directors – Zoya Akhtar, Nitya Mehra, Prashant Nair, and Alankrita Srivastava

• Producers – Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Ritesh Sidhwani, and Nitya Mehra

• Cinematographers –John Jacob Payyapalli, Stefan Ciupek, Jay Oza, and Tanay Satam

• Series Musicians – Tarana Marwah, Ankur Tewari, and Gaurav Raina

• Composers – Sagar Desai, Balkrishan Sharma, Dub Sharma, and Sherry Matthews

• Lyricist – Amanda Sodhi

• Singers -  M S Nizami Brothers, Farad Bhiwandiwala, Rituraj Mohanty, Viba Saraf, Avika Diwan, Aadya Jaswal, and Mehak Sanghera

• Editors – Harshit Sharma, Apurva Asrani, Zainab Shakil, and Namrata Rao

• Art Director – Dino Shankar

• Production House – Excel Entertainment and Tiger Baby Films

• Writers – Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, and Alankrita Shrivastava

Character Analysis

Tara Khanna- Tara Khanna, played deftly by Sobhita Dhulipala, is an ambitious, opportunist wedding planner who’s been married into an uber-rich family of industrialists. She was born into a lower-middle-class family and, following her mother’s teachings, had climbed the social ladder by utilizing her sexuality and youth, executed with precision. While her character follows the classic gold-digger trope, the writers ensure her character has depth, complexity, and a strong personality that is equally emotional and calculating.

Karan Mehra- Karan, played by Arjun Mathur, in contrast to Tara, is the son of a wealthy businessman. However, he’s riddled with financial woes, thanks to a failed company and debts to his father and a loan shark. He also lives a life of secrecy as a homosexual man. However, as the show progresses, he slowly embraces himself and starts to fight for the legalization of gay relationships.

Season 2

Season 1 of Made in Heaven saw Tara and Karan deal with a diverse set of upper-class north Indian families and the complications that emerge in marriages in high society. The season also delved deeper into the backgrounds of Tara and Karan and their grappling with their social identities and standings.

Towards the end of season 1, Tara and Karan sat at their destroyed Made in Heaven office. In season 2, they are expected to start afresh. Unlike S1, Karan is expected to be more open about his sexual identity and even go to great lengths to defend his relationship with Nawab. Tara, meanwhile, is expected to start back from scratch, with her material wealth stripped off, except for some jewellery.

Behind the Scenes

Made in Heaven came out at a time when OTT platforms were just breaking out, and along with it, intimate scenes on screens were also becoming a common feature. While Made in Heaven features intimate scenes, the directors and creators made sure there was tenderness instead of objectification and titillation. They were also very particular with casting.

Awards

Conclusion

Made in Heaven Season 1 ended with Tara leaving Adil’s mansion with some jewellery after telling him the truth about how she tricked him into marrying her. Meanwhile, Karan reunites with his first love, Nawab, after clearing their misunderstandings.