The international political thriller `Time Bomb 9/11` was broadcasted on Zee Television from June 20, 2005 to December 25, 2005. This hugely popular show had a similar format as that of `24`. The whole story revolves around the plot to assassinate a young and dynamic Indian Prime Minister as well as to destroy the city of New Delhi on September 11.
The renowned filmmaker Ketan Mehta offers this small time thriller, which has its epicenter in Asia. When asked him at the media launch of the show why he decided to launch a political thriller, he remarked, "Because it is the single most defining moment that shocked the world". He also added, "Global interconnectivity has made the world grow smaller with everyone feeling the repercussions".
The lead protagonist of the soap was Varun Awasthi (played by the small screen heartthrob Rajeev Khandelwal). He enacts the character of an army officer who has been sent as un undercover agent to the nation of Afghanistan to penetrate the Al Queda.
The popular model Amrita Saluja plays the role of his wife. The situation turns so intense between the relation of husband and wife that they get separated from each other due to work pressure. Akashdeep Saigal played the son of the international terrorist and the character of Osama Bin Laden himself is played by Vallabh Vyas of the `Chandni Bar` and `Lagaan` fame. The former claimed that he has chosen to play this role primarily because it was directed by Ketan Mehta and also because he plays the son of an international terrorist like Osama Bin Laden which had a new concept and was extremely challenging.
The cast also includes another popular telly actor Vivan Bhatena who enacts the role f an industrialist and then there is Amrita Khandelkar who essays the character of the Prime Minister`s daughter. This one-hour show was produced by Deepa Shahi and all the actors had shed their old image popularity to start afresh with this new series.
The entire soap Time Bomb 9/11 takes on political tangles, interdepartmental rivalries, and bureaucratic hiccup as well as personality clashes. The serial was divided into 24 episodes of one hour each with a story told in real time about events over a span of 24 hours. It was a show that kept upto his promise of giving an action packed entertainment. The plot was very well searched and catered to all `thinking` men and women. It was totally based on the increasing terrorist attacks and how RAW handles the whole situation.
In the later stages the plot thickens when they find out that it is not just the Indian subcontinent but also the whole of the globe, which is under the threat of terrorism. The serial has been exclusively shot in London, Washington, and the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The possibility of the historical characters seems to Inspire Ketan Mehta to produce such masterpieces. He remarks that his story is an imaginative interpretation of a result of lot of myth, fear and conjecture and fear psychosis added to the actual deeds of the terrorists.
It has been a really gripping serial till the last day of its broadcast. It was really like the showers of rain after the heat wave and sultry weather of stereotyped and monotonous shows or better put in if remarked the women folk appealing serials. Such magnificent thrillers are expected by the audience to be aired time and again on the small screen.