Education
The List Of Indian TV Serials That Broke Stereotypes
Since the dawn of the television industry, you all must have seen hundreds of serial dramas. Over the last three decades, serials have been a major part of our daily life. From ‘Ramayana Epic’ to ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’ to ‘Service Wali Bahu’, everyday family members will sit together in the evening at the dinner table and watch these serials and laugh and cry together. These daily soaps influenced, dominated and established a large part of our society. And there is no doubt in saying that they left their essence to the core of our hearts and minds.
However, the emerging socialization in the past decade has greatly changed the mindsets of the people of our country. For the better, this has also encouraged our serial directors to deviate from the usual saas-bahu dramas to more social stories, which is both hit among masses and useful to educate new-age India and break stereotypes.
With the introduction of modern technology, smartphones, online casino, and Netflix we are rarely left with dull moment. Meaningful plots of the TV shows have helped in changing the perceptions of the people who still believed in the items of old faiths, stereotypes, and taboos!
Here’s the list of Indian TV serials that have broken the stereotypes over the past few years:
GANGAA
Gangaa was launched on March 2, 2015 and is still an ongoing TV serial that airs on &TV. This TV series took up the serious issue of child widow custom in India. The plot revolves around Gangaa (played by Ruhana Khanna), a child widow. She has an indomitable will to survive and live her life to the fullest, against all old-age beliefs and norms that society is trying to impose on her. This shows the main aim is to abolish the child widow culture that is still rampant in many parts of the country.
UTTARAN
Uttaran debut in December 2008 and we all saw the finale episode of this amazing Indian soap opera in January 2015. This show is about two childhood friends, Ichcha and Tapasya that come from the different strata of society. This TV series showcases how despite the vast difference in their status, these two little girls become the best of friends. However, cut to 10 years we see some jealousy creeping into their relationship due to the entry of some negative characters. However, the initial theme of the show seems to break all the stereotypes regarding friendship and teach us how friendship is about connection and not about social status.
BALIKA VADHU
With 2,245 episodes in a span of approximately 8 years, Balika Vadhu swayed the nation from its very beginning. This show's main premise revolves around the still ongoing child marriage in our country. The child groom and bride were played by Avinash Mukherjee and Avika Gor respectively. The story revolves around the two getting married as children, growing up together, and facing difficulties related to child marriage because of their family’s involvement in the process. Through their strong storyline, this shows keeps on throwing across some critical social messages to the audiences. In 2008, the series won the ‘Best Programme With A Social Message’ award at the 8th Indian Telly Awards.
Service Wali Bahu
This Indian soap opera was launched in February 2015. The story of this women-centric show revolves around Payal (played by Kratika Sengar), who is a civil engineer, a homemaker and a sole bread-earner of her family. In order to support her in-laws and unemployed husband, she goes out to work. Not only the protagonist is earning bread but is taking care of household and homemaking tasks. This serial shows full support to feminism which also talks about other Indian customs such as the dowry system. Payal’s life has inspired many women in our country and it won’t be wrong to say that it has broken many stereotypes and old norms regarding women.
These TV serials have changed the way people think and have shattered many stereotypes. And the new open way of thinking will take our country forward.
Education
Delhi High Court orders Law Prep Tutorial to stop using CLAT topper’s identity
Google and Meta have 72 hours to pull content that a judge called a defamatory campaign against a rival coaching firm.
DELHI: India’s fiercely competitive law-entrance coaching industry has landed in court, and a Delhi judge has wasted little time in drawing battle lines.
The Delhi high court on April 13th passed an ad-interim order in favour of Toprankers EdTech Solutions Private Limited, which runs the coaching platform LegalEdge, and Geetali Gupta, the student who secured All India Rank 1 in the Common Law Admission Test 2026. The order, passed by Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, restrains LPT EdTech Private Limited, which operates under the name Law Prep Tutorial, from using Gupta’s name, images or identity in any form across digital platforms.
A topper, a turf war and a rejected sponsorship deal
The dispute has its roots in a familiar story: a prized student, two rival coaching firms, and a falling-out over who gets the credit. According to the plaintiffs’ submissions, Gupta was enrolled in LegalEdge’s Champions Batch I programme and had credited the platform publicly for her result. Her association with Law Prep Tutorial was, the court was told, limited to mock tests and a handful of classes.
Following the declaration of results, Law Prep Tutorial allegedly approached Gupta and her family with an offer to sponsor her five-year college fees in exchange for exclusive association. The family declined. What followed, the plaintiffs say, was a sustained digital campaign against LegalEdge and against Gupta herself.
Content published across YouTube, LinkedIn, blogs and other social media platforms included a video titled “CLAT 2026 AIR 1 Geetali Gupta Controversy Exposed” and a blog post styled as an exposé of the rivalry between the two firms. The plaintiffs alleged these contained defamatory statements accusing LegalEdge of fraud, unethical practices and making false claims about toppers. AI-generated and morphed images were also said to have been circulated, including material falsely associating Gupta with Law Prep Tutorial and depicting LegalEdge’s directors in a damaging light.
What the court found
At the prima facie stage, Justice Gedela found that the blogs, posts, reels and other material on record appeared disparaging and designed to damage LegalEdge’s reputation. The defendants, the court observed, had prima facie carried out a defamatory campaign using content that appeared to have been published wilfully. The use of Gupta’s name and likeness, including AI-generated material, was found unjustified, particularly given that she had publicly credited LegalEdge and had asked the defendants to stop using her name. The court noted pointedly that the student had been drawn into the dispute as a “pawn.”
The orders
The directions are sweeping. Law Prep Tutorial and associated persons are restrained from publishing, sharing or disseminating any defamatory or derogatory content against LegalEdge across any digital platform. They are further barred from using Gupta’s name, identity or images in any form, including AI-generated or manipulated content. They are also prohibited from deleting or tampering with any internal data or communications relating to the campaign.
Critically, Google and Meta, covering YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, have been directed to disable, block access to, remove or suspend all identified content within 72 hours of the order being uploaded. The case, numbered CS(COMM) 344/2026, is listed before the joint registrar on July 14th and before the court on August 24th. Toprankers was represented by senior advocate J. Sai Deepak, alongside Ankur Khandelwal, Ravi Vaswani and Anchit Oswal, briefed by Zentrum Law Partners.
The case is a sharp reminder that in India’s cutthroat test-preparation industry, the fight for a topper’s endorsement can end up costing far more than a college sponsorship ever would.
