GECs
Hallmark’s ‘Family Law’ to cement bond with women
MUMBAI: A female protagonist starts from scratch after her husband ditches her. This is the theme around which Hallmark’s new series Family Law revolves. The show airs every Friday starting today at 8:30 pm.
Oscar nominee Kathleen Quinlan (Apollo 13 )plays Lynn Holt. She runs a law firm with her husband who one fine day decides to leave her. To make matters worse, he takes most of their clients with him. The icing on the cake is that she is left with an expensive lease, which her husband cleverly did not co-sign.
Quinlan is able to pull herself together after a struggle and, with her ambitious and level headed junior associate played by Julie Warner, starts to rebuild the practice. She also hires Christopher Macdonald despite his murky past as he is an excellent criminal attorney.
One wonders though whether the show will appeal to the male audience which constitutes a sizeable segment of the family that Hallmark targets.
The pilot aired at another of Hallmark’s screenings yesterday seemed a touch cloying, a feeling one never experienced with other Hallmark shows like the Guardian. All the characters seem almost desperate to do the right thing in the face of unfortunate circumstances. Of course since we are talking about Hallmark, which pushes itself as a channel with emotions this is not necessarily a bad thing.
The acting is superb with Quinlan giving a performance that any single working mother with kids can easily identify with. Another positive for the show is that other programmes on Indian television with a lawyer’s theme have done quite nicely for themselves. Hallmark will shortly commence the second season of The Guardian. The Practice and Law and Order have generated and sustained a reasonable level on interest on Star World.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… connection because this time, the game isn’t just about winning, it’s about who’s with you. Sony Pictures Networks India is gearing up to launch a new reality game show, Tum Ho Naa, expanding its unscripted slate with a format that promises both emotion and engagement.
The show will premiere soon on Sony Entertainment Television and stream on Sony LIV, with Rajeev Khandelwal stepping in as host. Known for his measured screen presence and selective choices, Khandelwal’s return to television adds a layer of familiarity and credibility to the upcoming format.
While specific details of the gameplay remain under wraps, the positioning suggests a reality format that leans as much on emotional resonance as it does on competition, an increasingly popular blend in Indian television, where audiences are gravitating towards content that offers both stakes and storytelling.
Khandelwal, reflecting on his return, noted that his choices have often been guided by instinct rather than convention, describing Tum Ho Naa as a project that feels “close to the heart”. His association also signals Sony’s continued focus on anchoring new formats with recognisable faces who bring both relatability and depth.
The launch comes at a time when broadcasters are doubling down on original non-fiction formats to drive appointment viewing, even as digital platforms expand parallel reach. By placing the show across both linear television and OTT, Sony appears to be aiming for a dual-audience strategy capturing traditional viewers while engaging digital-first consumers.
As the countdown to premiere begins, Tum Ho Naa positions itself not just as another game show, but as a reminder that sometimes, the biggest prize on screen isn’t the jackpot, it’s the journey shared along the way.
