Santaan, a weekly family soap that premieres on Sahara on 23 November, explores the biased attitude of traditional Indian families toward the male heir. 

Directed by Chander Behl and scripted by Achla Nagar, the serial that will occupy the 9.30 pm slot on Thursdays, revolves around a conservative Rajasthani joint family that has a surfeit of granddaughters in the family, but no male heir to carry the family name forward. The family's elation at the discovery that the elder daughter in law is expecting a child is diminished when the male heir is born, instead, to the son and daughter in law, who have been expelled from the household. 

Producer Dinesh Bansal who is known for churning out hit serials like Kurukshetra, Basera and Alvida Darling says Santaan is not only about anger built up over time over depriving the fairer sex of complete freedom, but also about a journey into how this orthodox approach affects family members. The serial doesn't aim at hurting the male ego but the idea is to uncover these charades, he says. "Santaan highlights the absurdity of the fact that often daughters turn out to be the better offspring," says Bansal.

Meteor Films has a 26 episodes contract with Sahara, of which 12 episodes have been shot in the production house owned studio at Chandivili in suburban Mumbai. According to a Sahara spokesperson, the contract will be extended for a further 26 episodes, depending on the serial's performance.

Sahara TV publicity and PR head Priya Raj says this serial will give them the scope to cater to a variety of viewers and will help the channel do its bit by touching upon a social issue presented in an entertaining manner.