Television soaps, sitcoms, dramas have become the soul of entertainment to hundreds and millions of people in India. These TV dramas and soaps that run around familial themes are laced with human emotions and sentiments that touch the hearts of people from different walks of life. Apart from the TV soaps there are also reality shows and talk shows that give loads of entertainment to the millions of loyal Indian TV audiences.

The small screen that churns out soaps, dramas and long-running TV series has also brought to the fore the hidden talents of wannabe TV stars into the limelight and turned many of them, the likes of Smriti Irani, Rakshanda Khan, Shenaz Treasurywala, Mona Singh and Archana Puran Singh to name a few into national celebrities while Mandira Bedi and Neha Sareen have become international celebrities through their hot anchoring of India’s #1 sport cricket.

Indeed it is the TV actresses who breathe life into these soaps, dramas & reality & talk shows and walk straight into the hearts of millions of Indian television audiences.

TV actress Aamna Sharif became a sort of a television icon after her magnificent performance as Kashish in 'Kahiin To Hoga' which ran for four years on Star Plus from 2003-2007. Another mega soap which ran for eight years from 2000 to 2008 was 'Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' produced by Ekta Kapoor's Balaji Telefilms. This mega series secured highest TRP ratings based on the tremendous performances put up by hot TV actresses like Smriti Irani as 'Tulsi Virani', Prachi Shah as 'Pooja Virani', Gauri Pradhan-Tejwani as 'Nandini Virani' and Rakshanda Khan as 'Tanya Virani'. These television stars have also sizzled in several other long-running television soaps and dramas. Gorgeous television actress Smriti Irani appeared in 'Virrudh' & 'Kya Hadsaa Kya Haqeeqat' both on Sony TV, 'Maniben.com' on SAB TV, and 'Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Sa Aasmaan' on Star Plus.

Ravishing television actress Rakshanda Khan besides playing Tanya Virani in 'Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' also played Mallika Seth in 'Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin', Kamayani in 'Kaajjal' and Devyani in 'Kya Haadsa Kya. Rakshanda Khan's performances on the small-screen have made her a household name across India. Another hot television actress Shweta Tiwari gave a dazzling performance in 'Kasautii Zindagii Kay' that ran for seven years from 2001 to 2008. She also performed in 'Aane Wala Pal' and other television soaps.

Aditi Gupta who became famous with Ekta Kapoor's 'Kis Desh Mein Hai Mera Dil' has also appeared in several television plays while Neha Mehta won the hearts of television audiences as Pushpa Bhabhi in 'Bhabhi' and Mona Singh sizzled as Jassi, the be-spectacled lady in 'Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin'. While Dina Pathak and Rupali Ganguly make your heads reel with riotous laughter in 'Sarabhai vs Sarabhai', the sweet teen telly star Anjali Abrol who is just 18 is giving a fabulous performance in 'Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat'.

Television programs in South India too are not lagging behind in entertaining its niche audiences. Top Telugu TV stars like Sana, Udaya Bhanu, Ragini, Sujitha and Bhuvaneshwari have sizzled in a number of long-running Telugu TV series and sitcoms while the queen of TV anchoring Suma, and the one & only newsreader Pragati have also won the hearts of Telugu TV audiences.

Former Tamil actresses like Radhika, Khushboo and Suganya after sizzling on the big-screen have now embraced television giving scintillating performances in long-running Tamil television series; while Sreekala, Archana Susheelan, Beena Antony, Anu Joseph are giving hot performances in Malayalam television soaps and sitcoms. Hot Kannada TV stars Biyanka Desai, Bhavana Shetty, Deepa, and Vichitra have all rendered brilliant performances in Kannada soaps and long-running Kannada television series becoming hot celebrities in their own right.

The impact of television programs on its audiences in today’s world is such that even the famed actresses like Kareena Kapoor, Simran, Ramya Krishna, Radhika, Laya, Meena and Kushboo have all succumbed to the charms of Indian television as it has the widest reach – wider than filmy reach - among the Indian population whose lives are seamlessly interlaced with television.