It takes a lot to replace a TRP topper like Kasautii Zindagii Kay, STAR Plus’s driver show for the past eight years. But Balaji’s long-running soap opera tracing the ups and downs in the lives of the Basus and the Bajajs is finally going off air shortly. And the tough task of repeating the Prerna-Anurag-Rishabh Bajaj success story lies with Kis Desh Mein Hain Meraa Dil (starting tonight, 8.30pm on STAR Plus) — a family drama about the trials and tribulations of the protagonist and her changing relationships with the people around her.

The pivotal role of Heer is being played by newcomer Additi Gupta, who was spotted by the Balaji team at Pune and asked to come on board almost immediately. “I appeared for a series of auditions and was asked to play Heer. It was almost like a dream,” gushes the second-year fashion-designing student at Symbiosis Institute of Mass Communication.

Touted as a passionate love story set against the backdrop of family values, Kis Desh traces Heer’s transition from the village to the town.

“Heer is a simple, down-to-earth girl who places her family and her parents above everything else. She is willing to make the biggest sacrifices for them,” is how Additi chooses to explain her role.

Ektaa Kapoor has left no stone unturned to ensure that Kis Desh is as big a success as Kasautii. Proof of the desperation lies in the spelling, with Aditi becoming Additi — at the behest of celebrity numerologist Sanjay B. Jumaani, of course.

Music director Lalit Sen has been signed on to score the music for the title track.

“Balaji is the biggest television production house in the country and will ensure that Kis Desh gets the best possible launch and publicity,” smiles Additi who, ironically, is still waiting for her first meeting with Ektaa Kapoor.