Mumbai, May 18 :    Mumbai, May 18:  First there was Kaun Banega Crorepati on STAR followed by Sawal Dus Crore Ka on Zee. Now there is Pradhan Mantri on Zee followed by Ji Mantriji on STAR. After a passionate affair with game shows, the channels seem to be inching back towards an old love - politics. Though neither serial has anything to do with the other, according to both the channels, in a Tehelka-charged atmosphere, STAR has opted for a political sit-com - Ji Mantriji is the Indian version of the British comedy Yes, Minister - while it's pop patriotism on Pradhan Mantri, the serial that has Zee's Subhas Chandra beaming like a proud father. There is even an episode in Pradhan Mantri very reminiscent of the Tehelka expose. But even as Chandra claims Pradhan Mantri's dose of 'political idealism' is just what the doctor ordered for the nation, the serial - directed by Ketan Mehta of Mirch Masala fame, it credits journalist and ex-politician M.J. Akbar with 'concept and story development' - also seems to be giving the channel a promise of better health. Zee, with its dipping shares and viewership - not to mention the spectacular failure of its much-touted game show Sawal Dus Crore Ka - has not been keeping well lately. But though lagging behind the programmes that rule the roost - family soaps like Amanat - Pradhan Mantri is pushing up the TRP charts. At a glitzy event to promote the serial this Wednesday - Zee is hardselling the serial; the website www.pradhanmantri.zee.next, the first Zee website on any programme, was launched the same day - the channel said that Pradhan Mantri has touched 6 on TRP ratings twice since its start on April 6 and has a decent average of 4.9 (figures according to Intam survey). It has got a Friday primetime slot and a repeat telecast on Sunday. Pradhan Mantri is about a fiercely honest PM who will not even have his wife accept the 'bribe' of a perfume, who has a 'vision' for India and who will not compromise on any account. Ketan Mehta was working on a sci-fi project, when he got a call from Zee for Pradhan Mantri. It was not much of a difference, for 'a young, honest, intelligent and diligent PM' is as improbable as an outer space entity. His job was to make the idea believable, says Mehta, who labels Pradhan Mantri a 'social sci-fi'. 'The idea was to stop making 'idealism' seem boring and to combat cynicism,' adds Akbar. It seems to work. At the Zee party, where scenes from the serial were screened, when Kay Kay, the actor who plays the PM, replying to a 'nuclear threat' from our neighbour, roared: 'Pakistan ka naam o nishan mit jayega (Pakistan will be razed to the ground),' the audience broke into a thunderous applause. They had also gone haywire when Kay Kay had entered the party dressed as Prime Minister, surrounded by Black Cats, and had addressed a news conference in the same official capacity. STAR is also upbeat with Ji Mantriji, where Farooq Shaikh plays the dippy Prime Minister completely manipulated by his secretary Jayant Kripalni and the audience gets quite a few laughs at the PM's expense. This serial, which was first aired on April 26, is trailing behind the chart- topping daughter-in-law-mom-in-law sagas like Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, but for the week April 30 - May 6, it has notched up a TRP rating of 3.8 (Intam figure) and has been slotted 20th among the top 50 programmes.