Suhana is the most popular Hindi GEC character

The protagonist of Sasural Genda Phool replaces Balika Vadhu's Anandi at the top spot.

The sixth edition of Ormax Media's Characters India Loves (CIL) study reveals that Suhana, the main protagonist of Sasural Genda Phool on STAR Plus, is the most popular character among the Hindi GEC audiences, with her popularity share having grown by 66 per cent in the last three months.

Notably, in its last edition, CIL had ranked Suhana at No. 5, while Balika Vadhu's Anandi continued to rule the charts. Interestingly, since CIL's inception in August 2009, this is the first time that a character has displaced Anandi from her numero uno position.

Speaking to afaqs!, Shailesh Kapoor, chief executive officer, Ormax Media, says, "Suhana is a sharply differentiated character, with unique traits, backed by a powerful performance. The young Anandi dominated CIL for more than a year. However, the actor has changed because of the generation leap; hence, the preference has decreased significantly."

Meanwhile, Jethalal (Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashma) continues at No. 2. Pratigya (Pratigya), Archana and Maanav (Pavitra Rishta) occupy the third, fourth and fifth spots, respectively.

In the fifth edition of CIL, Jethalal, Archana and Akshara (Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai), in that order, were ranked behind Anandi.

The sixth edition of the study was conducted between December 2010 - January 2011. Interviews were conducted among 2,600 respondents in six cities -- Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Indore and Jalandhar. The sample consisted of males and females in the 15-44 years age group, from SEC ABC.

Characters India Loves is a quarterly study to measure the popularity of characters on Indian television.