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If you have had enough of made-up reality TV and saas-bahu dramas, may we remind you that TV used to be a good thing till a while back. There used to be just a couple of channels and Doordarshan was the final word in entertainment.
Remember this Doordarshan promo?
Moving on. Thanks to YouTube, you can now relive the good old days and board the nostalgia train. Here's a small list of must-watch TV shows to keep you entertained this week. On the other hand, for those of you who can't relate to any of this, it's a great lesson on why TV used to be great.
1. Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984)
India's first ever sitcom, the show was a roaring success when it aired in 1984. The stories revolved around the lives of Ranjit Verma (Shafi Inamdar), his wife Renu Verma (Swaroop Sampat) and her unemployed brother Raja (Rakesh Bedi). Satish Shah used to play a different character every episode and was even dubbed the "King of Comedy". The title track was sung by Kishore Kumar.
2. Malgudi Days (1986)
Each episode of the show was based on a story from R K Narayan's works such as Swami and Friends and The Vendor of Sweets, among others. The show was set in the fictional town of Malgudi and depicted India's village life and the everyday struggles of the people living there. These are usually small things such as the mail going missing or 9-year-old Swami mistaking an intruder for a ghost and getting scared.
3. Fauji (1989)
Everybody knows this one. Shah Rukh Khan plays Abhimanyu Rai, a commando in the Indian Army undergoing training. Although only a total of 13 episodes were aired in 1988, the show had a cult following in later years, thanks to SRK becoming a big star. Want a bonus fact? While most people think this was King Khan's first TV appearance, it was actually his second.
4. Hum Log (1984)
The 154 episodes of India's first soap opera aired between 1984 and 1985. Audiences easily related to the characters of Basesar, Lalloo, Majhli, Chhutki and Dadi from a middle class family and the actors became overnight stars. What really made the show famous was the monologue at the end of each episode by legendary actor Ashok Kumar which usually ended with the words "Hum Log".
5. Nukkad (1986)
Another cult show from the 80s is Nukkad. The show was about the struggles of the people living and working near the corner of a street. Hence, the name Nukkad. A number of characters that became famous were the loveable drunkard Khopdi, the kind and generous Kadar Bhai and the local strong man with a heart of gold, Guru. A reboot called Naya Nukkad was also launched, but never achieved the same success.
6. Mr. Yogi (1989)
Yogesh Ishwarlal Patel (Mohan Gokhale), a.k.a Mr. Yogi, returns from America, to find himself an Indian wife and meets 12 prospective brides over the course of the show. Unfortunately there's something or the other that goes wrong. Say, a girl being taller than Mr. Yogi. Om Puri narrated the show and in his narrative, makes fun of the tribulations of our hero. Mr. Yogi gets his own back when he finally meets the girl of his dreams, who also happens to be the daughter of the narrator.
7. Wagle Ki Duniya (1988)
R K Laxman's common man found himself on the telly in the form of Srinivas Wagle, a bumbling sales clerk in Wagle Ki Duniya. Laxman also narrated the show and created all the characters. Anjan Srivastav and Bharati Achrekar are brilliant as Srinivas and Radhika Wagle. Some memorable episodes include the one where he's conned into buying a bad car and another where he does the rounds of the licensing officer.
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