The 90s were a great decade for Indian television. With the economy opening up in 1991 and broadcast networks began mushrooming all over the country, TV shows were getting commissioned left, right and centre. But while some of the shows like Shanti, Tara, Dekh Bhai Dekh got cult status which we’ve been revisiting a bit too often recently, there are a few shows which seem to have been lost in the deluge of good shows.
Here are 14 such shows:
1. Star Bestsellers
Serving as a springboard for talented outsiders like Anurag Kashyap, Tigmanshu Dhulia and Irrfan, this show was an anthology of stories. Every episode had a cast and a crew of its own, and the twisted nature of the stories made it popular among the audience.
2. Chamatkar
Farooq Sheikh plays the title character called Prem who has a hearing problem when people normally speak to him. However, he’s also blessed with the power to hear things happening far away, and he in turn starts helping the police to uncover crimes. The show was funny in its own way, but it seems to have been forgotten among the Dekh Bhai Dekhs and Shriman Shrimatis.
3. Pal Chhin
Directed by Neena Gupta, the show makes a sincere attempt to paint an accurate portrait of old values conflicting with new-age ideologies leading to friction. An aging man tries to keep his family together and hold his values together even as his sons have a thinking of their own. The show’s title song was written by Gulzar and sung by Jagjit Singh.
4. Gul Gulshan Gulfaam
One of those rare shows which was shot on location in Srinagar, the show follows the life of Kashmiri family which makes its livelihood from its three houseboats called Gul, Gulshan and Gulfaam. Business takes a hit when the tourist dry up because of terrorism and the story showed how the family copes with it.
5. Doosra Keval
Along the same time when he was also doing Fauji, Shah Rukh Khan also starred in this show which had him play the role of a village lad migrate to the city to look for work. Co-incidentally one of Shah Rukh’s earlier films Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman followed a similar theme.
6. Kora Kaagaz
Starring Renuka Shahane and cricketer Salil Ankola and produced by yesteryear actor Asha Parekh, the show follows the life of a young woman abandoned by her husband on their wedding night. How she perseveres and stands on her own feet is what forms the story. The show was applauded for its progressive portrayal of the protagonist.
7. Kshitij Yeh Nahi
Much before Tu Tu Main Main, Supriya Pilgaonkar made her debut on Doordarshan in this TV show which followed the life of a young widow and her 10-year old daughter. The lady loses her husband (played by Rajit Kapoor) and finds a new love interest.
8. Kabhie Kabhie
Similar to Star Bestsellers, the show was an anthology of short stories starring actors like Rajat Kapoor, Suhasini Mulay, Ayesha Jhulka and Divya Dutta. It explored social evils and examined marriage closely, it comprised of 15 episodes produced independently for the series.
9. Aashirvad
The show explores themes of parenting as it follows the story of two friends who bring up their children in contrasting styles. While Govind Namdeo’s character is strict with his children, Naveen Nischol’s character is a more liberal parent allowing his children to pursue their dreams.
10. Alpviram
The show starring Pallavi Joshi and Aamir Bashir took a bold step by following the journey of a woman who was raped when she was in a state of coma. This leads to an unwanted pregnancy in her case which cannot be terminated. It examines how that incident changes her life and of those around her forever.
11. Ek Tha Rusty
A semi-autobiographical account of Ruskin Bond himself, the show followed its 10-year-old protagonist Rusty and his experiences in a boarding school in Dehradun. It was set in the 1930s when India was still under the British rule, and they tried to revive the show with a second and third season nearly two decades after the first one came out.
12. Rishtey
Another anthology of independent episodes, Rishtey focused on relationships between humans.. There were a total of 166 episodes in the series which finally saw conclusion in its third season in the year 2001.
13. A Mouthful of Sky
With its star-studded cast including names like Rahul Bose, Milind Soman, Sameer Soni, Simone Singh and Ayesha Dharker, the TV show followed five MBA graduates who reunite 13 years after graduating out of B-school to confront a dirty secret from their past. The show had a modern outlook on contemporary society and was applauded for that.
14. Tanha
A rare Indo-Pak production, the show follows the story of a matriarch who runs a successful garment business and strives to keep her family together. Starring theatre actor Sushma Seth in the lead role of Shakeela Begum, the show ran for two years before coming to its conclusion.
Let’s wind the clocks please?