Sarabhai vs Sarabhai

Sarabhai vs Sarabhai
Genre	Sitcom
Written by	Aatish Kapadia
Directed by	Deven Bhojani Aatish Kapadia
Starring	Satish Shah Ratna Pathak Shah Sumeet Raghavan Rupali Ganguly Rajesh Kumar
Opening theme	"Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai" by Usha Uthup
Country of origin	India
Original language	Hindi
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	80
Production
Producers	Jamnadas D. Majethia Aatish Kapadia
Production company	Hats Off Productions
Original release
Network	Star One (season 1) Disney+ Hotstar (season 2)
Release	1 November 2004 (2004-11-01) – 17 July 2017 (2017-07-17)

Sarabhai vs Sarabhai is an Indian Hindi-language television sitcom that aired on STAR One from 1 November 2004 to 16 April 2006 and on Disney+ Hotstar from 15 May to 17 July 2017 for two seasons in 80 episodes altogether. The show was directed by Deven Bhojani and produced by Jamnadas D. Majethia and Aatish Kapadia under the production banner of Hats Off Productions. Starring an ensemble cast of Satish Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah, Sumeet Raghavan, Rupali Ganguly and Rajesh Kumar, the show revolves around the Sarabhais, a quintessential upper-class Gujarati family living in the upmarket neighbourhood of Cuffe Parade in South Mumbai. The family members include the matriarch, Maya; her husband, Indravadan; their two sons, Sahil and Rosesh; Sahil's wife, Monisha; Indravadan and Maya's son-in-law, Dushyant; and Indravadan's brother-in-law, Madhusudan Fufa. Regarded as being ahead of its generation in terms of its concept, writing, and average viewership ratings at the time of its initial release, the show has gone on to become a cult classic.

Synopsis

Sarabhai vs Sarabhai portrays the lives of the Sarabhais, a quintessential upper-class Gujarati family living in the upmarket neighbourhood of Cuffe Parade in South Mumbai. The matriarch of the family is Maya (Ratna Pathak Shah), a snobbish woman who always tries to maintain her high-society status. Her husband, Indravadan (Satish Shah), is an indolent, insensitive and mischievous man, who enjoys teasing his wife and other family members. The couple has two sons; Sahil (Sumeet Raghavan) and Rosesh (Rajesh Kumar). Sahil is a cosmetologist and is quite calm, wise and noble as compared to other characters, while Rosesh is an aspiring poet and actor who often makes everyone cringe with his eccentric poetry and acting as well his peculiar and amusing voice. Sahil is married to Monisha (Rupali Ganguly), a middle-class Punjabi girl who constantly tries to fit in with her wealthy in-laws. Maya's socialite attitude and Monisha's middle-class habits always lead to conflicts and Indravadan's playful nature only increases them, while Sahil deals with his own personal and professional challenges.

Indravadan and Maya's son-in-law, Dushyant Painter (Deven Bhojani), and Indravadan's brother-in-law, Madhusudan Fufa (Arvind Vaidya), are also part of the family. The gadget-freak Dushyant, married to Indravadan and Maya's psychic daughter, Sonia (Kshitee Jog / Sheetal Thakkar/Aishwarya Sakhuja), is an electrical engineer, who has a morbid fascination for various electronic machines. He always irritates the family by explaining different theories about different gadgets and using Rosesh for each demonstration. Dushyant's catchphrase is "I'll explain!" and does not understand sarcasm which leads to humorous situations. On the other hand, the deaf Madhusudan Fufa, married to Indravadan's older sister, Ilaben (Rita Bhaduri), usually does not acknowledge the fact that he cannot hear and refuses to use a hearing aid. He is a former freedom fighter who repeatedly asks questions and blames others for speaking softly. Madhusudan Fufa interrupts almost always during conversations with his catchphrase "Hain?" and his misinterpretations are particularly bothersome to Indravadan.

Comedy and conflict ensue in the daily events occurring in the Sarabhais' lives and much of the mother-in-law humour in the show is derived from the shallow interactions among the city's elite and their perceived notions of the shortcomings and failings of middle-class society. The show has a cult-like status among all the Indian sitcoms. ^[1]

Cast

Main article: List of Sarabhai vs Sarabhai characters

Main

• Satish Shah as Indravadan Sarabhai – Pankorben and Vallavdas's son; Ilaben's brother; Maya's husband; Sahil, Sonia and Rosesh's father
• Ratna Pathak Shah as Maya Mazumdar Sarabhai – Vidisha and Nayesha's sister; Indravadan's wife; Sahil, Sonia and Rosesh's mother
• Sumeet Raghavan as
  • Dr. Sahil Sarabhai – Indravadan and Maya's elder son; Sonia and Rosesh's brother; Monisha's husband
  • Nayesha Mazumdar Singh – NRI; Maya and Vidhisha's sister; Jugalkishore's wife
• Rupali Ganguly as Manisha "Monisha" Singh Sarabhai – Jugalkishore's cousin; Sahil's wife
• Rajesh Kumar as Rosesh Sarabhai – Indravadan and Maya's younger son; Sahil and Sonia's brother
• Kshitee Jog/Shital Thakkar/Aishwarya Sakhuja as Sonia Sarabhai Painter – Indravadan and Maya's daughter; Sahil and Rosesh's sister; Dushyant's wife
• Deven Bhojani as Dushyant Painter – Sonia's husband;Indravadan and Maya's son-in-law

Recurring

• Rita Bhaduri as Ilaben Sarabhai – Pankorben and Vallavdas's daughter; Indravadan's sister; Madhusudan's wife
• Arvind Vaidya as Madhusudan – Ilaben's husband
• Tarla Joshi as Pankorben Sarabhai aka Baa – Vallavdas's wife; Indravadan and Ilaben's mother; Sahil, Sonia and Rosesh's grandmother (Dead and in flashback scenes only)
• Ghanashyam Nayak as Vitthal – Domestic worker of Sarabhais'
• Shilpa Mehta as Sarita Jagirdar – Dinesh's wife; Indravadan and Maya's socialite friend
• Gurpal Singh as Baldev Singh – Swaroopa's husband; Indravadan and Maya's socialite friend
• Usha Bachani as Vidisha Mazumdar – NRI; Maya and Nayesha's sister
• Girish Sahadev as Jugalkishore Singh – Monisha's cousin; Nayesha's husband
• Bhamini Oza as Rita (in episode 'Rosesh ki jhoothi shaadi') and Kissme (in episode 'Sarabhais Ke Ghar Pahunchi 'Kissme)
• Chirag Channa as Sharman Kapadia and Krish Mazumdar

Cameo Appearances

• Yatin Karyekar as flop novel author Nagesh Iyer in "Meet The Sarabhais" (Episode 1)
• Kishwer Merchant as Sahil's colleague Dr. Kiran in "Husbands Do Not Cheat" (Episode 4)
• Deepali Sayyad as Rosesh's girlfriend Matsigandha a.k.a. Maggi in "Rosesh Falls In Love" (Episode 12)
• Mandira Bedi as Indravadan's girlfriend Cookie Sharma in "Indravadan's New Friend: Cookie Sharma" (Episode 14)
• Manini Mishra as Sahil's former patient Dinky Chakravarti in "Who Is Dinky?" (Episode 22)
• Supriya Pathak and Jamnadas D. Majethia as Maya's distant cousins Hansa Parekh and Himanshu Seth from the show Instant Khichdi in "Khichdi With Sarabhais" (Episode 25 and 26)
• Mallika Sherawat as destitute girl Sunehri in "Sarabhais And Sunehri" (Episode 29)
• Vaishali Thakkar as Sahil's patient Nilima Verma in "Nilima And Sahil" (Episode 31)
• Parvin Dabas as upcoming artist Sudhanshu Khan in "Maya And Sudhanshu" (Episodes 33 and 34)
• Makarand Deshpande as famous hypnotist Dr. Siddharth Anirudh Prasad in "Indravadan Hypnotised: Part 1 And 2" (Episodes 40 and 41)
• Roop Kumar Rathod and Sonali Rathod as themselves in "Maya, Monisha And Antakshari" (Episode 42)
• Aamir Ali as television actor Patang Kumar in "Monisha's Date With Actor Patang Kumar" (Episode 52)
• Aatish Kapadia as poet and competition judge Anirudh Mehta a.k.a. Kaccha Kela in "Poetry War Between Indravadan And Rosesh" (Episode 53)
• Sunil Tawde as social activist Phadke in "Indravadan Becomes Homeless" (Episode 57)
• Jaywant Wadkar as Yamraj in "Yamraj Comes For Indravadan" (Episode 63)
• Parmeet Sethi as television character Detective Omkarnath in "The African Chant's Magic!" (Episode 67)
• Rohitash Gaud as psychic Cindolin in "A Peek Into The Future" (Episode 69)
• Siddharth Jadhav as killer at the Sarabhais in the future in "A Peek Into The Future" (Episode 69)
• Madhavi Chopra as Priya, Dinesh and Sarita's daughter, Sahil's ex-fiancée

Episodes

Main article: List of Sarabhai vs Sarabhai episodes

Series	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	70		8 November 2004 (2004-11-08)	16 April 2006 (2006-04-16)
2	10		15 May 2017 (2017-05-15)	17 July 2017 (2017-07-17)

Season 1

Season 1 of this show, which became extremely popular among South Asian viewers, was aired in 2004. The season revolves around the lives of five main characters and portrays conflicts in various contexts, focusing on themes such as family life and the upper class of Mumbai. The season features a variety of supporting characters that are intertwined with the lives of the main five characters, to add drama and comedy to the show. One of the main plots of the season is Rosesh's quest for a girl, and we get to meet different potential suitors throughout the season, all with extreme traits that clash with different members of the house. Another common plot is the conflict between Maya and Monisha in terms of her "middle-class" behaviour, with Sahil often caught in the middle of this conflict. Indravadhan, Maya's husband, is often found instigating these conflicts for his enjoyment. Throughout the season, the characters go through different social and emotional experiences, delving into their relationships, conflicts, interactions, and history. In the final episode, the principal characters state that there will be another season of the series. However, on the Disney+ Hotstar streaming app, the episode where Rosesh published his poetry book is not available.

Season 2 (Sarabhai vs Sarabhai: Take 2)

After eleven years, not much has changed in the life of the Sarabhai family. Monisha and Sahil now have a seven-year-old son named Aurnob, also known as Guddu. Rosesh has finally found love with Jasmine Mavani, who was given the main role in a TV serial but eventually lost it. The family has moved to new penthouses, and the season ends with Monisha asking for a divorce from Sahil, hinting at a new season to come.

Production

Conception

Season 1

The show was produced by Jamnadas Majethia and Aatish Kapadia under the banner of Hatsoff Productions. The show was directed by Deven Bhojani along with Aatish Kapadia and the story and screenplay was also written by Aatish Kapadia. Sahil and Monisha are married and are living across Sahil's parents, Indravadhan and Maya Sarabhai, and Rosesh, their son, and Sahil's younger brother. Maya constantly taunts Monisha because of her behavior and language tone and constantly refers to her as "middle-class". Throughout the entire series, Sahil is kind of stuck between whether to take his wife's side or his mother's. Meanwhile, Indravadhan supports his daughter-in-law all the time. Rosesh, on the other side, is an actor who writes poetry that Sahil and Indravadhan dislike. Rosesh is a momma's boy and Maya's favorite child. Maya is a classy and sophisticated woman. The series goes through various events involving their lives.

Season 2 (Sarabhai vs Sarabhai: Take 2)

During the finale of season 1, the cast of the series confirmed returning with a new season. ^[2] However in 2012, Deven Bhojani denied that the series would return. ^[3] The cast reunited in June 2016 over the belated 65th birthday party of Satish Shah, when the future of the show was discussed. ^[4] The producer Jamnadas Majethia promised some good news for the fans. Later, the actors of the show confirmed the return of the new season as a web series entitled Sarabhai vs Sarabhai: Take 2. ^{[5] [6] [7] [8] [9]} The series was picked up by Hotstar with the same cast, and the story is set 11 years after the last season's conclusion. ^[10]

Casting

Deven Bhojani made a debut as a director in the first season. He also played the recurring character of Dushyant Painter in the series. ^[11]

Filming

The first season was shot on sets located at Kanjurmarg in suburban Mumbai. The cast were provided with their own rooms backstage with nameplates with each character's name for rehearsals and preparations. ^[11]

Adaptations

Many of the characters in the Marathi series produced by Hats Off production as Madhuri Middle Class in 2014 on Star Pravah were inspired from Sarabhai, despite being a different story and character backgrounds. ^{[12] [13] [14]} The show was unofficially adapted in Pakistan as Chana Jor Garam. ^[15]

Broadcast

Season 1 was broadcast from 2004 to 2006 on STAR One. Reruns of the series also aired on sister channel Star Utsav. ^[16] Season 2 was released on digital platform Hotstar from 15 May 2017 to 17 July 2017. ^{[17] [18]}

The show was telecast from 6 April 2020 on Star Bharat, as the production of the ongoing series had to be stopped by the channel due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ^[19]

Reception

Critics and ratings

Season 1

Season 1 was a weekly television show and was closed after two years due to low TRPs. The newly-introduced stand-up comedy shows on the same network garnered TRPs as high as 9 while the Sarabhai received TRPs of as low as 0.63 during its inception. ^[17] The highest rating it garnered during its original run time was 2 TVR. ^[20] Only after the series started re-running episodes as a daily show multiple times, it became popular with a good viewership and response. ^{[17] [21]}

Hindustan Times appreciated the series, "Besides the concept that intrigued audiences of all age groups, the childlike accent of Rosesh Sarabhai (played by Rajesh Kumar) struck the right chord and became the ultimate trendsetter. Sarabhai vs Sarabhai turned the tables and gave each and every character equal screen space and importance. ^[22]

Season 2

Season 2 was one among the most anticipated sitcom sequels. It opened to a positive response as well as negative being compared with season 1. ^[23] Later, the show was heavily criticized for poor writing and sets, but the performances were praised. ^{[24] [25]}

While Arushi Jain from The Indian Express appreciated the initial episode of the series stating, "After watching the entire episode of the Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai Take 2 and the same madness that prevailed in the Sarabhai family seven years ago, we felt as if the characters have not changed a bit. Though some jokes were repeated still we are not complaining. The nostalgia of watching the funny banter between Indravardhan and Rosesh, and Maya Sarabhai on an anti-Monisha mission left us rolling on the floor laughing. It seems, some things just get better with age and Sarabhai vs Sarabhai definitely belongs to that category", ^[26] while Sampada Sharma from the same criticised the series on comparison with season 1 as, "The show was updated, the sets were glamorous, but sadly, it did not even come close to creating the charm that the original show had. While the original was known for its quick wit, sharp dialogues and sassy performances, the new one did nothing but remind us of the good old days." ^[27]

Impact

The show was unofficially adapted in Pakistan as Chana Jor Garam for which in December 2020 the makers and cast of Sarabhai condemned for violating the copyrights of the series and also criticised the series for spoiling the essence of Sarabhai. ^{[28] [29]}

Accolades

Season 1

The show won 5 Indian Telly Awards and Indian Television Academy Awards in 2005.

Indian Television Academy Awards 2005 ^{[30] [31]}

• Best Serial, Comedy (Jury)
• Best Director, Comedy (Jury) – Deven Bhojani
• Best Actor, Comedy (Jury) – Satish Shah
• Best Actress, Comedy (Jury) – Ratna Pathak Shah
• Best Dialogues (Jury) – Aatish Kapadia

Indian Telly Awards 2005 ^[32]

• Best Serial (Comedy)
• Best Director (Comedy) – Deven Bhojani
• Best Actor (Comedy) – Satish Shah
• Best Actress (Comedy) – Ratna Pathak Shah
• Best Art Direction (Fiction) – Omung Kumar Bhandula^{[ citation needed ]}

References

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External links

• Sarabhai vs Sarabhai at IMDb
• "Sarabhai VS Sarabhai production website". hatsoffproduction.com. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017.
• Sarabhai vs Sarabhai on Hotstar