{"id":2550,"date":"2016-04-08T20:06:24","date_gmt":"2016-04-08T14:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2550"},"modified":"2016-04-08T20:06:24","modified_gmt":"2016-04-08T14:36:24","slug":"ekta-kapoor-joint-family-serial-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?p=2550","title":{"rendered":"Kyunki TV Bhi Kabhi Real Life Tha"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A<\/span><\/p>s it happened every sunny weekend, the shadow of conflict had befallen my household, once again. My <\/span>mom <\/span><\/a>stood on one side with a fierce look on her face, while my grandmother sat on the chair with tears in her eyes. My hapless dad and grandfather were stuck in the middle, pretending to watch TV but actually hoping to steer clear of the fireworks. <\/span>\n\n\u201cBut I didn\u2019t remember that you had told me that the carrots were for gajar ka halwa,\u201d said my poor grandmother, trying to clear the air over some missing groceries. \u201c<\/span>Pappu<\/span><\/a> (aka my dad) hadn\u2019t eaten gajar ki kheer in so long, so I thought I would make him some,\u201d she continued to explain. <\/span>\n\nNone of this dampened my mother\u2019s fury. \u201cI had this halwa planned since last week. Apoo had come home for the weekend, so it was supposed to be for her. But you can\u2019t see anything beyond your son!\u201d On that note, she stormed off, while dad and I nibbled at the offending kheer, trying to ignore the taste of guilt. <\/span>\n\nAs the battle between Team Pappu and Team Apoo threatened to rend my family apart, I noticed my grandfather\u2019s attention hadn\u2019t wavered from the TV screen even when the histrionics reached their peak. On screen, the saas was screaming at the bahu for adding too much salt to the daal. I was starting to roll my eyes at the screenwriter for trying to create something out of nothing, but then realisation struck and I immediately shut up. What was unfolding on screen was eerily similar to what had just happened moments ago at home seconds. <\/span>\n\nIndian joint families and the Ekta Kapoor brand of saas-bahu serials that dominate television are caught in an endless loop of art imitating life imitating art imitating life. The only difference is we don\u2019t look as pretty as the characters on TV, we don\u2019t have a huge-ass house to sprawl about in, and have actual jobs to attend. But even the most absurd stories have a grain of truth. My nani may have never used <\/span>black magic<\/span><\/a> like the crones on TV, but after encountering her \u2013 just once \u2013 my <\/span>brother\u2019s <\/span><\/a>Class XI girlfriend mysteriously stopped coming to our house. <\/span>\n

Indian joint families and the Ekta Kapoor brand of saas-bahu serials that dominate television are caught in an endless loop of art imitating life imitating art imitating life.<\/p><\/blockquote> \n\nThen there\u2019s the obsession with invoking the ghosts of our dead relatives and believing in bizarre reincarnation (like Mihir Virani in <\/span>Kyunki<\/span><\/i>\u2026) that we can\u2019t get enough of. So when on a family trip, we were attacked by some monkeys who made short work of my brother\u2019s ice cream, my aunt soothed him with, \u201cIt is your great grandfather enjoying an ice cream!\u201d When asked how she was certain that it was him, my aunt pointed out a mole on the monkey\u2019s hand that was similar to the one that my great grandfather had on his hand. In the next five minutes, she proceeded to find another long-lost aunt reincarnated as another monkey. We eventually had to forgo our bananas too, and offer prayers to these new-found \u201cancestors\u201d.<\/span>\n\nAt this point, the only difference between a reel and a <\/span>real<\/span><\/a>-life joint family is that we cannot change the channel when bored. The only way to tune out of an episode is to have a protagonist slam the door in your face, or storm out of the house yourself. Just like every crisis on our TV shows is neatly resolved by the end of the episode, our family problems also revert to normalcy after a few days of stony silence, broken only by the occasionally muttered, \u201cIss ghar mein meri kaun sunta hai?\u201d <\/span>\n\nAfter surviving in a <\/span>hostel<\/span><\/a> for four years, I came to realise that I am not the only person living in a <\/span>sitcom<\/span><\/a>. Each household comes with its own drama. A <\/span>Sindhi<\/span><\/a> friend believes that the serial <\/span>Buniyaad <\/span><\/i>was inspired by the story of her grandparents. When I went to visit them, the elderly gent who looked scarily like <\/span>Alok Nath<\/span><\/a> asked for my permission to perform my kanyadaan when I grow up. I was 19. <\/span>\n\nBut we\u2019ve come a long way from DD National primetime shows. Just like television has evolved with the times, so have our families. <\/span>\n\nAn acquaintance who lives with three uncles and eight cousins doesn\u2019t like watching <\/span>Bigg Boss<\/span><\/i><\/a>. Her constant exposure to household politics has convinced her that she can easily win the <\/span>Lok Sabha<\/span><\/a> elections. (Unsurprisingly, she didn\u2019t even win the college elections.) Another henpecked friend believes that his life is a copy of <\/span>Sasural Simar Ka<\/span><\/i>, the only difference is that his girlfriend takes the form of a housefly solely to spy on him. <\/span>\n\nAre these serials inspired by true lives or do we like to believe our lives are as interesting as the sitcoms we love? The answer may never be answered to our satisfaction, but the similarity is uncanny. <\/span>\n\nAs my poor dad left for the market to buy more carrots and figure out the situation, I joined my granddad on the couch to watch the remainder of the episode with a heavy heart. <\/span>\n\nI always wanted to live in a fairytale. But a Hindi serial? I\u2019m going to need a rebirth to get used to this.<\/span>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Indian joint families and the Ekta Kapoor brand of TV serials are caught in an endless loop of art imitating life imitating art imitating life. The only difference is we don\u2019t look as pretty as the characters on TV, and we can\u2019t change the channel when we\u2019ve had enough.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":242,"featured_media":2551,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[835,3738,2200,5181,5182,1220,5183,33,2204,5184,5185],"class_list":["post-2550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-big-boss","tag-drama","tag-ekta-kapoor","tag-episode","tag-everyday","tag-home","tag-joint-family","tag-politics","tag-saas-bahu","tag-sitcom","tag-tv-serial"],"yoast_head":"\nKyunki TV Bhi Kabhi Real Life Tha<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Indian joint families and the Ekta Kapoor brand of TV serials are caught in an endless loop of art imitating life imitating art imitating life. 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