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The Sad State of Comedy Shows in India Currently; Only Degrading With Time

When asked what are the best comedy shows you can think of? There is a chance you may not have too many Indian names popping up except the sheer gems from the 90s. The comedy scene in TV shows has deteriorated miserably over the years and what's alarming is, that it doesn't seem to be getting better anytime soon. Here we will try and discuss the sad state of comedy shows in India as opposed to outside and how we have the potential to make it change.

Take all the sayings and cliches you want into account, and one of them has remained constant for a long time now - comedy is a serious business. Always underappreciated, unawarded and taken for granted, comedy as the practice it is should be regarded and appreciated when done well.

Of course, it is subjective and usually open to being offensive to many but having a sense of humor that is generally massy is usually doable.

When asked what are the best comedy shows you can think of? There is a chance you may not have too many Indian names popping up except the sheer gems from the 90s. The comedy scene in TV shows has deteriorated miserably over the years and what's alarming is that it doesn't seem to be getting better anytime soon. Here we will try and discuss the sad state of comedy shows in India as opposed to elsewhere and how we have the potential to make it change.

Disclaimer- Not included the on-going comedy reality shows in the list and mentions.

The Gems

Having written about these names umpteen times, we all know that Indian comedy was at its best back in the 90s to early 2000s. From Hum Paanch to Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Khichdi to Flop Show and Office Office to Zabaan Sambhal Ke among many more, we have had true gems indeed.

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Deterioration Process

Ever wondered why is it only the old sitcoms that we take into account when thinking about the best? Because we actually have just over a couple of noteworthy mentions for comedy to be talking about from recent times. The last slot of having relatively decent shows included the likes of F.I.R, The Great Indian Comedy Show, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge and Shararat among others. The reason we include these shows here is how all these presentations were almost up to the mark throughout their runtime but unfortunately deteriorated in their wee days.

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Gone Downhill

The latest slot of shows suggests how we have gone immensely downhill from having good sitcoms to just sheer laziness in writing. I don't deny how Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah and BhabhiJi Ghar Par Hai are iconic and will always be. But apart from the initial few years of genuine comedy, both these shows are currently running on-air just for the heck of it and the writers themselves seem to have just given up in trying to innovate in any manner.

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Cause For Alarm

It's a pity that in spite of living in times where the web world has its own massive viewership, we still cannot produce quality sitcoms which may otherwise be considered to be 'niche.' Look at the likes of shows like BoJack Horseman, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Good Place, Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and others who seamlessly and perfectly blend intelligent writing with potent humor and genuinely hilarious moments. I don't mean to compare it but rather have this being set as an example for makers in India here to understand that even though this kind of humor may not have a mass appeal, you still have the web to exploit and remind us, that we have the potential - we always had.

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If you ever think 'Hey, I am in the mood to watch a good sitcom (Indian) right now', you might want to think again as with all the flock of shows currently available on the GECs, we literally have not ONE quality sitcom expect watching rehashed and fatigued content of Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah or a show that has lost its actual spark but still runs on - Jijaji Chhat Par Hai.

Indeed times for comedy need to change for the better soon.

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Office Office poster

Office Office

Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai poster

Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai

Shararat poster

Shararat

Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah poster

Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah

F.I.R poster

F.I.R

Bhabhiji Ghar Par Hai poster

Bhabhiji Ghar Par Hai

The Great Indian Laughter Challenge poster

The Great Indian Laughter Challenge

Jijaji Chhat Par Hai poster

Jijaji Chhat Par Hai

Khichdi poster

Khichdi

SAB TV thumbnail

SAB TV

And TV thumbnail

And TV

Comments (8)

Comedy genre lost it long ago thanks to Sab TV. These people literally ruined the charm with their overdose of 24×7 comedy shows which are crass and evoke little laughter. Tarak Mehta was good till characters were shown idiots and stupid but now they all act self righteous sane souls and do nonsense drama which is stretched beyond its limit.

Even these Bhabhiji Jijaji Happu Paltan shows are cheap crass and project B grage humour.

We need comedy shows like Hum Paanch Tu Tu Main Main Khichdi Sara Bhai Vs Sara Bhai Family No. 1 Hum Sab Ek Hai..!!!

Its high time SabTv ends the crapfest called Tarak Mehta

4 years ago

The only good Indian shows are all web shows. Shows like Mirzapur, Sacred Games, etc. are the ones worth watching.

4 years ago

why only comedy all indian show at present is pure crap, all have the same formula sas babhu crap, plotting and scheming to covet another wealth. no creativity or imagination or downright illogical. stupidity at best.

4 years ago

Why only comedy shows . All indian shows are goin down the drain including reality . Still people watch it and regarding TMKOC it still gives some nice episodes in between compare to the sad bahu and Nagin drama

4 years ago

1. Sab TV exclusively focuses on comedy. But it's high time they need to stop airing Taarak Mehta rerun always. They need to give other shows repeats and fair chance as well. They need to build on other shows name and brand as well. I admit Taarak Mehta is the leading show but it shouldn't be aired always.
2. I watch Jijaji Chaat Par Hai and like Hiba Nawab in it.
3. Sab should air season 2 of Jeanie Aur Juju with Ali Asgar & Rubina Dilaik. It used to have good trps and an honest fanbase.
4. Star Bharat should air Comedy Classes which I really liked.
5. Also Sony TV should air new season of Comedy Circus.

4 years ago

why only attack on Comedy Genre, what innovation has family drama shown in last 20 years? same saas bahu leg pulling and over dramatic sequences which are appreciated and most watched.

4 years ago

Honestly I would get a lot of dislikes but I never actually found TMKOC funny. Only Dayaben’s accent was a little funny that’s it. I don’t know why some people are totally gaga over that show.

4 years ago

Tmkoc is the worst out of all. Its running without the heroine of the show, a bachelor like iconic character popatlal is unmarried since 12 years wtf. This is just time waste. This show had became more like an open space for film promotions.

4 years ago

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