''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'' (literal meaning: 'Such is Life') is a

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

that aired on

DD National DD National (formerly DD1) is a state-owned public entertainment television channel in India. It is the flagship channel of Doordarshan, India's public service broadcaster, and the oldest and most widely available terrestrial television channel ...

in 1984. It was written by comedy writer

Sharad Joshi Sharad Joshi was an Indian poet, writer, satirist and a dialogue and scriptwriter in Hindi films and television. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1990. Biography Early life and education Sharad Joshi was born on 21 May 1931 in Ujjain, Madhya ...

and directed by

Kundan Shah Kundan Shah (19 October 1947 – 7 October 2017), was an Indian film director and writer. He is known for his comedy classic ''Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro'' (1983) and his 1986–1987, TV series ''Nukkad'' with Saeed Akhtar Mirza. Biography Kundan Shah ...

, S. S. Oberoi and ''Raman Kumar''.

Plot

The episodes revolved around funny happenings in the lives of Ranjit Verma (played by actor

Shafi Inamdar Shafi Inamdar (23 October 1945 – 13 March 1996) was an Indian actor. He started his film career with the film '' Vijeta'' and continued it in ''Ardh Satya''. He acted in a number of television serials including ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi''. His mo ...

) and Renu Verma (played by actress

Swaroop Sampat Dr. Swaroop Rawal (née Sampat; born 3 November 1958) is an Indian actress who has acted in several Hindi language films such as '' Naram Garam'' and ''Nakhuda'' and is known for her performance in television serials like ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi' ...

(Femina Miss India 1979), who play a married couple along with Renu's unmarried and unemployed younger brother Raja (

Rakesh Bedi Rakesh Bedi is an Indian film, stage and television actor. He is known for his comic roles in films such as ''Mera Damaad'' and '' Chashme Buddoor'' (1981). He has also appeared in television shows like ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'' (1984), ''Shrimaa ...

) and then Chachi's daughter who plays the character of Rashmi. Other characters were Ranjit's boss (

Tiku Talsania Tiku Talsania (born 7 June 1954) is an Indian actor, who works in the Bollywood industry. Apart from acting in films and television serials, he also performs as a freelance theatre artist, working for Gujarati theatre. Career Television Tiku h ...

), his

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

neighbours (actors Vijay Kashyap and

Sulabha Arya Sulabha Arya (born 15 July 1950) is an Indian actress in Hindi and Marathi film, television and stage industry. She is the wife of late veteran Indian cinematographer Ishan Arya and mother of cinematographer Sameer Arya and actor Sagar Arya. S ...

), etc. A trademark of the ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'' were the characters played by

Satish Shah Satish Shah (born 25 June 1951) is an Indian actor. He is best known for his comic roles in films like '' Jaane bhi Do Yaaro'' (1983), '' Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'' (1984), '' Sarabhai vs Sarabhai'' (2004), '' Main Hoon Na'' (2004), ''Kal Ho Naa Ho'' ...

from Episode 1 to Episode 54. In each episode, Shah played a different character who played a key role in the plot. These characters would be from many professions and regions of India, with some being close family friends of the Vermas and others being total strangers. During the period 1984-86 Satish was anointed as "King of Comedy" by the entertainment media as a direct consequence of the multitude of characters that he played on the show. In few episodes from 40,

Anjan Srivastav Aanjjan Srivastav (born 2 June 1948) is an Indian film, television and stage actor, associated with Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in Mumbai of which he remained Vice-President for several years. Outside theatre, he is best known as ...

, Avtaar Gill, Pawan Malhotra, Ashok Pandit played different characters.

Production

The first 24 episodes of the show has focus on Ranjit, Renu and Raja and their neighbours Mr. Bhattacharya and Mandira, with various characters played by Satish Shah. After several highly successful shows, Shafi Inamdar (who played Ranjit) left after Episode 24 due to his film commitments. Episode 25 to 44 had focus on Raja, his Chachi and her servant. However, with the huge popularity of ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'', a repackaged second attempt was made with the underlying idea that Ranjit and Renu have moved abroad because of his work, while Raja is still staying with Ranjit's aunt, played by the legendary actress

Farida Jalal Farida Jalal (born Farida Sami; 18 May 1950) is an Indian actress who primarily worked in Hindi films. In a film career spanning almost fifty years, Jalal appeared in over 200 films. Best known for her character-driven roles in independent cin ...

, her daughter Rashmi (Kamia Malhotra) and a servant, played by Javed Khan. Ranjit and Renu return from Episode 45 onwards and act till Episode 55 of Raja s marriage with Rekha. The characters played by Satish Shah were constant factor from Episode 1 to 55. The second season retained the fame of the first season. Raja's love life and affair with Rekha (Nivedita) was the new center of activity. The third innings had a reasonably shorter run from episode 55 to 67. It focused on the household life of Mr Gupta, Raja and Rekha after marriage. The alumni of this show went on to have chequered careers in Indian and other cinema over the years.

List of episodes

Cast

as Ranjit Verma, the husband *

as Renu Verma, Ranjit's wife *

as Raja, Renu's brother *

as different character in each episode. *

Nivedita Joshi-Saraf Nivedita Joshi-Saraf ( Joshi; born 10 January 1965) is an Indian actress who works in Marathi and Hindi language films and television serials. She is married to actor Ashok Saraf. Joshi-Saraf has played Asawari in the Marathi-language serial ' ...

as Rekha, Raja's Wife in Season 3 *

as Raghuwan Kailash Gupta a.k.a. R.K. Gupta, Ranjit's boss (and later Raja's father in law) *

as Ranjit's aunt Season 2. *

Sulbha Arya Sulabha Arya (born 15 July 1950) is an Indian actress in Hindi and Marathi film, television and stage industry. She is the wife of late veteran Indian cinematographer Ishan Arya and mother of cinematographer Sameer Arya and actor Sagar Arya. S ...

as Mandira Bhattacharya, Bengali neighbour *

Vijay Kashyap Vijay Kashyap is an Indian actor, known for his role in films like Gandhi, Famous Doordarshan TV series Tenali Rama Partial television * ''Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi'' (1984) - Tarun Bhattacharya * ''Tenali Rama'' (1990) - Tenali Rama * '' Dhadkan Z ...

as Tarun Bhattacharya, Bengali neighbour in Season1-2/ Ravi, Raja's Brother-in-law in Season 3 *

Kiran Juneja Kiran Juneja is an Indian actress who works in Hindi cinema. Personal life She is second wife of filmmaker Ramesh Sippy. She hails from Punjabi Bagh area of New Delhi, India and her father was a doctor. Career In 1984, she started her actin ...

as Ranjana, Ravi's Girlfriend in Season 3 * Reena Wadhwa as Rashmi, the daughter of Ranjit's Aunt *

Javed Khan Amrohi Javed Khan Amrohi is an Indian film and television actor who has acted in various films, amounting to approx. 150 Hindi films. He is best known for his role in Academy Award-nominated '' Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India'' (2001), '' Andaz Apna ...

as Jhumru the servant in Season 2 *

Aanjjan Srivastav Aanjjan Srivastav (born 2 June 1948) is an Indian film, television and stage actor, associated with Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in Mumbai of which he remained Vice-President for several years. Outside theatre, he is best known as ...

as Various Characters *

Jatin Kanakia Jatin Kanakia (28 June 1952 –18 July 1999), was an Indian actor. Best known for comedy roles, his career ranged from working in Gujarati plays, Hindi television shows and Hindi Bollywood movies. His skill and success earned him the informal ...

as Rekha's Uncle *

Pavan Malhotra Pavan Malhotra (born 2 July 1958) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films and television alongside Punjabi and few Telugu films. He has played lead roles in Buddhadeb Dasgupta's National Film Award-winning '' Bagh Bahadur'' and Saeed Akht ...

as Police Constable in episode 58 *

Kishori Ballal Kishori Ballal (1937/1938 – 18 February 2020) was an Indian actress who was known for her works in Kannada cinema. The actress made her debut in 1960 with ''Ivalentha Hendthi'' and since then in a career spanning over 15 years, she has app ...

as Groom's Mother in episode 4 & 5 *

Avtar Gill Avtar Gill is an Indian actor who appears predominantly in Hindi and Punjabi language films and television serials. He has done many plays with Indian People's Theatre Association Mumbai. Selected filmography Films * ''Noorie'' (1979) * ''A ...

as Various Characters *

Salim Ghouse Salim Ahmad Ghouse (10 January 1952 – 28 April 2022) was an Indian film, television and theatre actor, theatre director, and martial artist. He has acted in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and English films. Early life Salim Ghouse was born ...

as Mr Venkat * Rekha Sabnis as Mrs Venkat

References

External links