Top 10 Sitcoms I have ever seen
I started watching TV right from the days when DD used to telecast ‘Aamchi maati, Aamchi Maanse’ and TV used to have the typical music for the 8pm news and 7pm Baatmyas. Those were the days when DD ruled the roost. Then came the time in early 90s when satellite television or rather a very normal term, cable television came into the picture. The TV was filled with channels like ZEE, Star Plus, SONY etc. I still remember the initial serials on TV where TARA showed all the housewives how it should be done. A very scary head of Archana Puran Singh on a plate on a dining table still creeps you out. Actually even today, her visual of laughing out loud on Comedy Circus creeps many out. Shows like CID and Aahat came into existence thanks to Mr. B.P. Singh. These shows replaced Karamchand Jaasoos and Vikram aur Betaal from DD. Hats off to them for providing us shows like CID as it is still running and the ACP’s finger and hand movement rules are very famous all across (can’t imagine not using it in Clemson). Then came the era of music shows where Zee TV was the forerunner. Shows like Antakshari and SaReGaMa (now SaReGaMaPa) replaced shows like Super Hit Muqabla from DD. Now we see some famous musicians getting exposed in shows like these. TV today has seen so many reality shows that I don’t think in its days DD even had that many shows running at the same time on air. One good thing that Cable TV has brought about is the revolution in the comedy series. DD had its charm in shows like Nukkad. But the channels these days have some very exciting comedy series and with the inclusion of the Foreign Channels like Zee Café, Star World etc. the definition of SITCOM has changed. Wikipedia defines Sitcom as, a situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features recurring characters in a common environment such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue. Such programs originated in radio, but today, sitcoms are found almost exclusively on television as one of its dominant narrative forms. Sitcoms act as stress busters at times. They relieve you of many pressures. I guess this is one of the major reasons why we used to wait for every Monday night in Clemson to catch up the latest episodes of the currently running Sitcoms. Well here the main part of my blog starts. Rating top 10 Sitcoms I have ever seen. Indian television has produced some amazing sitcoms and they will give some tough competition to their foreign counterparts in my ranking list. So now, let the fun begin…
10.) Who’s the Boss?: Who’s the Boss? is an American television sitcom which was aired on SONY in India as a dubbed version in Hindi alongside shows like Different Strokes, Silver Spoon, Ghostbusters etc. Tony was a big flirt and he did make out with his boss Angella at times. He took good care of his daughter Sam and also Angela’s son Johnathan. Angela’s mom was a treat to watch. My best episode was the one where Tony and Angela make out and the Chewing Gum is transferred in their mouths without them realizing it. I found it quiet creative during that time.
9.) How I Met Your Mother: Personally if you ask me, I feel this show is kind off inspired by FRIENDS. But I must agree, the characters on this show are Legen… wait for it… DARY!!!!!! Amazing show and it can set the right mood in no time. Neil Patrick Harris is the charm of the show and can hold the show on his shoulders without any qualm. Robin is hot and Lily is cute. But Marshall is huge and his physical presence itself can bring around great laughter. TED is Bechara. (It wouldn’t have sounded effective in English).
8.) Office Office: Mussadilal… A version of the modern day common man who lands up in trouble every freaking time he walks into a government office. He has had troubles with the Cops, the Netas, the Babus, the Passport officials… You name it and he is there. The reason for his outdoing is that he doesn’t believe in shelling out bribes. And as rightly shown in the series, no bribe, no work funda is followed to the core. Patel ji ki 2 baatein, Shukla ka Paan thunkna, Pandey ko Pandeyji bulana, Ushaji ka sabse apne ghar ka kaam karwana is something which I guess every Indian can connect to. This show won many awards and rightly so it deserved them. It was very peculiar that poor Mussadi would always be on the verge of abusing the officer but just couldn’t do it. The state of every middle-class men in India.
7.) Khichadi and Instant Khichadi: This is one Crazy Series. They started a season 2 under the name of Instant Khichadi because of its popularity. They even made a movie out of it which was a super hit. The characters are World Famous in India (This is actually their lingo). The mad brother-sister duo of Himanshu and Hansa can kill you with laughter. Add Praful to it and that’s the killer blow. Jayshree tries to talk some sense and Babuji is actually very pitiful. Only sensible characters are the kids. But one must agree, without this family the reputation of Gujjus in this World would have got spoilt… 😉
(Yours truly is also a Gujju)
6.) Big Bang Theory: 4 nerds, 1 couch, 1 TV, 1 Playstation, 1 X-Box, 1 Wii and to top it, 1 HOT Neighbor. This is Big Bang Theory. If you don’t understand science, I suggest don’t even watch this show. Ya, you can enjoy the hot neighbor but you need some Science Quotient in you to understand Sheldon Cooper. He rocks and just like NPH in HIMYM, Sheldon can hold the entire show on his own. Leonard is witty and gets to have sex with Penny. So he is the Hero. Penny is the self-defined heroine. Raj is the innocent Indian guy who can’t speak in front of women until he is drunk and Howard needs restraining orders in front of women. Together they all add up a small delight in the living room.
5.) Different Strokes: Diff’rent Strokes is an American television sitcom that aired on the NBC television network and it was shown on SONY in India with a dubbed version in Hindi. The series made stars out of child actors Coleman, Bridges, and Plato, and became known for the “very special episodes” in which serious issues such as racism, drug use and child molestation were dramatically explored. The star of the show was Little Arnold and his style of talking is still reminiscent in my memory. He popularized the catch phrase “What’chu talkin’ ’bout’?” and he along with his brother Willis brought about a mini revolution in the penthouse of the Drummand family. One due mention about Kimberly… She was CUTE…
4.) Small Wonder: “She is the SMALL WONDER…” I used to get excited whenever this song used to play on TV. During my childhood, this was the best show I ever enjoyed. VICI was simply out of this world… (Well literally). Ted along with his wife Joan Lawson is a very cute couple and their son Jamie is a typical 12-14 year old American kid. Their neighbors the Brindles are witty, naughty and extremely nosy. I can watch the reruns of this show any given day and time.
3.) Two and Half Men: Charlie Sheen is GOD of dating. He can pick up women like we used to pick up marbles when we were kids. The true charm of this show is that at least one hot girl appears on this show in every episode. Jake started off as an innocent boy at the start. He got into adolescent and started irritating. But now he is at an age where he is the only one who can kick Charlie’s Ass… I would not like to describe Allen as just like Ted, he too is a Bechara… Infact a bigger Bechara…
2.) Sarabhai vs Sarabhai: “So typically Middle Class” “Momma Ka Purse jaise Hospital ki Pyari koi Nurse”… These lines are epic. Kids and older folks still remember this. The way Roshesh says MOMMA, the way Monisha Bargains, the way Maya verbally rapes Monisha, the way Sahil acts cool amongst all these mess, the way Indravadan acts mischievous and kicks Roshesh’s ass still wants me to see this show time and again.
1.) FRIENDS: EPIC. This is the only word by which I can describe this show. Phoebe, Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler and Joey are still present in our living rooms even though the show is long over. Phoebe’s eccentricity, Ross’ precision, Rachel’s bitchiness, Monica’s obsessiveness, Chandler’s sarcasm, Joey’s stupidity were the charm of the show. The creators did an amazing job of blending all these attributes together into 1 super hit show for 10 years.
This ranking is a personal dig at Ekta Kapoor and her so called soap operas which are corrupting the Indian Television in the Prime Time slot. All the mummies all across India are glued to their television sets once evening sets in thus debarring their husbands and kids from watching some sports, news or decent movies…
Guys, feel free to comment on this post and let me know if your views match my rankings or differ in any aspect. I am open for a debate too…