Shoma Anand with screen family of Hum Paanch; Vidya Balan (below) had replaced Amita Nangia (3rd from left) as the second daughter

Shoma Anand not keen on comeback but would relent for Hum Paanch
Akash Bhatnagar (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 27, 2020)

Hum Paanch, one of Ekta Kapoor’s first productions, is among past TV gems that have returned to prime time during the Coronavirus lockdown. In 2020, the sitcom, featuring a couple (Ashok Saraf and Shoma Anand) and their five fiesty daughters, completes 25 years since its premiere.

Shoma is happy that her screen family is celebrating the show’s silver jubilee by bringing joy to people in a difficult time. “It makes me nostalgic about old days and how we looked then,” she says, adding that the cast has been in touch over the years. “This is a family I created for a lifetime, unlike today, where people forget each other right after a project.”

Vidya Balan, who is a successful actress in Hindi films now, was a part of the Hum Paanch family as the nerdy Radhika. Shoma is proud of her screen daughter. “She is always respectful towards us, no matter how successful she became. We talk on birthdays and events,” she gushes.

Shoma had herself been a regular fixture on the big screen for decades, with films like Coolie, Himmatwala and Ghar Ek Mandir, among others. But her last prominent project was the 2009 Govinda and Fardeen Khan-starrer Life Partner. Explaining that she took temporary retirement to get away from the hustle, the actress informs, “I spend summers in Kashmir and one time, I didn’t want to come back. There are no characters left in films anyway. It’s either a love story, an action film or special songs and I don’t fit in any of them.”

She was a part of Priyadarshan’s 2003 comedy Hungama and now, the director is returning with a sequel. But Shoma isn’t sure if she was approached. “Maybe they had an offer. I don’t answer most phone calls these days as it is tough to say no to people you worked with,” she reasons. But Hum Paanch sequel would be different. “We’ve been asking the makers for years to bring it back, as viewers won’t forget it even after 50 years.”