Showing posts with label Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi. Show all posts
Satish Shah no more; friends, colleagues in shock
8:16 AM
Avijit Ghosh (THE TIMES OF INDIA; October 26, 2025)
In 1984, India could not have enough of the riotous TV comedy ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’. The most-talked about element of that rib-tickling show on DD, then the country’s only TV channel, was Satish Shah’s impeccable comic timing and astonishing range — over 40 different characters, ranging from an unwanted guest to a thief, each funnier than the last.
Those roles propelled Shah, who passed away on Saturday following kidney failure at a private hospital in Mumbai at age 74, to the cover of the reputable Hindi film magazine Madhuri, a space then reserved for major film stars. The June 7, 1985, issue, which also featured fellow ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’ actor Swaroop Sampat, carried the headline, ‘Aap ke chahete sitare’ (Your favourite stars). The characters were not specifically written for him, Shah recalled in a TV interview two years ago. He said they were people he might have seen in school, college and other places and subconsciously absorbed. “I give full credit to Mumbai city, a melting pot, which gave me the opportunity to see them,” he said.
Fellow actor, friend and FTII (Film and Television Institute of India), Pune, batchmate Rakesh Bedi said, “With his talent, he converted an outsider into the most interesting and eagerly-awaited performer of ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’.”
Shah brought laughter, grace and depth to Indian cinema and television with iconic performances, said FTII.
Shah’s journey began at FTII, captured in student films like ‘Bonga’, ‘Corpses’, ‘End Of The Game’, ‘Khukari’, ‘Lokayat’, ‘Masks’, ‘Shikast’, ‘Duniya Chalti Hai’, ‘Out of Focus’, ‘Sab Maya Hai’, ‘Sadama’ and ‘Tenth Floor’.
The actor, who featured in nearly 200 films and TV serials, marked his presence even in cameos. Few would have played the corpse of corrupt municipal commissioner D’Mello better than him in Kundan Shah’s political sidesplitter ‘Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro’ (1983).
“I changed my expressions as per scenes,” he once said. And who can forget his spit-showering ‘How dare you’ face-off with Shah Rukh Khan in ‘Main Hoon Na’ (2004). He featured in a clutch of Shah Rukh films, including ‘Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge’ (1995), ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’ (2003) and ‘Om Shanti Om’ (2007).
His talent for mimicry shone in Ramsay Brothers movies such as ‘Purani Haveli’ (1989), where his parodies of old hit Hindi film songs drew guffaws. He also played two minor negative characters in ‘Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai’ (1980) and ‘Umrao Jaan’ (1981). But TV gave him roles of length and heft. In ‘Sarabhai vs Sarabhai’ (2004), Shah made the part of Indravadan Sarabhai, the irreverent patriarch of a well-heeled Gujarati family in swank south Mumbai, his own.
Shah faced a curious problem when starting out. At a time when actors were neatly slotted as hero, villain and comedian, he could not find himself fitting into any. “I was too tall and well-built for comedies, too soft a face to become a villain and not conventionally good-looking for a hero,” he once said on TV. But the versatile actor, who grew up in south Mumbai playing cricket with neighbourhood kids such as Sunil Gavaskar and Sudhir Naik, did well nonetheless.
Bedi recalled that Shah was as funny off screen as on it. And that his sense of humour never left him. “Some of us went to see him when he had open-heart surgery a few months ago. We were with him for two hours. He laughed and joked, making sure that he was the centre of attention,” he said.
CM Devendra Fadnavis paid tributes to Shah, describing him as a versatile artist who left an indelible mark on Indian cinema and theatre. The CM said Shah, who passed away at 74, will be remembered for the effortless charm and authenticity he brought to every role he portrayed. “Through his natural and graceful performances, he carved a permanent place in the hearts of audiences,” Fadnavis said.
He said Shah, who had also acted in films by the late Dada Kondke, contributed to enriching Marathi cinema. “His demise has caused a great loss to the world of art. A guiding link that connected generations of artists has been severed,” the CM said.
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HINDUSTAN TIMES (October 26, 2025)
Veteran actor Satish Shah died on Saturday afternoon at Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai, following kidney failure. He was 74. The actor was known for his impeccable comic timing and iconic performances across films and television. He is survived by his wife Madhu Shah.
Trade expert Ashoke Pandit, one of the first to confirm the news on social media, wrote: “Sad and shocked to inform you that our dear friend and a great actor, Satish Shah, expired a few hours ago due to kidney failure. He was rushed to Hinduja Hospital, where he breathed his last. A great loss to our industry. Om Shanti.”
Actor-producer J D Majethia, who worked very closely with Satish in the hit sitcom Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, expressed deep grief over the actor’s passing when we reached out to him: “For me, it wasn’t just work; he was family, an elder brother to me. I just spoke with him the day before yesterday, and he was hale and hearty. He was the life of every gathering. Suddenly, I feel a vacuum around me.”
Satish began his career in the late 1970s and went on to become one of India’s most recognizable faces on screen. On TV, he is remembered for his standout performances in Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, Filmy Chakkar and Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, where his humour and timing made him a household name. In films, Satish delivered memorable roles in Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983), Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994), Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), Main Hoon Na (2004) and Om Shanti Om (2007).
Inputs by Akash Bhatnagar
There was no way I could refuse Wagle Ki Duniya-Aanjjan Srivastav
8:00 AM
Veteran actor Aanjjan Srivastav talks about shooting the new version of Kundan Shah's sitcom Wagle Ki Duniya
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; January 15, 2021)
Over three decades after his career-defining role in Wagle Ki Duniya, Aanjjan Srivastav is reliving his character in Wagle Ki Duniya - Nayi Peedhi Naye Kissey. He has started shooting for the rebooted version and hopes “it appeals to today’s youngsters and I live up to the expectations.”
At 73, Srivastav features in the upcoming Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui and in the second season of the web series, Out of Love. “I will continue acting for as long as I can,” says the actor, who was last seen on the small screen in Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha (2012). “Shooting for a daily television show is hectic,” he admits, adding that despite his “diabetes and blood pressure, I am managing”, which includes the daily commute to the set at Mira Road.
The show, penned by Aatish Kapadia and directed by Sameer Kulkarni, takes a time leap forward with the new generation of the Wagles. Besides Srivastav, the show features veteran actor Bharati Achrekar, who also featured in the original, Sumeet Raghavan, Pariva Pranati, Sheehan Kapahi and Chinmayi Salvi. “The series will continue to portray the daily life and issues of middle-class, keeping [the show’s] true essence intact,” says Srivastav, who now plays the retired Wagle with his son, played by Raghavan. “Initially, when producer J D Majethia approached me, I had my reservations about doing television again. But there was no way I could refuse Wagle Ki Duniya,” says the senior actor.
The original, which ran from 1988-90 on Doordarshan, was directed by Kundan Shah. “I had been part of his earlier sitcom, Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, which led me to be part of Wagle. Later, Kundan cast me in all his projects. I owe my career to him,” says Srivastav, adding that cartoonist-writer R K Laxman was involved at every step of the making, while V Shantaram gave claps. Among those who did a cameo in the show was Shah Rukh Khan, who agreed to be part of the sitcom while prepping for Kabhi Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa (1994).
Ananth Mahadevan's soon-to-be published book to narrate stories behind milestone TV shows
8:36 AM
Filmmaker Ananth Mahadevan’s soon-to-be-published book, Once Upon A Prime, takes us through milestone shows of Indian TV
MUMBAI MIRROR (April 29, 2020)
How Kishore came to sing for Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi
The title refrain of Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi is still high on the television memory charts. When pop star Ajit Singh composed it, S S Oberoi blew a bugle, “lets get Kishore Kumar to sing it!” Kumar, the maverick actor-singer-composer, had not stepped out of the movie circuit before. In his legendary style, without batting an eyelid, he rattled off a figure of 18,000 rupees, the fees he charged for a film song. Oberoi didn’t blink either. He could see the song playing on television every week. Over 52 episodes it would amortize to less than 4,000 rupees a week. And so, Kishore Kumar sang for television.
When Colonel Kapoor ran behind ‘Fauji’ Shah Rukh Khan with a stone
He (Director Colonel Raj Kumar Kapoor) first ran into the 23-year-old lad named Shah Rukh Khan at Gulmohar Park in New Delhi. Kapoor’s brother-in-law auditioned him along with a bunch of others, and let them loose on the training ground. The Colonel put them through a grind unfamiliar to them. Not surprisingly three of them dropped out with a curt “we haven’t come here to join the army”. Only Khan kept up with Kapoor.
It ended in a sparring match with both donning boxing gloves. “I goaded him to hit me and he finally did. I could sense his aggressive nature. It was a presence that the camera loved. My Abhimanyu Rai was born, though honestly, I hadn’t penciled him in for the part. He was a bit of a bum though, turning up late for shoots. Once I ran behind him with a stone and that put an end to his punctuality ills.”
The other ‘bums’ weren’t a piece of cake either. The Colonel had recruited a barber on the set to clip their Samson locks. Yet the cadets continued to sport long hair. “I later discovered that they were bribing the barber,” he says. Corruption had seeped into the ‘army’, courtesy the civilians.
Govind Nihalani asked Indira Gandhi for government support for Tamas
Tamas lay untouched in Nihalani’s (director Govind Nihalani) room for more than a week. He preferred to read it when he had sufficient time out from filming. When he did get down to reading it, every sentence struck him not as words, but images. Something told him ‘this is it’. He decided that he wanted to do it, but didn’t have a clue how to go about it.
It was around that time that Nihalani’s searing human drama, his first film, Aakrosh (The Cry of the Wounded) was selected in the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India, held that year in Delhi. The directors of the films screened were invited for a tête-à-tête with then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. An evening with Gandhi, however, turned into a rationed two minutes with each person.
Nihalani who was deeply under the influence of the book came straight to the point. “Madam, if a serious film were to be made on the Partition, would the government extend support?” “What do you mean by government support?” she enquired.” “The National Film Development Corporation, for instance. Regular producers do not fund this kind of film.” Gandhi instantly asked him when he wanted to make it. “It is a sensitive film. It will all depend on the political situation at that time.”
Nihalani realised that her sharp mind had taken cognizance of the Hindu-Muslim elements in the story. The communalism in the film and the country would not be without repercussions. “I realised I was sitting on a potent subject. I was certain as hell that I wanted to make the film.”
Why the Big B was apprehensive about KBC
Amitabh Bachchan’s participation in (Kaun Banega Crorepati) evoked the expected skepticism. I was privy to groups turning into all-knowing prophets of doom: “What works in formula films will not work on TV”, “Imagine diminishing his status to that of a television host”, “Did he need this at this stage of his career?”… Strangely, Bachchan himself echoed some of the sentiments “Yes, I was most apprehensive about the idea of going on to the ‘small screen’, as were most of my family members. I felt that the uncertainty of my ability to pull off something like this, was weighing more than the actual danger of reducing my size from 70mm to 21 inches. But as is with most pioneering efforts, since there were no yardsticks or examples to use for reference, I merely took the decision, and the plunge. I have never thought of myself as being in possession of any stature or for that matter being some kind of a star. I looked upon this as another job to be done and that is how I approached Kaun Banega Crorepati.”
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