When Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah Was Rejected For 7 Years By TV Channels: “…Saas Bahu Shows Were Dominating”

Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah is the longest-running sitcom on TV. Dilip Joshi, Munmun Dutta starrer went on air back in 2008. But do you know that it took Asit Kumarr Modi as many as 7 years to find a channel to broadcast his show? Scroll below for the lesser-known details!

When did Taarak Mehta go on air?

Many would know that TMKOC is based on the weekly column Duniya Ne Undha Chasma, which used to be a part of the Chitralekha magazine. With the OG cast featuring Dilip Joshi, Disha Vakani, and Shailesh Lodha, among others, it premiered on Sony Sab in July 2008. It has garnered cult-classic status over the years.

When TMKOC was rejected by channels

Many wouldn’t know that the journey to take Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah from magazine to TV wasn’t easy. Asit Kumarr Modi once revealed to Bombay Times, “Originally, it was a column in a Gujarati magazine and I bought its rights in 2001. I approached every channel, but the trend of daily soaps had just started and saas-bahu shows were dominating the scene. Whoever I approached said there was no scope for comedy everyday. But I had a feeling that one day comedies, too, would become a daily trend. Finally in 2008, Taarak Mehta… came on air.”