Producer JD Majethia, who is coming back with his hit show "Khichdi", says it is difficult to make sequels but the team has worked hard to tickle the funny bone of the audience once again. One of the most popular shows of Indian television, "Khichdi" will go on air from April 14 on Star Plus.
The news comes after Majethia brought back his another cult show "Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai", on streaming service Hotstar last year. "Sequels are not easy as they have already set the benchmark. Both Aatish Kapadia (director) and I took a call that if we are bringing "Sarabhai..." and "Khichdi" again, we will have to work hard a lot on the script.
"Initially when the promo of "Khichdi" was out, there was nervousness. Once we got a positive response from the audience, the nervousness went away," Majethia told reporters here at the press conference.
"Khichdi" follows the story of the Parekhs, a middle-class Gujarati family that lives in an old mansion.
A bunch of cameo appearances by actors such as Ratna Pathak Shah, Renuka Shahane, and Deepshika Nagpal among others is a new element added to the show.
"Khichdi" is returning with the original cast - Supriya Pathak, Vandana Pathak, Anang Desai and Rajeev Mehta, along with Majethia - with one-hour long 20 episodes being planned to be aired over the weekends.
"We all wanted to be part of the show again. When the offer came again, I just jumped at it. I was missing playing the part of Hansa," Pathak said about her much-loved part who is lazy and foolish.
"When we started work on the show, I easily got into the character of Hansa. I feel she is inside me," she added.
While Vandana said she was initially a bit nervous to essay the role of Jayshree, the gossip queen daughter-in-law. But once she got into her avatar, it was easy.
Mehta, who plays Hansa's husband Praful, the notoriously stupid son, credits Kapadia for creating this character.
On the other hand, Kapadia is all praises for his cast.
He said, "Comedy is all about getting the timing right, especially when you are on stage. But in TV shows, comedy is about chemistry and it should be there between the actors... The timing is made by director and editors."
"Khichdi" debuted on Star Plus in 2002, while its second season, "Instant Khichdi" aired on Star Plus's sister channel, Star One in 2005.
A film based on the series, titled "Khichdi: The Movie", was released in 2010 with the principal cast. It became the first Indian TV series to get a film adaptation.
(With PTI Inputs)
