Inside jokes such as this make people bond and share a laugh even today.Īs for the Indian epics, they remain timeless due to the ethical and cultural values they impart.
In Friends, when Ross says, "18 pages, front and back," referring to the long letter penned by Rachel, everybody breaks into laughter. For the 90s' generation, it was about growing up with these shows that cater to all age groups and are not bound by time. The sudden obsession with iconic shows during lockdown can be explained. Mahadev says over the past 18 months, 'comfort viewing' has emerged as a big theme on television and spotting the nostalgia content trend, the channel introduced iconic sitcoms from the 1960s to the early 2000s that included I Dream Of Jeannie, Seinfeld and Everybody Hates Chris. Friends: The Reunion, too, was telecast on Zee Cafe earlier this year. Zee was the first channel to bring Friends to India in 1999 and Zee Cafe has telecast other iconic shows like Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, Seinfield and Grey's Anatomy, among others. Post-lockdown, Mahadev says, there was a surge in TV viewership and the English genres grew by 53% ahead of overall entertainment genres on television (as per BARC data week 12-week 22). These include iconic sitcoms such as Seinfeld and I Dream of Jeannie," he shares. Zee Cafe has added over 300 hours of content post lockdown, to cater to the growth in walk-ins within the genre. "Work from home and the lack of outdoor entertainment options meant an increase in consumption of content in-home. Kartik Mahadev, business head-premium channels, ZEE, shares that at a macro level, interest in English content saw a steady increase during the lockdown. OTT platforms clocked increased demand for iconic shows. As Amazon Prime Video puts it, "in a year when people were confined to their homes and grappling with uncertainty, they provided the much-needed safe haven and escape, while bringing back fond memories of happier times". Memories were relived and refreshed as families stayed together locked up inside homes. With cinema halls closed, the audience reminisced about the good old shows of the past. The idleness, newly shifted work model from office to home and complete lockdown meant increased consumption of content. Ramayan broke the records and became the most watched show in the world with 77 million impressions on April 16, according to data from Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India, an industry body founded by organisations that represent broadcasters, advertisers and advertising and media agencies.Ī spokesperson from Amazon Prime Video, India, says 2021 can be termed as the "year of re-watching classic comedies" as there has been an uptake in audiences choosing to binge-watch classics such as The Office, Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men and Parks and Recreation, among others. The shows received immense love and popularity. This was followed by BR Chopra's Mahabharat being re-telecast. In March last year, when the lockdown was imposed, then Union minister of information and broadcasting Prakash Javadekar announced the re-run of Ramayan on Doordarshan to keep the public motivated and to encourage them to stay at home. The summer of 2020 was all about reliving the history of small screen's glorious past. For Sex and the City Reboot, fans complained about Kim Cattrall not being a part while wondering how the lives of the three other ladies would have changed in all these years.īut 2021 wasn't the year we started obsessing over shows from the past. The excitement went up so high that offices announced screening of The Reunion for employees.
While watching the former, fans cried, posted their favourite memories on social media, and watched the 'reunion' with their friends. This year, two big announcements kept entertainment aficiniados busy-that of Friends: The Reunion and Sex and the City Reboot. The summer of 2020 was all about reliving the history of small screen’s glorious past.