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Sitcom Nostalgia: Sarabhai to Khichdi

This Hindi sitcom quiz brings back Maya Sarabhai, Praful, Musaddilal and the Mathurs of Hum Paanch, with 15 questions on classic TV comedy from Doordarshan to the 2000s.

15 questionsMedium~3 minNo timer

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About this Hindi Sitcom quiz

This Hindi sitcom quiz is a trip back through Indian TV comedy: the Doordarshan years of Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi and Flop Show, the 1990s hits on Zee and Star, and the 2000s classics Khichdi, Office Office and Sarabhai vs Sarabhai. The 15 questions are about characters, catchphrases, families and the people who made the shows.

It suits anyone who grew up with these shows or has binged them since on streaming. Played in a group, it tends to start arguments about the best Praful line or Maya's sharpest put-down, which is half the point. Each answer has a short note with an extra detail.

Hindi sitcoms began on Doordarshan in the mid-1980s, when one channel meant the whole country watched the same comedy on the same night. Private channels in the 1990s brought more family comedies, and the 2000s produced the shows whose clips and memes still travel widely online.

Hindi Sitcom questions with answers

Show answers

  1. Maya Sarabhai's favourite insult is 'middle class'. Which bahu hears it most?

    • Sonia
    • Dushyant
    • Rosesh
    • Monisha

    Answer: Monisha. Monisha, Sahil's wife, whose thrifty ways drive Maya up the wall.

  2. A future Bollywood heroine got her first acting role as bespectacled Radhika in Hum Paanch. Who?

    • Rani Mukerji
    • Tabu
    • Vidya Balan
    • Konkona Sen Sharma

    Answer: Vidya Balan. Vidya Balan, in the first season of Hum Paanch.

  3. Musaddilal just wants his work done, and every babu wants a bribe. Who played him in Office Office?

    A large cream-coloured government building with a flag on its roof and palm trees in front, behind a black iron fence.
    Photo: Archies2804, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
    • Raghubir Yadav
    • Pankaj Kapur
    • Farooq Shaikh
    • Om Puri

    Answer: Pankaj Kapur. Pankaj Kapur, in the SAB TV satire that premiered in 2001.

  4. In Khichdi, Praful's 'meanings' of English words are always wrong. Who keeps asking him?

    • Chakki
    • Babuji
    • Hansa
    • Jayshree

    Answer: Hansa. Hansa, his wife, and his wild explanations became the show's signature joke.

  5. Maya Sarabhai's actor has a real-life younger sister who played Hansa in Khichdi. Who is she?

    • Supriya Pathak
    • Vandana Pathak
    • Supriya Pilgaonkar
    • Rupali Ganguly

    Answer: Supriya Pathak. Supriya Pathak, sister of Ratna Pathak Shah. In 2020 the two reprised Maya and Hansa together in a crossover promo for the shows' re-runs.

  6. Chandigarh-made Flop Show poked fun at the system on Doordarshan. Who wrote, directed and starred?

    A bare concrete modernist building with a huge curved roof, reflected in a long green pool.
    Photo: duncid, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
    • Johnny Lever
    • Jaspal Bhatti
    • Satish Kaushik
    • Shekhar Suman

    Answer: Jaspal Bhatti. Jaspal Bhatti, with his wife Savita Bhatti producing and acting.

  7. The Sarabhais returned in 2017 for 'Take 2'. Which platform streamed it?

    • Netflix
    • Hotstar
    • Amazon Prime Video
    • ZEE5

    Answer: Hotstar. Hotstar, with the original cast, picking up seven years after the first run.

  8. Anand Mathur's late first wife still talks to him in Hum Paanch. From where?

    • Through her portrait on the wall
    • Through the radio
    • Through a pet parrot
    • In his dreams only

    Answer: Through her portrait on the wall. Her portrait on the living-room wall, which keeps talking back to him.

  9. A Bachchan produced the 90s sitcom Dekh Bhai Dekh. Which one?

    • Hema Malini
    • Jaya Bachchan
    • Amitabh Bachchan
    • Dimple Kapadia

    Answer: Jaya Bachchan. Jaya Bachchan, with Anand Mahendroo directing the Diwan family's chaos.

  10. The Sarabhai home sits in which upmarket South Mumbai neighbourhood?

    • Malabar Hill
    • Bandra
    • Juhu
    • Cuffe Parade

    Answer: Cuffe Parade. Cuffe Parade, the right address for Maya's high-society ways.

  11. Maya's darling son recites dreadful poems in a squeaky voice and dreams of acting. Who plays Rosesh?

    • Sumeet Raghavan
    • Deven Bhojani
    • Rajeev Mehta
    • Rajesh Kumar

    Answer: Rajesh Kumar. Rajesh Kumar. Sumeet Raghavan plays Sahil, and Deven Bhojani, who plays Dushyant, also directed the show.

  12. Hum Paanch, with its five squabbling daughters, was the first big hit for which producer, years before her saas-bahu empire?

    • Ekta Kapoor
    • Rajan Shahi
    • Siddharth Kumar Tewary
    • Sandiip Sikand

    Answer: Ekta Kapoor. Ekta Kapoor. The Zee TV sitcom began in 1995 and helped establish both Balaji Telefilms and the channel.

  13. Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Khichdi both came from Hats Off Productions, run by JD Majethia and which writer-director?

    • Deven Bhojani
    • Rajan Shahi
    • Aatish Kapadia
    • Anand Mahendroo

    Answer: Aatish Kapadia. Aatish Kapadia, who wrote both shows. Majethia also acted in Khichdi as Himanshu.

  14. He played a new character in almost every episode of Doordarshan's Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, from plumber to burglar. Two decades later he was Maya's prankster husband. Who?

    • Shafi Inamdar
    • Rakesh Bedi
    • Paresh Rawal
    • Satish Shah

    Answer: Satish Shah. Satish Shah, who later played Indravadan Sarabhai. He died in 2025, aged 74.

  15. Reema Lagoo's saas and Supriya Pilgaonkar's bahu bickered with hidden affection in which 1994 sitcom?

    • Shrimaan Shrimati
    • Zabaan Sambhalke
    • Tu Tu Main Main
    • Ghar Jamai

    Answer: Tu Tu Main Main. Tu Tu Main Main, directed by Supriya's husband Sachin Pilgaonkar. It began on DD Metro and later moved to Star Plus.

Frequently asked questions

Which was India's first TV sitcom?

Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, which began on Doordarshan in 1984, is usually called India's first sitcom. It followed a middle-class Bombay couple, played by Shafi Inamdar and Swaroop Sampat, and their visitors.

Which channel first aired Sarabhai vs Sarabhai?

Sarabhai vs Sarabhai first ran on STAR One from 2004 to 2006. It was directed by Deven Bhojani and produced by Hats Off Productions.

Do I need to have watched every show to play this sitcom quiz?

No. Each question gives a clue about the character or story, so even if you only know Sarabhai vs Sarabhai or Khichdi you can work out several of the others.