I am the quintessential kid from the 90s. I have done it all...big hair, boxy shirts, ill fitting pants, scary make up,..I grew up on Doordarshan fodder for a greater part of my life. So while Shoba De's "Swabhiman" was suave and sophistication, "Shanti" was modern and "Tehkikaat" was masala that we would discuss during the next day at school lunch. And these were weeklies, so imagine if we had a power cut or some other event that prevented us from watching it for one weelk, the anticipation and build up to next week's episode was nail biting. And all this changed when we got cable at home.
The first thing that changed was, of course, the number of channels. So while Doordarshan would have "Krishi Darshan" at 6 p.m. we were now spoilt for choice. Sitcoms started taking over our lives. And one of the first ones that we were addicted to was "Friends".
I think for the quintessential Indian Teenager from the 90s, "Friends" was a coming of age. There was humor that was not always politically correct. There was a lot of adult comedy which were until then totally kept away from in popular media. And it showcased a new and independent way of life, a very American view of things. So until then, Swabhimaan or Hum Paanch was about youngsters and their families and their relationships, "Friends" was lighter in the sense that, it was about just routine everyday stuff. It showed us that we did not have to grow up into a life that our parents grew up into. You could date friends, go out for coffee breaks, take intelligent decisions on your own and just have a great time all the time. The humour in "Friends" was fun and light. Certainly not high brow and definitely not crass. We gave it ten good years of our adolescent years.
The comedy sitcoms we see today all seem to sort of jump off from where "Friends" left us. And truly when today, like all things in the past, revisiting old episodes doesn't hold the same magic. For the magic was from the time and age it was..a simpler life and a simpler time.. Today there is adult comedy everywhere..a lot of grown ups making sarcastic jokes and pulling each other's legs..a lot of dysfunctional adults on television..but the time and age has passed and nothing touches your heart..Goodbye Ross, Rachel, Phoebe, Joey, Monica and Chandler. It was fantastic while it lasted!