Khichdi (franchise)
The Khichdi franchise is a Hindi language franchise of television series and films created by Hats Off Productions and UTV Software Communications, written and directed by Aatish Kapadia. It is one of the earliest franchises on Indian Television to adopt the western model of appearing in seasons and also the first Indian television series to be adapted into a Bollywood film series.
| Khichdi franchise | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Hats Off Productions |
| Original work | Khichdi |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) | Khichdi: The Movie (2010) Khichdi 2: Mission Paanthukistan (2023) |
| Television series | Khichdi Instant Khichdi Khichdi Returns |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Years | 2002–present |
| Developed by | Aatish Kapadia Jamnadas Majethia |
| Directed by | Aatish Kapadia Deven Bhojani |
| Main cast | Supriya Pathak Rajeev Mehta Anang Desai Vandana Pathak Jamnadas Majethia |
The franchise began as a weekly sitcom, debuting its first season on 10 September 2002 on Star Plus. The principal cast, consisting of actors Supriya Pathak, Rajeev Mehta, Anang Desai, and Vandana Pathak, was joined by Jamnadas Majethia who also served as a co-producer of the series alongside Kapadia. It was succeeded by a direct continuation called Instant Khichdi that aired on Star Plus's sister channel, Star One.
In 2010, the franchise was rebooted and adapted into a full-length feature film titled Khichdi: The Movie, with most of the main cast reprising their roles from the television series. 8 years later, the franchise returned with a third season (another soft reboot with the same main cast) as a prime-time weekend show on Star Plus and then on streaming platform Hotstar. A direct sequel to the first film, titled Khichdi 2: Mission Paanthukistan, released in 2023.
Over the years, the franchise has seen several re-airings on Star Plus and its affiliated channels like Pogo, Star Utsav, Star Bharat etc and has garnered a cult following.