TMKOC Producer Asit Modi Decries Focus on Religion, Caste

Mumbai: Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah producer Asit Kumarr Modi has expressed disappointment over what he describes as society’s growing obsession with religion, caste and language, arguing that people should identify themselves as Indians first to foster harmony and strengthen community living.

Speaking exclusively to IANS, Modi said divisions in society were increasing. “Today, whenever we meet someone, the first questions are: ‘Which religion do you belong to? What is your caste? Which community do you belong to? What language do you speak?’ I always say that if we first say, ‘I am an Indian,’ then this problem will be solved and everyone will be able to live together,” he said.

He reflected on his childhood in Mumbai’s chawls, where neighbours were treated like family. “In my childhood, and even in Dilip (Joshi) bhai’s childhood, we lived in a chawl system. In Mumbai, whether it was Bhuleshwar, Kalbadevi or Dadar, we all lived in chawls. The neighbours became our family because the houses were small. There wasn’t the concept of a nuclear family in the way we see it today. Even today, I am connected with the neighbours I had when I was six or seven years old,” he said.

Community living, he added, teaches people to let go of many things and to coexist. “Community living is a very important thing, and today I feel it is extremely important for our country.” He stressed compassion and togetherness: celebrating festivals together, speaking to neighbours with kindness, and forgiving mistakes—much as the character Jethalal does on the show—so that people can live with love.

Modi also noted that modern lifestyles have distanced people from those around them. “Today, people don’t even know who lives in the neighbouring house. Many don’t even speak to the watchman or the lift operator with a smile. We should be grateful to the watchman, the liftman and everyone who serves us. Our neighbour is our first family. Our neighbour is everything,” he said.

He said the message of Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah had inspired some real communities. People had told him they were motivated by the show to build colonies in a similar spirit, and he had been invited to visit one such colony in Rajkot. “We should all think about how we can live together. Even if there are differences of opinion, we should not get into arguments. We all need to think about how we can coexist peacefully,” he said.

Modi’s comments linked the ethos of his long-running sitcom with a broader call for everyday neighbourliness and a shared national identity over narrower social markers.