Dilip Joshi On Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah's 16th Anniversary: 'I Will Watch The First Episode'

The beloved TV show Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah recently celebrated 16 years since its first episode aired. Known for its delightful humour, the show has become a staple in Indian households for over a decade. To mark this milestone, fan favourite Jethalal, portrayed by Dilip Joshi, hosted a special Instagram live session on Instagram and engaged with his fans.

During the session, Dilip Joshi recalled the moment when he was cast as Jethalal. He mentioned his initial meeting with producer Asit Modi which led to the start of their filming adventure. “I wanted to meet you all today. Exactly 16 years ago, in 2008, our first episode of Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah was aired. I still remember that day when Asit Bhai called me to his office for Jethalal’s role. And after that conversation, we began shooting, and today, we have completed 16 years. I cannot believe that even today, we are receiving the same amount of love for the show,” he said.

He further expressed his gratitude to Asit Modi for “giving him” the role of Jethalal, which allowed him to showcase his talents and entertain viewers over the past 16 years. He also extended his thanks to the show’s team and the loyal audience for their continued support.

Dilip Joshi shared that he is currently in America and mentioned that he is missing the team deeply. He extended his gratitude to them for being part of the 16-year journey. “I hope the team is missing me there because I am dearly missing them here. I would like to thank them all, we have mapped this 16-year-long journey together and entertained the viewers,” he said.

“All those cast members who aren’t with us now, I am missing them all in this celebration. I hope that they are all doing good,” he further added.

Joshi also shared his plans to celebrate the anniversary by watching the show’s very first episode. “Mann kar raha hai ki (I feel like), I should watch the first episode of the show. So, once I am done with this live session, I will sit and watch the first episode of the show and revisit all those memories that I made on the show. That first day of our shoot, it was incredible,” he said.

Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah is inspired by the weekly column Duniya Ne Undha Chasma written by Tarak Mehta for the magazine Chitralekha. The show first aired on July 28, 2008.