“Ek zamane mein TV dekhna sirf dekhna chhilo na… ekta anubhuti chhilo.”
There was a time in India when television meant togetherness.
A small box in the living room could bring an entire family to one place, at one time, with one emotion.
Now?
Each person has their own screen, own show, and own room.
From community experience to isolated consumption, here’s how TV viewing has silently lost its magic.
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🧓 1. The Era of Family Viewing: One TV, Many Emotions
In the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, the Indian living room looked like this:
7:30 PM: Dadu-Dida sat down
7:35 PM: Baba came back from work
7:45 PM: Ma finished cooking
8:00 PM: Everyone watched Ramayan, Chitrahaar, or Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi together
Even neighbors came over during Mahabharat or India vs Pakistan matches.
There was one TV. One remote. One shared laugh. One shared tear.
📌 TV was not just a device. It was a ritual.
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🪑 2. Living Room to Bedroom: The Fall of Shared Viewing
Then came:
Flat-screen TVs in every room
Laptops
Mobile phones
YouTube, Netflix, JioCinema
Now?
Baba is watching news on TV
Ma is watching Bengali serial on her phone
Chele is watching anime on laptop with headphones
Bon is busy with Instagram reels
Everyone’s watching, but no one’s watching together.
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🕹 3. The Death of Discussion: No More “Kal kya hoga?”
Remember this?
> “Kal Mihir bachte parbe?!”
“Ramayan-e ki Sita abduct hoye jabe?”
“Shaktimaan abar asbe?”
“Hatim-er next power ki?”
Next day in school, bus, or para, TV episodes were hot gossip.
Now?
No spoilers. No bonding.
Everyone’s watching at their own pace, in total silence.
📌 Television lost its power to spark collective emotion.
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📱 4. OTT Changed the Game, But Also Killed Togetherness
We love OTT. Great content, freedom, flexibility.
But OTT also made viewing:
Private
Fast-forwardable
Binge-only
Lonely
Even if you live with 6 people, you rarely watch the same thing.
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🧠 5. What We Lost Along the Way
Then Now
Family bonding Individual comfort
Discussion after show Silence after binge
Waiting for episode Skipping intros
Emotional sharing Background noise
TV = living room’s heart TV = wall decoration
