You see 25 years of memories giving you a jolt. It’s a moment of cherish and celebration for the stars and the fans too. It was a wait for long. And now the wait is over. The first episode has aired, and Smriti Irani as Tulsi gives you the warmest welcome as she did 25 years back. The fuse is perfect.
Tulsi remains the remarkably pious woman. Who believes ‘Tulsi Maiyya’ will always protect the family. Shield them from all the odds. We see a devoted Tulsi aka Smriti Irani right at the beginning. She is immersed as she ignites her prayers to plant. Soon after, she lingers the moment and lets us all in Shantiniketan.
The iconic Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi theme song makes a nostalgic return as new characters are introduced, including Aman Gandhi as Ritik, Rohit Suchanti as Angad, and Shagun Sharma as Paridhi. Familiar faces from the earlier season—Hiten Tejwani, Gauri Pradhan, Ritu Chaudhary, Ketki Dave, Shakti Anand, among others—continue their roles, maintaining a strong connection to the show’s legacy.
25 years later, Tulsi and Mihir are celebrating their 38th marriage anniversary. That’s the establishment of the first episode. Tulsi is shown diligently managing all the household chores. The atmosphere looks festive, with her children arriving to celebrate the big moment. A gorgeous reunion you feel in your nerves, right there.
What I loved is how Ekta Kapoor’s show intersects the change of time. At one point, Tulsi tells Daksha (Ketki Dave) that she shall go fetch her newspaper. Later, with a smartphone in hand, tells ‘who reads newspapers nowadays? Look at the kind of gossip I get to read on social media. So, you catch onto evolution.
I see nothing overly done in terms to make the characters look obnoxiously young, or something or dramatically altered just for effect. The show makers have handled the aging of characters with subtlety and grace, allowing them to evolve naturally, rather than forcing a polished nostalgia.
However, one can’t help but notice Mihir (Amar Upadhyay) — he genuinely looks like he hasn’t aged a day. There’s an ease in his presence, and a charm that still holds the screen with effortless grace. It’s almost as if time has simply paused for him, making his return feel both surreal and comforting.
There’s drama, yes, with Gayatri. She summons a ‘storm’ in Tulsi’s life. And it’s an impending one, definitely. And that’s what we await in the next episode.
This is precisely what makes the revival of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi so tuning. It doesn’t just revisit old memories; it honours them while carefully weaving in the rhythm of the present. Every dialogue, every character dynamic feels authentic, not forced—rooted in legacy yet refreshed with intention.
Unlike many reboots that chase reinvention, Kyunki stays true to its essence. It doesn’t try to dazzle; it chooses to resonate. And that’s exactly why its return feels so powerful. It reminds us that some stories don’t need to change completely to stay timeless. They just need to come back home.
In short, it leans to its soul.
IWMBuzz rates it 4 out of 5 stars.
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi airs on Star Plus.
