‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’ reboot sets record with over 1 billion watch minutes in debut week

The return of the iconic daily soap "Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi" has proven to be a television phenomenon, clocking an impressive 1.659 billion watch minutes across TV and streaming platforms in its launch week, Star Plus announced yesterday.

Created by Ektaa Kapoor, the show's second season premiered on July 29 and drew 31.1 million TV viewers in just four days, with 15.4 million tuning in for the premiere episode alone. This marks the highest-rated fiction launch in recent years across general entertainment channels (GECs) and the biggest-ever GEC fiction debut on both television and digital platforms in India.

The reboot also topped the Broadcast Audience Research Council of India's (BARC) weekly TRP charts, tying with "Anupamaa" at 2.3, ahead of "Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai" (2.0), "Laughter Chefs" (2.0), and "Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah" (1.9).

In this revival of the early 2000s prime-time classic, actor-turned-politician Smriti Irani returns as the beloved Tulsi Virani, alongside a blend of returning cast members and new faces.

"The show's record-breaking performance underscores the enduring power of great storytelling," said Sumanta Bose, head of Cluster, Entertainment (Star Plus and Bharat, Bengali, Marathi and Gujarati), JioStar. "We set out to spark nostalgia while offering a modern narrative that speaks to today's audience, and the response has been overwhelming."

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The reboot also made waves online, generating over 17,300 social media mentions during launch week.