On his birth annivarsary, we decided to take a look back at one of our favourite talk shows in the history of Indian television, Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai. It’s a show that has some fabulous nostalgia value, and one that should make a comeback soon. What separates its format from other talk shows is that the host calls up people important in the celebrity’s life like their school friends or teachers to spill the beans. Farooq’s genuine interest in the lives of the celebrities, his warm demeanour, his humility and his impeccable research are some things that gives the show great repeat value. 

Other than the show, Farooq is also known for his roles in films like Garam Hawa, Umrao Jaan and Chashme Buddoor. 

Farooq had some interesting ideas about television, as he revealed in an interview with Mamun Adil, “What you have to be on guard against in television is overexposure. You are shown two to three times a week or more on TV and people might get sick of you easily. Additionally, the reach of TV is probably 10 times more than cinema and 200 times than that of theatre. And that is an advantage of sorts. But the upside of TV, to be honest, is the fact that that it generates a lot of money in a shorter period of time. So the temptation is always there but it can lead to overexposure and eventually, a downfall.”

To mark his birth anniversary, let’s take a look at some of his episodes.

Shah Rukh Khan

Sanjay Dutt

Aishwarya Rai

Lalu Prasad Yadav

Sourav Ganguly

Image source: Screengrab