Kasautii Zindagii Kay

Plot

Anurag and Prerna fall in love, but fate repeatedly separates them. Komolika and Rishabh Bajaj play a vital catalyst in the story. Spanning eighty years, the story revolves around Anurag, Prerna and their children, Prem and Sneha, and eventually their grandchildren.

Cast

Main

Shweta Tiwari as Prerna Sharma: Veena and Rajesh's daughter; Shekhar, Shivani, Mitali and Mahesh's sister; Anurag's ex-wife; Bajaj's wife; Prem, Sneha, Jr. Prem and Kasak's mother; Vishakha, Tushar and Kukki’s adoptive mother (2001–2008)

Cezanne Khan / Hiten Tejwani as Anurag Basu: Mohini and Moloy's son; Nivedita, Rakhi and Tapur's brother; Prerna's ex-husband; Komolika and Aparna's ex-husband; Sampada's widower; Prem, Sneha and Jr. Prem's father; Shravan's adoptive father (2001–2007) / (2007–2008)

Urvashi Dholakia as Komolika Majumdar: Uma's daughter; Subroto's wife; Anurag and Akash's ex-wife; Prem and Shravan's foster mother (2001–2008)

Ronit Roy as Rishabh Bajaj: Mahesh's brother; Menka's widower; Prerna's husband; Vishakha, Tushar, Kukki, Tanisha and Kasak's father; Sneha's adoptive father (2002–2008)

Recurring

Deepak Qazir as Moloy Basu – Pranay and Sanjay's brother; Mohini's husband; Rakhi, Nivedita, Anurag and Tapur's father; Prem, Diya, Sneha and Jr. Prem's grandfather (2001–2005) (deceased)

Kannu Gill as Mohini Basu – Moloy's wife; Rakhi, Nivedita, Anurag and Tapur's mother; Prem, Diya, Sneha and Jr. Prem's grandmother; Shravan's adoptive grandmother (2001–2008)

Yatin Karyekar as Pranay Basu – Moloy and Sanjay's brother; Yamini's husband; Subroto, Anirudh and Kajol's father (2001–2003)

Niyati Joshi as Yamini Basu – Pranay's wife; Subroto, Anirudh and Kajol's mother (2001–2006)

Naveen Saini as Sanjay Basu – Moloy and Pranay's brother; Geeta's husband; Samay and Shulabh's father (2001–2005)

Monica Pradhan / Jayati Bhatia as Geeta Basu – Sanjay's wife; Samay and Shulabh's mother (2001–2006)

Poonam Narula / Smita Bansal as Nivedita Basu Sengupta – Moloy and Mohini's second daughter; Rakhi, Anurag and Tapur's sister; Anupam's wife (2001–2003) / (2006)

Prachi Thakker as Rakhi Basu Sengupta – Moloy and Mohini's eldest daughter; Nivedita, Anurag and Tapur's sister; Praveen's wife; Diya's mother (2001–2007)

Aparna Jaywant as Tapur Basu – Moloy and Mohini's youngest daughter; Anurag, Nivedita and Rakhi's sister (2001–2003)

Manish Goel / Hiten Paintal as Anupam Sengupta – Chaini's second son; Praveen and Indraneel's brother; Nivedita's husband (2001–2003) / (2006)

Manav Gohil / Tarun Khanna as Praveen Sengupta – Chaini's eldest son; Anupam and Indraneel's brother; Rakhi's husband; Diya's father (2001–2004)

Production

Development

Ekta Kapoor stated that Anurag was named after her director friend, while Prerna was named after the daughter of her father's friend, actor Prem Chopra.

The series was primarily filmed on sets at Balaji House. In 2003 sets shifted into Sankraman Studio set number 11A and after leaps in 2007 shifted into Killick Nixon Studio, set number 7B in Mumbai.

In early 2003, a special sequence was shot in Australia.

In October 2003, the series featured a crossover episode with Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand, adding a unique twist to the storyline.

In 2005, several episodes of the series (Episodes 708 to 721) were filmed in Singapore and Malaysia, adding an international flavor to the narrative due to the show's popularity in those countries.

In 2007, Cezanne Khan, who portrayed Anurag Basu, was replaced by Hiten Tejwani in the series.

Cancellation

In November 2007, it was confirmed that Kasautii Zindagii Kay would go off-air in January 2008. However, the series eventually ended on 28 February 2008. Speaking about the conclusion of the show, Kapoor stated, "I won't deny that the TRPs of Kasautii Zindagii Kay had gone down quite a bit, and moreover, I didn't have a story to tell."

Reboot series

A reboot of the show, also titled Kasautii Zindagii Kay, aired on StarPlus from 25 September 2018 to 3 October 2020. However, unlike the original series, the reboot did not sustain the expected ratings. This reboot was also remade in the Kannada language on Star Suvarna, titled Premloka.

Reception

Critics

Rediff.com praised the show, stating: "One nice thing about Kasautii Zindagii Kay is that all characters in the serial are very strong. Be it the protagonists or antagonists, every character stands on firm ground."

Ratings

Kasautii Zindagii Kay became the third-longest-running and top-rated Hindi GEC (General Entertainment Channel) series after Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii—all three produced by Balaji Telefilms. The show recorded one of the highest TRPs, helping StarPlus maintain its leading position in channel ratings.

The series started with an average rating of 4.44, which grew in subsequent years—achieving average TRPs of 7.51 in 2002, 8.83 in 2003, and 9.14 in 2004. By 18 November 2003, Kasautii garnered a 9.9 TVR, placing it in third position. The crossover episode with Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand in October 2003 further boosted its ratings, garnering over 14 TVR.

In 2005, the show maintained its third position with a 10.93 TVR, but in the following year, it saw a slight drop to 8.78 TVR, though it retained its ranking.

By the second week of January 2007, the show continued to hold third place, albeit with a reduced rating of 5.6 TVR.

Despite being one of the top-rated Indian television series and maintaining its position among the top ten programs until 2008, Kasautii dropped to eleventh position in January 2008, after which it was soon cancelled.

Soundtrack

The Kasautii Zindagii Kay soundtrack has recorded more than hundred tracks during its airing from 2001 to 2008 and won several awards. The tracks include versions of Bollywood hit songs Kya Pyaar Karoge Mujhse, Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh, Hum Bewafa Hargiz Na Thay, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Jiyen To Jiyen Kaisy and Do Ajnabi Kidar Ja Rahy Hain.