Taarak Mehta

Taarak Janubhai Mehta was an Indian columnist, humorist, writer and playwright who is best known for the column Duniya Ne Undha Chasma. He had translated and adapted several comedies into Gujarati, and had been well-known figure in the Gujarati theatre.

The humorous weekly column first appeared in Chitralekha in March 1971 and ever since has been looking at contemporary issues from a different perspective. He had published 80 books, over the years, three books are based on the columns he wrote in Gujarati newspaper Divya Bhaskar while rest were compiled from the stories in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah.

In 2008 SAB TV, a popular entertainment channel in India, started a sitcomTaarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah that is based on his column, and soon it became the flagship show of the channel. Actor Shailesh Lodha portrays him in the show.

Taarak Janubhai Mehta died at the age of 87 years on 1 March 2017 after prolonged illness. His family had donated his body for medical research.

Taarak Mehta belonged to Gujarati Jain community. He lived in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, where he moved in 2000, with his second wife, Indu, of over 30 years. His first wife, Ila who later married Manohar Doshi, (died 2006), also stayed in the same apartment building. He has a daughter from his first marriage, Eshani, who stays in the United States, and has two children, Kushaan and Shailee.

He was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 2015. Gujarat Sahitya Akademi awarded him Sahitya Gaurav Puraskar in 2011 and Ramanlal Nilkanth Hasya Paritoshik (posthumously) in 2017.