Seventeen years after its original run, the iconic daily soap Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi has returned to television screens—along with Smriti Irani, who played the unforgettable Tulsi Virani. In a new interview with Times Now, Smriti opened up about the unlikely beginnings of the show and how it went on to reshape Indian television.

Irani revealed that when Kyunki first aired in 2000, it wasn’t exactly given a warm welcome. “The story was pushed into a bizarre late-night slot because a female producer was deeply passionate about it,” she shared. At the time, Star Plus had already reserved the 9 PM prime-time slot for another big show. “There was a huge gap between that show and ours,” she added, recalling the uphill battle they faced.

Despite the odds, Kyunki went on to create television history. “People say history doesn’t repeat itself, but we did. We made it happen again,” Smriti remarked in Hindi. She noted that very few shows today have the kind of longevity and cultural impact that Kyunki did. “To have something remembered and revived 25 years later—that’s rare.”

The show originally followed the life of Tulsi Virani, the ideal daughter-in-law in the wealthy Virani family, as she navigated emotional family dynamics, moral conflicts, and traditional expectations. With its melodrama, generational feuds, and saas-bahu tensions, the show set the template for a whole genre of Indian TV.

Running for eight years, Kyunki turned its cast into household names. Now, the reboot brings Smriti Irani and Amar Upadhyay back into the spotlight, along with actors like Hiten Tejwani, Gauri Pradhan, Rohit Suchanti, Shagun Sharma, Aman Gandhi, Tanisha Mehta, Ankit Bhatia, and Prachi Singh. The series is now streaming on JioCinema and airing on StarPlus.

From an “odd slot” gamble to a game-changing classic, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi proves that great storytelling finds its audience—no matter the hour.