On Monday nights, StarWorld airs five sitcoms starting 9PM. Of these five, Home Improvement (HI), Dharma and Greg (DG) and Caroline in the city (CC) are great. I find Mr. Bean and It's a Man's World ordinary though there are people who can't wait to even watch Mr. Bean.

The point here is that I can't wait to get home to see these sitcoms. Last Monday, we ran away from a party just to get back home in time for DG. (Why I didn't tape it, I don't know, but I didn't even think about that). Both DG and CC are whacky, funny, have great production values and have terrific one-liners and dialogues that make you laugh all the time. More importantly, I feel like coming back for more and just can't wait for the sitcoms to be aired the next week.

Which local sitcoms leave me wanting more ? None. Some years ago, Dekh Bhai Dekh (DBD) and Zabaan Sambhal Ke (a Mind your Language rip-off) made me feel that way. They were good. Today, I can't seem to find a single sitcom that would make me feel bad, if I missed an episode or two. Most of them are loud and noisy and slapstick rules over funny dialogues. Even if an episode have some funny lines, the rest of the episode either leaves me cold or makes me cringe. Chamatkar, Baat Ban Jaye, Hudd Kar Dee... the list is endless.

Why can't we make good local sitcoms? Maybe part of the reason is our inability to laugh at ourselves. An attitude that severely restricts the playing field - no sexual jokes, no religion-based jokes, no attacks on specific ethnic groups, no politician-based jokes (unless they are generic or involve Laloo Prasad). Most Westerns sitcoms, especially the American ones, usually have a no-holds barred attitude towards who and what they can target. Even though a lot is made about being politically correct, they still do get away making fun of virtually anything and everything. On the other hand, if we have to look behind our backs every time wondering who we are offending, it probably does get tough writing funny lines.

The other reason probably, is the absence of the concept of seasons. Most American sitcoms run for a maximum of 26 episodes a year. The rest of the year is spent doing other things, thinking up new episodes, relaxing, rejuvenating, whatever. This helps. Here, we go on and on and on... and I am sure at some time even the funniest script-writer goes cold.

I'd love to know of good Hindi sitcoms if they exist. But hey, before recommending any, have a look at DG and CC if you haven't, to understand the difference. It's a pity that Seinfeld and Frasier are not being aired - these are even funnier.

Next Monday, don't miss........ on Star World.......