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Ketaki Dave is ‘Kyunki’s’ third anniversary surprise
MUMBAI: After a fracas with Balaji Telefilms creative head Ektaa Kapoor two years ago, Ketaki Dave made a dramatic exit from Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu. Now get set for a not-quite-so-dramatic re-entry.
Owing to writer Rajesh Joshi’s efforts (and slipping TRPs?) the “misunderstandings” have been sorted out. So Ketaki Dave, the ‘a ra ra ra’ fame Daksha chachi, will be rejoining the Kyunkii… team on 3 July, coinciding with the daily soap’s third anniversary celebrations.
Prior to the 20-year fast forward revamp of television’s reigning soap, Dave had made a hasty exit. While her character was the only comic relief in the emotion heavy storyine, all attempts made thereafter to introduce a comedy track did not go down too well with audiences. The return of Dave could well be just what the TRP doctor ordered for the Hindi entertainment television’s former No. 1 soap.
Says Joshi about dave’s imminent return: “She is a brilliant performer and after her superb Daksha act audiences just refused to lap up anything that fell short of the standards she had set.”
And why has he been playing the peacemaker? “I had to solve the problem, Ketaki is a very good friend and so are Kapoors. While I had been speaking to both for some time, both Ektaa and Ketaki reconciled three months back,” he said. When asked why was it kept hidden from the press, he said: “If we were getting back it had to be in a big way. Since she was coming to India after a shooting schedule abroad only on 28 Jun, we planned her entry into the show on 3 July coinciding with the third anniversary date of Kyunki…” Joshi, however, remained tight lipped when asked how he plans to re-introduce Dave’s character ‘Daksha chachi’.
Anuj Saxena
Meanwhile, another actor to make a re-entry in a Balaji soap is Anuj Saxena aka Abhay in Sony’s Kkusum. Saxena had left the show earlier this year to pursue his movie career. The production house therefore roped in Rohit Roy to play Abhay. Just as luck would have it, Saxena returned to Mumbai after wrapping up a film shoot just around the time that Rohit went abroad to shoot for his own Bollywood project.
Rohit Roy
Says Ektaa Kapoor: “We had an important schedule coming up but Rohit had to go abroad owing to a previous movie commitment. So I had no option but to call in somebody else to fill in his shoes, luckily for me Anuj was in town. He is a dear friend so he agreed to join back the cast.” Putting at rest any talk of ego problems or some such, Kapoor asserted, “Rohit is a wonderful guy and good actor, I wouldn’t have replaced him hadn’t it been for his previous commitments.”
While Kyunki… was Star Plus’ top show till very recently, Kkusum is SET’s top soap. With both the shows reinstating pivotal characters, all eyes (the more the better) will be on whether the two make a difference to their respective shows’ fortunes.
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WITT Summit 2026 concludes in New Delhi
Babar Azam’s comical diving attempt goes viral as league introduces anti-dew measures.
MUMBAI: The WITT Summit just wrapped up with enough big ideas to fill a policy playbook because when India’s leaders, thinkers and icons gather under one roof, even the conversations hit sixes. The eighth edition of TV9 Network’s flagship What India Thinks Today (WITT) Summit 2026 concluded on Saturday after two days of dynamic discussions at its New Delhi venue. India’s largest multi-domain public policy and culture summit brought together political leaders, policymakers, sports icons, artists and technology innovators to examine the forces shaping contemporary India and its global standing.
Prime minister Narendra Modi delivered the keynote address on the theme “India and the World” for the third consecutive year. In a wide-ranging speech, he addressed the ongoing conflict in West Asia, calling for restraint and compassion while highlighting India’s continued development trajectory despite global turmoil.
The summit featured candid conversations with state leaders. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy articulated a people-first governance model and contrasted it with other development approaches. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav declared that Left-wing extremism had been effectively eliminated in his state and highlighted preparations for the upcoming Kumbh Mela. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann defended his government’s record, citing the closure of 19 toll plazas and creation of the Sadak Suraksha Force. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar expressed confidence in Congress prospects in Assam and addressed recent allegations against him.
On geopolitics and national security, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia outlined India’s ambition to become a builder of trusted digital infrastructure for the world, citing the rapid 5G rollout and village-level 4G connectivity.
Cricket received significant attention. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly praised player freedom and trust as hallmarks of great leadership and named MS Dhoni as the greatest captain due to his World Cup successes. India women’s team bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi credited the BCCI and Women’s Premier League for building a pipeline of world-class talent behind the team’s recent ODI World Cup triumph.
The summit also hosted the inaugural AI² Awards 2026, celebrating the convergence of human creativity and machine intelligence in storytelling and content creation. Poet and kathavachak Kumar Vishwas delivered a nuanced take on India’s concept of Dharma and criticised the recent arrest of an 80-year-old Shankaracharya. Veteran lyricist Sameer Anjaan and storyteller Neelesh Misra reflected on changing music trends and artistic responsibility in the wake of a recent controversy involving Nora Fatehi.
In a country where conversations often run as deep as the Ganges, the WITT Summit proved once again that when leaders, thinkers and storytellers come together, the real winner is public discourse lively, layered and refreshingly unafraid to tackle the big questions shaping India’s tomorrow.
