C.I.D. can teach you everything about life, including when to break a door
Life lessons sprinkled with nostalgia
It’s official, we’re all die-hard fans of murder mysteries and crime procedurals. Nothing beats the thrill of watching a bunch of dashing cops team up with forensic scientists to analyse fibres, chemicals and DNA to unravel a well-hatched murder plot. Besides the ability to engage our minds and draw on our curiosity, these “fairytales for adults” let us enjoy the comforting triumph of good over evil, too. And while the world might have caught on to the crime fiction bug now, I’m proud to say I was an early adopter.
It’s ironic given I’m a scaredy cat otherwise. But when I was growing up in the 2000s, my mind’s playing field was C.I.D. The show even shaped my very first career dream. I wanted to be a forensic scientist just like Dr Tarika. Armed with my painting set and an ink dropper, I’d mix water with ink for ‘chemicals’ and scrape paint off walls in the name of evidence analysis (much to my parents’ horror). For many of us, C.I.D. is woven into childhood nostalgia. The absurd plots, Daya breaking down doors, ACP Pradyuman’s iconic “Kuch toh gadbad hai” hand gesture, and Dr Salunkhe’s near-miraculous DNA testing—the show was an enthralling universe of its own. At a time when TV was dominated by saas-bahu dramas, C.I.D. stood out as a family-friendly procedural, free of profanity and extreme gore. It was just a team of detectives miraculously beating Mumbai traffic to solve a case.
The show started airing in 1998 and was on for 20 years before ending in October 2018, with over 1500 episodes behind it. Over the two decades, it achieved cult status in pop culture, for the dialogues, the memorable characters and the murder plots that were “believable nonsense,” according to B.P. Singh, the show’s creator. The show always did something new (and campy) for the time—identifying drugs with a taste test? Check. Shooting a 111-minute single-shot episode that earned it a place in the Guinness and Limca Book of Records in 2004? Check. Creating an entire episode on cannibalism in the early 2000s? Also, check.
When C.I.D. ended, it marked the end of an era. But six years later, the team has made a comeback— to Sony TV and Netflix. The second season of C.I.D began airing in December 2024, bringing back ACP Pradyuman, Abhijeet, and Daya. I don’t know what magic potion they’ve been drinking, but all of them look not a day older than when we last saw them onscreen. But the show’s timeline has definitely caught up with the world we live in because the C.I.D team too is using AI in their investigation (don’t worry, it’s not ChatGPT).
The cases may feel simpler now, and the logical leaps are glaring, but nostalgia makes it worth the watch. Then there’s the fact that the original show left us with some timeless life lessons, like staying away from white Omni vans (the kidnapper’s vehicle of choice) and never leaving any food or drinks unattended anywhere lest someone laces it with cyanide (the killer’s poison of choice). So we dove further back into our memories to unearth more such life lessons that the iconic show taught us. Are you taking notes?
Six life lessons from C.I.D you can use in the real world
It’s never too late to make a comeback
In C.I.D., the team faced numerous setbacks such as the death of team members on duty, ACP Pradyuman shooting his own criminal son and a bunch of extreme fights between Abhijeet and Daya—from which they always bounced back stronger. Life often throws curveballs our way that may derail our plans, but the show teaches us that a comeback is always possible.
Whether you’re restarting a career after a maternity break, rebuilding after a failed business, or something as simple as returning to fitness after years of inactivity, all you need to do is channel your inner Daya and break down the door of self-doubt and rejection. You will emerge stronger on the other side and will be able to reclaim your success and purpose.
Attention to detail is a literal life skill
You realise the importance of all the badaam your mom forced you to eat for good memory only after watching this show. What if you were enlisted to help in the sketching of a suspect, or asked to state your whereabouts at 4 pm on Jan 6 by the real C.I.D.? The possibility of being embroiled in a criminal investigation is low but never zero.
But even if you didn’t have to help out in a criminal investigation, good memory and excellent observation skills will serve as your best sidekicks in the adult world. They can help you adapt to a new workplace, win over clients during pitches by observing their body language, or conjure a dhaasu idea during your team’s weekly brainstorming meeting. C.I.D. reminds us to stay alert, be detail-oriented, and develop habits like mindfulness and critical thinking to sharpen our cognitive abilities.
Keep your tribe of non-toxic friends close
Who said friends older than you or the ones you find at work can’t be your ride or die? When it comes to life lessons from C.I.D, friendship and teamwork have to be spoken about. ACP Pradyuman and the much younger Senior Inspectors Abhijeet and Daya are absolute friendship goals. The trio stood by each other through thick and thin, personal and professional struggles, showing the importance of a strong support system.
In life, surrounding yourself with people who uplift and support you is key to emotional well-being. Whether it’s at the workplace where teamwork is essential, or friendships that help you navigate tough times, choosing the right people and nurturing those relationships makes a world of a difference.
The mysteries of life are simpler than they seem
If you’re a loyal true-crime fan, you would have certainly caught onto the trick of identifying who committed the crime and why. More often than not, the killer always appears in the beginning, mingling with other people and suspects, trying to throw the investigators off their track. But eventually, the cops realise the answer to the case was staring them in the face all along. All they needed to do was shut out the noise.
Among the life lessons from C.I.D, this one is the most important—the mysteries of life are often less complicated than they seem. We get so overwhelmed with information overload that we miss out on the simple cues. For instance, if you’re trying to meet your weight and health goals but are unable to get there because of excess information on clean eating and advice on swapping HIIT workouts for pilates, go back to the basics. Start with incorporating a brisk walk into your routine or increase your daily activity, whatever your schedule allows. The trick is to just go back to the basics, and start simple. Voila! The knot untangles itself.
Women too can have dhai kilo ka haath
While several shows at the time focused on shy, demure female characters whose world revolved around their male love interest, C.I.D. always had female inspectors on the team who could chase the perpetrators and beat up the criminals as well as their male counterparts. When TV was selling the shaant girl image, C.I.D. gave us real role models to look up to. Women who were strong, stern and not defined by a man.
These women also held their own in a male-dominated field and served as a reminder that gender doesn’t define ambition, intelligence or strength. Bonus point, it also showed us that the right group of men who are secure in themselves would not just accept but celebrate those qualities rather than see them as a threat.
Listen to what your gut says (beyond IBS)
ACP Pradyuman’s iconic “Kuch toh gadbad hai” wasn’t just a catchphrase—it was a lesson in trusting one’s instincts. In life, gut feelings often guide us before logic catches up. Whether it’s sensing red flags in a date you swiped right on, recognising when it’s time to move on from a job, or let an old friendships fall, intuition is a powerful tool.
The key is learning to differentiate between fear and instinct, and using it alongside logic, to make the best choices. C.I.D. teaches us that sometimes, going with your gut can lead to life-changing breakthroughs and open the right doors.
We may have outgrown the days when C.I.D. felt both believable and cool, but nothing can take away the priceless nostalgia it brings. Say what you will, the show left us with some valuable life lessons—our problems aren’t always as complex as they seem to be and with a few laughs, a tight-knit circle of trusted friends, and a little perseverance, this journey we’re all on can feel like an exciting yet solvable mystery.
