As India went into a 21-day lockdown due to corona virus pandemic, a constant appeal from Netizens to telecast the yesteryear tele serial “Ramayana” on Doordarshan was made.
During 80s, Ramayana was an iconic mythological saga which was telecast every Sunday at 10 am to 11 am.
The popularity of the show back then was so much that the whole neighbourhood would throng into the households with Television sets and watch the show like a big family.
The country with its limited TV sets would come to standstill with a 650 million viewership and broadcasted in 55 countries, becoming the highest grossing shows at that time.
The commercial aspects involved with this serial were not only limited to ad revenues but the sale of TV sets especially the recently launched colour TV sets surged.
Post Janta Curfew and the announcement of lockdown, netizens, especially from late 80s went on a nostalgia and started the trend of re telecasting the yesteryear DD shows “Ramayan” leading the charts.
After this huge public demand, Information & Broadcasting Minister, Prakash Javadekar, announced that DD Bharti would telecast Ramayana and Mahabharat in two slots from March 28.
After the announcement, social media went buzzing with memories attached to these iconic tele serials and how these mythological programmes might help in keeping people at home during this 21 days lock down . Few even suggested that the telecast might play some role in beating the quarantine blues as it will give people the feel good factor from bygone years.
Ramanand Sagar’s “Ramayan “popularity can only be imagined by the letters it used to receive in those years and even after the years the it went off air.
The lead actors were worshipped as the real gods and the show was more “sacred” than a source of entertainment for the Indian Viewers across the globe which made it different from others and it created history.
The role of Shri Ram was played by Arun Govil, Deepika played Mata Sita , Lakshman was played by Sunil Lahiri and Hanuman who was very popular among kids was played by Dara Singh. What can be more ironic, India would come to standstill during watching Ramayan in 80’s and now it’s telecasted again when India is watching it in lockdown.
Arun Govil at many instances has shared that people would touch his feet and seek blessings and look for solutions in their troubled lives. Speaking to Healthwire he said that the timing for the rerun is great and couldn’t have been better for those who haven’t seen it earlier would be able to watch it with the family.
While being in Corona lockdown a lot of discipline is required we need to strictly follow the guidelines and advisories from the govt. It can be learnt from “Maryada Purushottam” Shri Ram to be in control and cautious and follow the instructions and do only whatever is required and not cross any line.
He emphasised there is a lot to learn from the life of Lord Rama, the younger generations can take reference from this serial why he was called “Maryada Purushottam”, Ram is not only a mythical figure he is the embodiment of truth , Morality and good virtues , an ideal son , Husband , Brother and above all an ideal King. Ram is way of life, stands for kindness, empathy, generosity, Hope, Justice, fearlessness and an epitome of simplicity. A lot of introspection can be done by people in this period of time, connecting back to their roots, time for people especially youngsters to pause a little bit, introspect, have patience and determination to achieve every goal in life.
Another iconic epic saga that will be telecasted is Mahabharat. After Ramayan went off air it left a big void to fill in, B. R. Chopra came with his Magnum opus. It became sensational after first few episodes and is still one of the highest grossers of DD.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 21 days lockdown address to nation gave reference of Mahabharat which was fought and won in 18 days, the battle against corona virus will be won in 21 days. He appealed every Indian to support and follow the lockdown which is necessary to break the chain and defeat corona in India. The most iconic character of Shri Krishna that was played by, Nitish Bharadwaj was immensely popular and had a certain aura among viewers. He was their real Krishna who would help them fight all the adversities of lives.
Nitish Bharadwaj’s first reaction to Mahabharat returning to the small screen is “Ek teer se do nishane” !!! It will not only entertain the audience but will introduce the Best part of Bharat’s heritage to today’s generation. He welcomed the move, as a part of crisis management , avoiding boredom, by making into quality time spent with the family , time for Skill enhancement and Swadhyaay.
According to him, we must use this period to introspect as individuals, and as a society, correct the faults/ past mistakes and build a better tomorrow. He said he hopes to see a new India in terms of people behaviour and Psyche which can only happen with “Swadhyaay”.
On being asked about the takeaways for new generation he said the Millennials have seen much better visual effects and grandeur from Hollywood in last 20 years, so they may compare the basic VFx of Mahabharat to that of Hollywood. But the onus lies in the previous generation to tell them during late 80’s India didn’t have such advance technology still the Chopra’s manage to give some VFx back then. He further added that Youth should also focus on the fine dialogues written by Dr. Rahi Masoom Raza. They are relevant to all aspects of human strife, for all the times to come. No one could have written such profound and immortal lines, which will help them to understand the complexities of human relations and understand how to face life.
The youth is Lucky that such an exceptional serial is broadcast again and this is their chance to understand “Krishna’s” immortal Philosophy of “Gita”.
In the age of web series and Binge watches it’s heartening and a bit surprising to see the interest of viewers from different segments in these Epics even after 30 years of their first telecast dates. According to the latest reports, TV reach went up by 32 million new average daily viewers in the week to touch 592 million viewers. With these two mega serials and DD too will gain never before viewership.
