Arun Govil: the first Ram

Arun Govil, who played Ram in the original Doordarshan series Ramayan, talks about how the role put him permanently under a magnifying lens and caused much embarassment (and was also a reason why he quit smoking).

If you grew up in the Eighties and weren’t particularly God-fearing, you might have been forgiven for believing Sunday mornings were meant for staying late in bed.



But if, like me, you had a devout granddad who thought the best way to reform his football-obsessed grandson was a weekly dose of mythology, Ramanand Sagar-style, Arun Govil shouldn’t need an introduction.

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Five ungodly facts about Govil you might not have known:

* He used to be a chain smoker but hasn’t indulged in his habit in public, ever since he played Ram.

* He met his wife, a textile designer, early in his acting career. Before that, Govil had already scored a hit in Bollywood with Sawan Ko Aaane Do in 1979.

* Govil had to tone down his body language to get under the skin of the character, since God cannot have extravagant gestures.

* He has done a sensuous rain song with Moon Moon Sen in Maashuka (1987) and played a negative role in the TV series Karavas.