I am overwhelmed with responses to the show. So many people in their 20s have written to me saying that they got hooked to the show after watching the first episode”, says Deepika Chikhalia, who played the role of Sita in the iconic show, Ramayan, aired in the late ‘80s.
In the wake of the countrywide lockdown due to the pandemic, DD decided to re-telecast the mythological serials of the 80s – Ramayan and Mahabharat. An official statement released by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Thursday said that the retelecast of Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan garnered the highest-ever rating for a Hindi general entertainment channel programme since 2015.
Chikhalia, who has been watching the episodes on TV, says Ramayan has got the viewers engaged. “I haven’t seen the show in 33 years but I had seen so many photos from the show, and of myself as Sita, which is why it didn’t seem ‘new’. I identify so much with the character and the getup. With the new generation watching the show, I knew the reactions would be different but to hear that the show is and the magic of Ramayan is still fresh is heart-warming,” she shares.
While the show has heavy religious content, it also focuses on family, love and relationships. The actor feels that there are many messages that people can take and learn from the show which is relevant even today. “Ramayan is about relationships, emotions, family values and duty which we can all learn from, especially today. Like Sita’s decision to go for the vanvas with Ram is not just out of duty but also because she took a vow to be with him in sickness and in health and through thick and thin. People have forgotten those values today and about the sanctity of marriage. Sita and Ram are so perfect, politically correct, and think logically and sensibly. They became ideals because of the way they conducted themselves.”
{{/usCountry}}While the show has heavy religious content, it also focuses on family, love and relationships. The actor feels that there are many messages that people can take and learn from the show which is relevant even today. “Ramayan is about relationships, emotions, family values and duty which we can all learn from, especially today. Like Sita’s decision to go for the vanvas with Ram is not just out of duty but also because she took a vow to be with him in sickness and in health and through thick and thin. People have forgotten those values today and about the sanctity of marriage. Sita and Ram are so perfect, politically correct, and think logically and sensibly. They became ideals because of the way they conducted themselves.”
{{/usCountry}}After the Chopra show, there were other versions of Ramayan that aired on TV but none could match the viewership of the ‘80s show. “I love Ramayan but even I couldn’t sit through most of them. The story remains the same but maybe it was the presentation or something was missing, lacking, maybe a magic touch,” she signs off.