The magic of the Ramayan is still fresh
Iam 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, which first aired in the late ’80s.
After the lockdown announcement, Doordarshan decided to re-telecast the mythological serials of the ’80s – Ramayan and Mahabharat. And the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, on Thursday, said the retelecast of Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan garnered the highestever rating for a Hindi general entertainment channel
program me 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’. With the new generation watching the show, I knew the reactions would be different. But to hear that the show and the magic of Ramayan is still fresh, is heartwarming,” she shares.
She feels there are many messages people can take from the show. “Ramayan is about relationships, emotions, family values and duty which we can learn from. Like Sita’s decision to go for vanvas with Ram is not just out of duty but also because she took a vow to be with him through thick and thin. Sita and Ram are so perfect, and think logically and sensibly. They became ideals because of the way they conducted themselves.”