To keep the citizens entertained in the nation during the coronavirus lockdown, the Indian government decided to bring back the 1980s epic mythological series –Ramayan followed by Uttar Ramayan back on television.
But little did they know that the series will become one of the most-watched shows on television across the world. The show got 17.7 million views on April 16. Tweeting about the same, DD National shared on twitter, “Rebroadcast of #Ramayana on #Doordarshan smashes viewership records worldwide, the show becomes most watched entertainment show in the world with 7.7 crore viewers on 16th of April.”
Prakash Javadekar, Minister of Information and Broadcasting, had announced the same post the show on TV thanking the audience for watching the show.
According to several reports, the series has gone to beat the record of Game of Thrones, but officially it hasn’t been confirmed.
Ramayan, created and directed by Ramanand Sagar, was initially aired from 1987-88. The series has been based on is primarily based on Valmiki’s Ramayana and Tulsidas’ Ramcharitmanas.
The series starred Arun Govil, Dipika Chikhalia, Sunil Lahri, Arvind Trivedi, Dara Singh.
Sagar later worked on Uttar Ramayan, which was aired in 1988, which followed the journey of Luv and Kush, sons of Lord Ram and Sita. The young Luv and Kush were played by Marathi actor Swapnil Joshi and Mayuresh Kshetramade respectively.
When the series had gone on air, in an interview with Sakal Times, Dipika Chikhalia who plays Sita on-screen had said that she is happy that the show is back on TV at the right time. “People are really enjoying it and the magic we had created, the younger generation had only heard about it, but because it’s getting telecast, they can watch the magic. That’s the reaction I have got from people around,” had said the actress.
Several makers had attempted to recreate the magic of Ramayan on television. Still, they couldn’t enjoy the same kind of popularity that the original series witnessed.
Along with Ramayan, Doordarshan also aired Mahabharat and will soon start broadcasting Shri Krishna. Those locked down at home are undoubtedly enjoying the yesteryear series back on television, reliving the nostalgia.
