To keep people entertained during a complete lockdown, India's Information and Broadcasting Ministry decided to re-telecast popular mythology television serials - Ramayana and Mahabharata, which were a huge hit in the 80s.
Highlights
- Ramayan has become globally highest viewed entertainment show on its rerun
- The first episode of Ramayan was aired on television on 25th Jan 1987 and serial was concluded in August 1988
- The first episode of Mahabharat was aired on television on 2nd Oct 1988 and final episode on 24th June 1990
Little did anyone know the reruns of Ramayana and Mahabharata will enjoy unprecedented popularity.
Ramayan series follows the journey of an Indian king Rama who goes to an exile of 14 years along with wife Sita and brother Lakshman, while Mahabharata, another Indian epic, in its televised series covers the incidents revolving around Lord Krishna, Pandavas, Kauravas, Karna and Draupadi.
In the 80s, Ramayan was produced and directed by Ramanand Sagar and Mahabharat was produced by B R Chopra and directed by his son Ravi Chopra.
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Ramayana and Mahabharata: Interesting facts about the iconic shows of Indian television
SBS Hindi
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Here are a few facts about this series.
RAMAYAN
The serial was based on Valmiki’s Ramayan and Tulsidas’s Ramcharitmanas.
It holds the Limca book of world record as the most-watched mythological serial.
It was telecast in 55 countries with a total viewership of 650 million.
The roads would be deserted when Ramayan was aired on television.
People bought television sets to watch the show. Many people actually prayed (Aarti) when the episodes aired.
A set was built at Umargaon, a small town of Gujarat to shoot the show.
The iconic scenes of the construction of the Ram Setu (a mythical bridge between India and Sri Lanka) were shot in Chennai, Tamil Nadu to shoot clear blue waters.
Ramayan was the most expensive show during those days. The shooting cost of each episode came to 900,000 INR.
Originally meant to have only 52 episodes, the story ended in 78 episodes.
The production team would visit nearby villages and make announcements on drums to recruit junior artists.
Jayshree Gadkar and Bal Dhuri who play the role of Kaushalya and King Dasharath were a real-life couple and well known Marathi film actors. They both have acted in a few Hindi films too.
Arvind Trivedi who played Ravana was so popular that the whole home town grieved when Ravan was killed in the show.
Arun Govil who played the role of Lord Ram failed the audition at first but wearing a soft smile eventually got him the role.
Many of the actors like Arun Govil, Dipika Chikhlia, Arvind Trivedi and Sunil Lahri had worked together before in another TV series Vikram Aur Betaal which was made in 1985.
MAHABHARAT
A few of lead characters (Pandavas with Dropadi) from Mahabharat TV serial of Doordarshan Source: doordarshan.gov.in
It was based on Mahabharat as written by Ved Vyas.
Researchers team under Satish Bhatnagar read all the available literature in different languages on Mahabharat.
Dr Rahi Mason Reza penned it for television.
Originally designed for 104 episodes, it culminated into 94 episodes.
The total cost of this series was nine million INR in those days.
The director was B R Chopra but since he wasn’t keeping very well, his son Ravi Chopra took over the direction.
The concept of ‘Main Samay hoon’ (I am Time) as a narrator was coined by Dr Rahi Mason Raza.
Initially, Mr Chopra wanted Dilip Kumar and NY Rama Rao as the narrator of the show.
Gufi Paintal, who played the role of Shakuni was the casting director of the show. In an interview, Gufi Paintal revealed Juhi Chawla was the first choice for the role of Draupadi. But she preferred acting in the film 'Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak' where she was offered to play the lead role.
For the role of Abhimanyu, Govinda and Chunky Pandey were both considered but they too were busy with their respective films. Eventually, Master Mayur bagged the role.
Mukesh Khanna - the Bhishma, wanted to be cast as Arjun or Karna. He, therefore, refused the role of Duryodhan which he was offered to him first. Later Mr Chopra asked him to play Bhishma.
Nitish Bhardwaj who played the role of Krishna was first signed for the role of Vidur. Later he was told by Ravi Chopra, the role wouldn’t suit him as Nitish was too young to look old a few episodes later.
When offered Krishna’s role, Nitish was hesitant thinking an experienced actor would justify the role of Krishna. He was keen for the role of Abhimanyu but Mr Ravi Chopra felt Nitish Bhardwaj's consistent subtle smile was best suited for the role of Lord Krishna.
