Ramayan to Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai: Should your favourite shows continue to air after the lockdown ends?

People across the country are in a state they never imagined themselves to be in the first place. With most of us locked up inside the four walls of our homes, innovation seems to have become the need of the hour to keep boredom at bay. From experimenting in the kitchen to picking up a hobby or skill we always planned to do, Indians are making the most of their time. Now, more than ever, citizens are consuming OTT content. Keeping this in mind, the television industry swooped in and seems to have used this opportune moment to telecast beloved shows from the '90s and early '2000s.  

If you have been living under a rock, let us break it to you that the hugely popular show from the late '80s Ramayan and Mahabharat are being telecast every day and that too twice a day. The news was received with much enthusiasm on Twitter as netizens reminisced their fond memories of watching these shows during their growing up days. Not just that, parents on Twitter also revealed that introducing their kids to the beloved mythology series was a nostalgic activity in itself. 

Did you know that Ramayan's re-telecast even got one of the highest ever rating for a Hindi GEC show since 2015? Yes, Doordarshan's 1987 mythological show which returned to the small screen on March 28 became one of the most watched shows, according to a BARC report. The inaugural show had 34 million viewers glued to their TV sets watching, while a telecast the same evening had 45 million viewers and a rating of 5.2 per cent.

Following this surge in viewership, Doordarshan also decided to bring back some more memorable shows like Chanakya, Shaktimaan and Dekh Bhai Dekh. While it will be some time before we come to know how these shows have fared, the question is do these numbers really matter? The fact that a whole new generation is being introduced to these shows and many others taking a trip down memory lane, the mission seems accomplished (if there ever was one). 

Apart from DD's iconic shows, comedy shows like Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai and Khichdi also made a comeback. The announcement was met with much excitement among fans. I mean who is not a fan of The Sarabhai's? These light hearted shows are definitely a breath of fresh air in the days of heavy crime dramas on web platforms. While these shows have definitely made us realise that we indeed miss the golden days of television, the question that looms over is will there still be an audience to continue watching these shows once the lockdown ends? 

On April 14, PM Narendra Modi's 21-day lockdown will come to an end. Whether there will be an extension or not, we do not know. But gradually and eventually, people will return to their normal lives and busy schedules. In an ideal world, we would love to watch these shows probably a few times a week, if not every day. But the truth is that viewership will drastically drop. And our busy schedules are not just to be blamed. 

In fact, there will be a new film every Friday at the box office. Theatres will run a full house for over the top action thrillers and masala films will go on to make big business at the box office. This current slump will revive and even web streaming platforms will go all out and bombard the user with newer and more exciting content. And just as it was before, these shows might fade into oblivion.  

I may be getting a little ahead of myself here instead of living in the moment and cherishing the current run of the '90s and '2000s shows, but I cannot help but wonder if there will be any takers once we come out of this pandemic. Maybe these shows on a web platform might do the magic? 

P.S: The Jungle Book starts airing on DD from today -- April 8 at 1 pm every day.  

Do you think your favourite shows from the '90s and '2000s should keep airing even after the lockdown ends? Shoot your answers in the comments below.