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EXCLUSIVE: Deepika Chikhalia: I think people should stop making Ramayan every year; why try to replicate?
In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, Dipika Chikhalia aka Sita of Ramayan, revealed that people would laugh at them earlier for this reason, why they deserve to get royalty and why people should stop making Ramayan.
Deepika Chikhalia is best remembered for her role as Sita in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan. The epic saga aired yet again amid lockdown after 33 years it first went on air and was welcomed with open arms by the millennials. The show garnered more than 7 crore viewership, beating Game of Thrones record globally. We exclusively chatted with Dipika on how does she see this welcome and success, and people today understanding the difference between performance and being treated as gods.
She revealed that earlier on, people would laugh at them saying that the show is never-ending and would be ashamed to admit they were fans. "When it was aired at that time, there were a lot of weird people who would come up and laugh about it, and would say how funny it was. People would laugh that it is just going on and would come up and tell me that 'my mother-in-law is a fan, my grandparents are a fan' They were ashamed to admit that they were my fan. There was this discrimination," she recalled sighing. She added that she would wonder if only elderly people were her fans. "But, today I feel the millennials are taking it so well. The generation today is sensitive and sensible. They are learning. I think full credits to them for giving it respect and understanding. I feel it is genuinely something you can learn from. It is not entertainment, take it as a learning." she asserted.
When told that Sunil Lahri mentioned that this re telecast is a bigger success for them, Dipika agreed and added, "It is genuinely a success because all this while people just called us Bhagwan, God. They just made us into a god. But, the millennials said they are not god, they are superb actors, they have performed so well, that's why they look like real people to you. I think the difference between good performances and not just being considered God is there and I feel so good, very respectful that I performed, and people noticed it. This re-run was so required for us as actors for getting our dues."
She also laughing shared that she feels people should stop remaking Ramayan. "I don't know why people keep making Ramayan. Every year they come up with a new Ramayan. I think people should stop that. I keep wondering why do you try? When you have something already, why try to replicate? The narration, the performances, the simplicity, everything is missing," she reiterated.
When we mentioned the royalty debate, Dipika yet again mentioned, "We don't have it. I have been talking about it to people that I think they should have given us royalty because it is not just about us doing Ramayan, it is about putting 30 more years of our career to keep Ramayan alive even today. I think they should have given it, I don't know how it works here. I think Govt should intervene and give it to us. They should start with Ramayan. We have contributed a larger chunk to it, if it wasn't us, you wouldn't see the Ramayan it is today. So, they should share royalty with us."
