Srimad Ramayan. Pic/YouTube
Ramayan has always fascinated filmmakers. Be it through television shows or films, there have been multiple retellings of the Hindu mythological epic. The latest being Om Raut's magnum opus Adipurush headlined by Prabhas, Kriti Sanon and Saif Ali Khan. Now, Sony Entertainment Television has announced a new show based on the epic.
Titled Srimad Ramayan, it is scheduled to go on air in January 2024. The makers are yet to announce the cast of the show. A visually rich teaser was dropped on Sony TV's YouTube. It was heavy on CGI and gave a glimpse of the opulent sets.
In an official statement, the channel said, "Transporting Indian families to an ancient spiritual era that highlights wholesome values and life learnings relevant even today, Sony Entertainment Television promises to bring alive the epic story of Lord Ram in its truest and purest form with âSrimad Ramayan'."
The most popular retelling of Ramayan on Indian television was by Ramanand Sagar in 1987. The show starred Arun Govil and Dipika Chikhlia as Ram and Sita. During the COVID-19-induced lockdown, Ramayan was re-aired for the audience. Owing to its humongous success, the show was re-run at least thrice. Amid backlash for Adipurush, the makers of Ramayan announced that the popular show would return to television.
While most retellings of Ramayan have been successful, Adipurush failed to match expectations. Prabhas played Raghav, Kriti was Janki and Lankesh was essayed by Saif. The film was rejected by the audience for atrocious dialogues said by the character, Bajrang (Devdatte Nage). The writer of Adipurush, Manoj Muntashir was slammed for not respecting Ramayan. Reportedly, a heavy amount was invested in making Adipurush a visual spectacle. However, the VFX was done poorly. For a 3D viewing experience, Adipurush couldn't deliver jaw-dropping visuals.
After receiving backlash, Adipurush made it to OTT platforms. The Om Raut directorial is currently streaming on Netflix and Prime Video simultaneously. Apart from Adipurush, Nitish Bharadwaj and Smriti Irani also did a television show based on Ramayan. Ashish Sharma and Madirakshi Mundle's popular daily soap Siya Ke Ram was one of the several versions.
