Watch: Not religion but religious leaders spreading hatred, says Ramayana actor Arun Govil

The lead actor in the television blockbuster had played the maryada purushottam as an approachable young man with a genial smile. Govil has essayed numerous other roles, including the hero of Vikram Air Betaal, but it was Ram who drew the crowds wherever he went, including airports.

But many don’t know that he was rejected in the audition for the role of Ram. “I believe I was destined to play Ram. Although when I was first auditioned for the role I was rejected outrightly,” said Govil adding that “even when I came to know that a serial called Ramayana is being made, I was determined to play Ram only.”

Three decades later, the actor will revisit the role in The Legend of Ram: Ek Shabd, Ek Baan, Ek Naari, a Broadway-style play directed by Delhi-based Atul Satya Koushik that will open in Delhi during Dusshera next week.

When asked how different is the Ram of this play from the one he performed 30 years ago, Govil said, “The Ram I play now is human rather than the divine figure of Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan. He is a normal man, who faces many struggles in life, sticks to his ideals, emerges victorious and begins to be considered a Vishnu of his times. What we are trying to say in the play is that there are people who have sublime qualities and become godlike.”