Actor Arun Govil aka 'Ram', suggests inclusion of Ramayana in curriculum: 'not just for Sanatani…'

Ramayana actor Arun Govil has suggested that “Ramayana must be included in curriculum”. The suggestion comes weeks after the ‘Pran Prtistha’ ceremony of Ram Lalla was held at Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.

Arun Govil used to play the role of Lord Ram in the Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan.

"Ramayana must be included in our curriculum because there is no justification in calling Ramayana religious. Ramayana is our philosophy of life. Ramayana tells us how everyone should live, how relationships should be, how much patience one should have and how can a person attain peace? This is for everyone, it is not just for Sanatani people, Ramayana is for everyone and hence it should definitely be there in our curriculum..."

Arun Govil had earlier said “Lord Ram is an integral part of India's culture and its identity”.  The actor, who became a household name after essaying the role of Lord Ram in Ramanand Sagar's "Ramayan", had been invited for the Ram Mandir Pran Pratistha ceremony along with his co-star Dipika Chikhlia, who portrayed Goddess Sita in the 1987 TV serial.

The 66-year-old actor said he was not the first choice to play Lord Ram in the classic show.

"I had told Ramanand Sagar ji in the beginning itself that I only wanted to play the character of Lord Ram... When I was rejected, the role was offered to somebody else. But, I was brought back for the role," he recalled.

While "Ramayan" brought Arun Govil love and adulation, roles also dried up for him as it was difficult for filmmakers to imagine him in any different avatar.

"Even if I had done 500 films, the love and respect, which I get today, would be missing. Today, the respect that I get for immortalising the role of Lord Ram on screen is unparalleled. People still say 'Humare Ram toh aap hee hain' (You are our Lord Ram)" Govil had said.

The actor, however, said no other character would have earned him this level of respect. His latest film "695", based on the Ram temple movement, released in theatres last month. 

Ramanand Sagar was a film director known for movies such as "Ankhen", "Baghavat" and "Prem Bandhan".