Showing posts with label Dipika Chikhlia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dipika Chikhlia. Show all posts
Ramayan's Arun Govil, Dipika Chikhlia reunite onscreen after 39 years
10:20 AM
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; October 8, 2026)
On November 8 as Ramayana: Part 1 hits theatres, Arun Govil will be seen as King Dashrath. Two days before that, the veteran actor will have another release that has ties with his landmark television series, Ramayan (1987). Govil, who played Lord Ram in Ramanand Sagar’s television series, will reunite with his on-screen Sita, Dipika Chikhlia Topiwala, for Pradeep Gupta’s directorial venture, Notice. This marks their first feature film together almost 39 years after their first outing.
According to producer-actor Aditya Pratap Singh Raghuvanshi, Notice sees the two actors as a modern-day version of Ram and Sita. Set in a village, the film revolves around Govil’s character, a common man, who fights for justice against a corrupt system and finds support in his wife, essayed by Chikhlia.
“The story has a 150-year-old shop at its centre. All those who have lost their homes or shops due to development will identify with it. And who can tell this story better than Ram and Sita? Where there is a fight between truth and untruth, Ram and Sita’s jodi has to be there. You can call it a modern-day Ramayan,” stated Raghuvanshi.
Notice will première on the streaming platform, Waves, on November 6. What made the team seek an OTT release?
The producer reasoned, “We wanted a good OTT reach and Waves has a huge subscriber base. The audiences that go to the theatre today have an urban mindset, but Arunji and Dipikaji’s fans are from TV. We thought of reaching the movie through mobiles so that the entire country can appreciate our story and their pairing. Notice will also air on 36 satellite channels.”
I realized I wasn’t comfortable with people seetee maaroing at me-Dipika Chikhlia
10:56 AM
Neha Maheshwri (BOMBAY TIMES; August 31, 2026)
For nearly four decades, Dipika Chikhlia has been closely identified with one role that became far bigger than a career milestone. Her portrayal of Sita in Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan (1987-88) made her a household name. While it brought her immense love and respect, it also shaped the kind of work that came her way. Today, the actress is not looking to distance herself from Sita, but to be seen beyond it. She wants to take on strong, meaningful roles that offer her creative satisfaction.
She says, “I think everyone gets stuck in an image. It comes with popularity. No one is to blame. You just have to give yourself time and gradually people begin to accept change.”
While Ramayan was the turning point in her career, it also influenced the choices she made thereafter. She recalls, “I started with films, but after doing my first film, I realised I wasn’t comfortable with people seetee maaroing at me. They wanted me to wear swimming costumes and do glamorous roles, but that didn’t align with my interests. I kept praying that I would do work that earned me respect. Things fell into place magically and Ramayan happened. If I hadn’t played Sita, I would probably have been just another heroine of the late ’80s and early ’90s, and my career would have been completely different.”
‘I’m not going to call it a day until I get something meaningful’
The image she built through Sita remains something she values, but Dipika now wants it to coexist with a wider range of work.
She adds, “I’m not going to call it a day until I get something meaningful. I want strong, powerful roles. I am a good actor, just give me a chance. There are so many opportunities today for actresses between 50 and 70. We can do much more than just play mothers and grandmothers. I’m slowly adapting myself to today’s times. I just want filmmakers to see me differently too. Unfortunately, we don’t get offered artistically satisfying work. Industry people are experimenting, and I hope they start experimenting with me now.”
‘I don’t think I can do TV anymore’
Dipika is looking at films and OTT while ruling out the demanding schedule of daily television. She says, “I want to focus on films and OTT. I don’t think I can commit to television anymore because it is too time-consuming. I’ve received good offers, but working 22 days a month for 14 hours a day doesn’t work for me. I’ve never worked for money; I want creative satisfaction. I don’t want to reach the end of my career feeling that I played just one role and that’s what my life summarizes. I am far more.”
Alia Bhatt would have looked lovely as Sita-Dipika Chikhlia
11:04 AM
Shagun Roy (HINDUSTAN TIMES; September 13, 2026)
Dipika Chikhlia, who became synonymous with Sita after Ramanand Sagar’s TV hit Ramayan, says she is no longer rattled by new actors taking on the role. Reacting to Sai Pallavi playing Sita in the upcoming adaptation, Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana, she says, “If it’s Sai Pallavi, she’s a fab actress,” adding that she has no doubt the actor “will perform well”.
But asked which contemporary actor she would have liked to see as Sita, Chikhlia picks Alia Bhatt. “She’s very spontaneous, and that’s the kind of person I am,” she says, adding, “She would have looked lovely as Sita.”
Having spent decades being identified with Sita in Ramanand Sagar’s 1987 television series Ramayan, actor Dipika Chikhlia admits that stepping into another character from the epic would not be easy.
If she had to choose, though, Kaushalya would be her “best next option”, largely because she sees the character as a positive one. But entering another Ramayan remains emotionally complicated for someone whose identity has been so closely tied to Sita.
For Chikhlia, the bigger goal now is to be seen beyond the role that defined her career. Having played Sita convincingly at 18, she believes there is no reason she cannot take on a wide range of characters today. “I want to discover myself as an actor,” she says. She now wants to explore films and OTT, particularly unconventional roles beyond the stereotypical parts she feels may come her way. A judge, lawyer, doctor or NGO worker are among the characters she would like to play — “something off-beat” that excites her and makes her happy to return to work.
Television actor Aman Jaiswal dies in road accident
3:10 PM
Tanvi Trivedi (BOMBAY TIMES; January 19, 2025)
Television actor Aman Jaiswal (23) passed away on Friday afternoon when a truck rammed into his bike in Jogeshwari. The actor, who hailed from Ballia, UP, played the lead in Dhartiputra Nandini.
Dipika Chikhlia, who produced the show, said, "Aman was talented and very hard-working boy. He had it in him to make it big in showbiz. He played my grandson in our show. Unfortunately, I never met him after my show wrapped up in October last year."
She added, "When I got to know about the accident, I rushed to the hospital. His parents are in a state of shock, and his father has been admitted to the hospital in their hometown. He was a young boy who dreamt big. What has happened is shocking and tragic. I am hoping to connect with his parents soon."
Before Dhartiputra Nandini, Aman also acted in Punyashlok Ahilyabai. Aman belonged to Ballia in UP and relocated to Mumbai with dreams to make it big.
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Yashika Mathur (HINDUSTAN TIMES; January 19, 2025)
Actor Hritik Yadav was left in shock when he called his close friend and co-star Aman Jaiswal on Friday evening, only to learn that he had met with a fatal accident. Jaiswal was on his way to an audition when his bike was struck by a truck on the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road in Mumbai. He was 24.
“Jis audition ke liye Aman jaa raha tha, uska casting person knew me very well. When Aman didn’t reach on time, they called him and a stranger picked up and said he had an accident. The casting director called me, and I rushed to the hospital,” Yadav tells us.
Jaiswal was rushed to the trauma ward at Cama Hospital in Jogeshwari, where he succumbed to his injuries. While no family members had arrived when Yadav reached the hospiral, some of Jaiswal’s neighbours from his hometown (Balia, Uttar Pradesh) were already present.
“It’s hard to believe he is not there anymore,” says the 23-year-old, adding “He played my elder brother on the show Dhartiputra Nandini, and we shared a similar bond off-screen,”
As per a report by ANI, the truck driver has been taken into custody and a case for rash and negligent driving has been registered.
Dipika Chikhlia aka Ramanand Sagar's Sita returns to play terrorist's wife
7:58 AM
Dipika Chikhlia returns to the screen after 24 years as the wife of a terrorist who is hanged and leaves behind a young son; the film is inspired by Afzal Guru’s family
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; January 2, 2018)
After becoming a
household name with Ramanand Sagar’s epic television series Ramayan in
which she played Sita to Arun Govil’s Ram, Dipika Chikhlia went on to
feature in a few films, including Ghar Ka Chiraag (1989) and Rupaye Dus
Karod (1991) with Rajesh Khanna, before disappearing into the blue. Now,
Mirror has learnt that the actress is all set to stage a comeback with
Manoj Giri’s Gaalib, 24 years after she was last seen on screen in Johny
Bakshi’s Khudai. The film is reportedly based on Afzal Guru’s son
Gaalib, with Dipika playing his mother, Tabasum. “It is not exactly
Afzal Guru’s story but the character is similar to him. It’s a
mother-son story, about what happens to a terrorist’s wife and child
after he is hanged. I wanted to do something different and this role was
worth making a comeback to the screen,” asserts Dipika who wrapped up
the first schedule in Allahabad and Varanasi.Is there a plan to meet Afzal Guru’s family? “Not at the moment but we plan to do so when we go for the Kashmir schedule. We are really keen,” she admits.
Dipika, who has been away from the film industry for over two decades, insists she didn’t really miss being in front of the camera. “I was so busy with my children and family that I didn’t really have the time. After I got married, I was a member of parliament for the first five years and then I got busy with my kids. They were growing up and I was completely focused on them. I also paint professionally and hosted several exhibitions. But when good offers started coming in, I didn’t want to miss out on them,” she explains, quick to add that she will only do roles that require a good actor.
She admits that she was a little nervous when she faced the camera again but the moment the director shouted ‘Action!’, she felt like she was back home. “Before that I was apprehensive about whether I’d look the part. This is why I even insisted on doing a look test and had a discussion on the script with the team well before we started shooting. I didn’t want to go on the set unprepared,” she reminisces.
Dipika exults that even after almost a quarter of a century, people still recognise her on the street. “I’m still called Sita. I have got used to it by now. It’s become my second identity. I’m still in touch with my Ramayan co-stars, Arun Govil, Sunil Lahri who played Lakshman and the Sagar family.”
Quiz her on her self-imposed hibernation and Dipika says that it was prompted because she didn’t want to get repetitive. “Then I got into politics, got married and just moved away from films. It wasn’t a conscious decision but now that I am back, I want to satisfy my needs as an actor. I’m really excited,” she signs off with a smile.
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