Shiv is a passionate onlline marketing consultant, web developer and a writer who believes in creating new things as a way of life and is a collector of insightful ideas. Long ago, he did MBA in marketing from one of the The other day I was searching for the title song of Jungle Book. Yes you are right – Jungle Jungle baat chali hai pata chala hai, chaddhi pahan ke phool khila hai – that’s the one! It took me quite a while to get the free downloadable mp3 file but while searching for it I came across a couple of other videos and songs that reminded me of the good old days. The days when life used to be much simpler, when we had much lesser choices of entertainment but more meaningful ones. when Sunday used to be the day of Duck Tales and Mogli and Ramayan and Mahabharat and Chandrakanta and Malgudi Days and Surabhi, when wednesday evenings used to be reserved forever for Chitrahar, when SMS were just three meaningless letters and when we used to send real postcards to rank songs in Superhit Muqabala, when Thanda Thanda Pani was more than just that, when Lalitaji’s advice was taken as seriously as that of a sister’s, when National integration meant watching Mile Sur Mera Tumhara with the whole family, when “soaps” were only used in the bathroom, to wash the skin and not the brain, when Hum Log never quarreled amongst each other and when kitchen politics wasn’t glamorous at all, when our family values and our culture was the Buniyaad of our existence, when a child enjoyed his/her childhood and was taught about Ek Anek Aur Ekta and not forced to become “little champs.”
As you can see, I got nostalgic, and decided to share my nostalgia with the rest of you and post a collection of videos here on my blog along with my comments and recollections for each of them. I call these the most loved videos of India, for reasons you can understand yourself, if you are in the age group of 25-35. These videos have been put here in no particular order and showcase the best that Doordarshan had to offer in those days. Most of these videos are in Hindi, so please excuse me if you can’t understand Hindi.
Enough of the preamble! Let’s get down to business!
Jungle Book
Jungle Book had cult following when it was first aired on Doordarshan. The famous title song is now part of Doordarshan’s hall of fame. It gives me goose bumps even today when I hear it. The lyrics for this song was written by Gulzaar (who else!) and believe it or not this animated series was actualy produced by a Japanese prodution house! The dubbing was of course done in India and as most of us already know quite a few established actors gave their voice for this. Who can forget Nana Patekar as Sher Khan.
Ek Anek Aur Ekta
This classic 2-D animated short film was Dordarshan’s way of teaching kids the value of unity. I just love the crudeness of this film and the voice of the kids and I am sure you do too! I wish life were as simple as shown in this film.
Chulbuli
This one is an absolute gem, that I had not seen before. The girl with long hair is probably the most adorable animated character I have ever seen. And equally adorable is the voice. This is actually a Clinic Plus ad, but for a change I don’t mind promoting it. I wish animation was used a lot more than it is, for making ads.
Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan
At the peak of its popularity Ramayan was not just watched by the viewers. In many homes, TV sets were literally worshipped with flowers and incense sticks and Arun Govil and Dipika became synonyms of Ram and Sita. Such was the popularity of Ramayan. The bad special effects, the demons and the gods flying in air, the war scenes with perpetually flying arrows in different designs and colours, the fake voices, the devotion, we loved it all! Ramayan, in it’s make up, was unabashedly and sincerely devotional. That’s why, even today I love the series even with it’s below average production values. I have hated every mythological series of Ramanand Sagar after Ramayan, because his devotion and art got commercialized. Listen to this beautiful and deeply meaning title song of Ramayan.
Mahabharat
Indian streets used to be empty and people used to stop all their work for one full hour every Sunday, to watch and admire B. R. Chopra’s Mahabharat. An epic story, supported by a great script, great dialogs and most of all, great acting, Mahabharat had it all. Today, after all these years, and with my critical mind, I find Ramayan very devotional but cheesy and childish. But Mahabharat, even today, looks as convincing as ever. According to me this is the best TV series ever, in the history of Indian television. All credit to B. R. Chopra’s vision and direction. Given below is the title song. Watch it and relive the past!
Chandrakanta
“Chandrakanta ki Kahani, ye mana hai purani..” who could forget that song. For more than hundred weeks Chandrakanta ruled Indian television and TRPs (intoduced during its tenure). Based on a novel by Babu Devakinandan Khatri, this was the grand vision of Neerja Guleri and established her as one of the foremost TV series producers (she gave other hits like Tu Tu Mai Mai). And no discussion on Chandrakanta would be complete without the mention of Krur Singh (Yakkoo!!), probably the most iconic villian of Indian Television. Given below is the title sequence, sung by our very own, Sonu Nigam. This is a very low resolution video of the song. I tried my best, but couldn’t get anything better.
Surabhi
India’s longest running (415 weekly episodes, every episode with completely fresh content) and most successful cultural series, Surabhi was everything it’s name signifies. We had our first TV set only in 1995 (my dad didn’t want us to be corrupted by the evil “idiot box”), and for five long years, an hour of every Sunday night was devoted to Aaj Tak (back then it was a daily half hour “brave & honest” news show on Doordarshan, not the farce it has become today) and Surabhi. No other Indian show has presented Indian culture and its diversity as beautifully as Surabhi. Even today I miss the “Namaskar” of Renuka Shahane and Sidharth Kak and the heaps of postcards they used to get for their questions. One episode had received a record 10 lakh postcards! Can you believe that in today’s SMS age? Given below is the title sequence of Surabhi.
Doordarshan Signature Montage
Ok, Now that we are talking so much about the shows on DD why not show DD itself as it came into shape slowly, every day in the morning and in the evenings. Remember the countdown, the moon becoming the center circle of DD? You’d better watch it here.
Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
Don’t worry, I had not forgotten this. No true Indian can. The best and the most loved National integration film ever. The recent attempt of Zoom to remake this classic film was simply lame. Not because Zoom is inept. But because times have changed. This is the age of Raj Thakerey, RSS and their cultural and religious parochialism. This is the age of Britney Spears, Deepika Padukone and Shah Rukh Khan. This is the age of commercialization and glamor. Nobody cares for stupid nationalistic sentiments anymore. But that shouldn’t stop us from getting nostalgic.
Baje Sargam
Another National Integration film by DD. A montage of artists from all over India. A classic!
The Torch Marathon
Remember the Torch marathon run by sportsmen from every sport that used to be air on DD during breaks. Yeah you got it! This forms the trioka of National Integration films made by DD. The good old days!
He Man
“By the Power of Grey Skull…I HAVE THE POWER!!” Those were the magic words we all loved to hear didn’t we? Of course back then, my English was not good enough to make me understand what He Man used to say and I still remember torturing myself over it. Finally I bought He Man comic books and then I got to know the magic words. He man and the Masters of the Universe practically influenced an entire generation of Indian youth to get interested in animated superhero flicks. And it was was the good old DD which brought it to our homes. He Man, Ram Man, The Sorceress, Skeletor, they are all still there in some corner of my mind, and my heart. Today, when I see He Man I can’t help exclaiming, “Oh my God! The master of the Universe is a BLONDE guy!!??” Anyway enjoy this theme sequence of He Man.
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Storyflakes 