By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, May 2: Indian tele-serial ‘Ramayan’, children’s show ‘Shaktiman’ and various serials produced by Nepal’s own MaHa duo, highly popular during their initial run, have not dominated the charts for years. These were the talk of the town back in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s but then became overshadowed by other shows of more contemporary artists as well as international franchises and series. But now, they are witnessing a resurgence, with people revisiting these classics during their current time at home.
Pratham Dhakal, 54, is re-watching the 1995 MaHa comedy telefilm ‘Lalpurja’. “It makes me nostalgic about my younger days,” he said. “We didn’t even have a TV back then and I remember going to my uncle’s house with my mother every day to watch this show when it first aired 25 years ago.” For Dhakal, the show’s plot, story and characters come second to the memories it carries. He said, “I am watching this show because it brings back all these good feelings to me.”
Similarly, Rajya Laxmi Duwal, 86, is catching up on ‘Ramayan’. “It is funny how times have changed. I watched it first in a small Black and White Television set all those years ago and now, I am watching it again on a flat screen Smart TV connected to the internet,” she chortled.
But for Duwal, watching the 1987 mythological series created by Ramanand Sagar is more about imparting values than entertainment. “Today’s kids only watch foreign shows filled with violence and sex and they get all the wrong ideas,” she complained, adding, “So, I am now watching this show again with my grandchildren to teach them about civility and morality.”
But it is not just the older generations that are re-watching these classics. The newer generations are also discovering these shows for the first time in their lives and are enjoying them.
“Honestly, I only started watching this show because the shows I liked stopped airing new episodes,” remarked Kasam Aryal, 16, who has been spending the past week binging on the old ‘Meena’ cartoon. “It is so much fun to watch it because it takes me out of today’s chaotic time and shows me just how simple our society was in the past,” she added.
She further continued, “People were contented with very less, our biggest problems were hand washing and strangers and not a global pandemic. The overall times were so innocent. These old shows depict us youngsters of what our country was like before we were born.”
With the production of new shows and movies halted because of COVID-19, people, young and old, are scouring the internet and flipping through the channels to catch up on shows of the yesteryears – not just in Nepal but all around the world.