Arun Govil (/ɑːrun ɡoʊvɪl/ GO-will; born 12 January 1952) is an Indian actor. He is best known for portraying Lord Rama in Ramayan TV series (1987-1988). He also appeared in films like Paheli (1977), Sawan Ko Aane Do (1979), Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin (1979), Jiyo To Aise Jiyo (1981), Himmatwala (1983), Dilwaala (1986), and Govinda Govinda (1994).
Arun Govil | |
|---|---|
 Govil in 2022 | |
| Born | 12 January 1952 Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Alma mater | Agra University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Political party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Spouse | Shrilekha Govil |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Tabassum (sister-in-law) |
Early life edit
Arun Govil was born on 12 January 1952 in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.[1][2][3][better source needed] He spent his teenage life in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He got his formal education at an affiliated college of Agra University situated in Shahjahanpur, where he studied science (BSc degree).[4] His father wanted him to become a government servant while Arun wanted to do something for which he would be remembered.[5]
Arun's father, Shri Chandra Prakash Govil, was a government officer. Arun is the fourth of six brothers and two sisters. His elder brother Vijay Govil is married to Tabassum, a former child actress and the host of the first Bollywood Celebrity talk show on Doordarshan Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan, which continued for 21 years.[6]
Career edit
In 1975, He moved to Mumbai to join his brother's business there. After a short while, he found that he no longer enjoyed the work and decided to find something more enjoyable.[5] After doing dramas in college he decided to start acting. Govil got his first break in Indian cinema in the 1977 film Paheli, when he was introduced to Tarachand Barjatya by his sister-in-law Tabassum.[7] He made his Bollywood debut in Prashanta Nanda's Paheli (1977).[7] He shot to stardom after he was cast in Kanak Mishra's Sawan Ko Aane Do (1979) and Satyen Bose's Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin (1979).[8][9] He made his small screen debut in Ramanand Sagar's Vikram Aur Betaal (1985).[10] He was then cast as Lord Rama in Sagar's TV series Ramayan (1986), for which he won the Uptron Award in the Best Actor in a Leading Role category in 1988.[11][5][12] He reprised his role as Rama in Sagar's Luv Kush and Padmalya Telefilms Limited's Jai Veer Hanuman[13][14] Barjatya was really impressed by Govil's performance in the film and he signed him a three-film-deal — Kanak Mishra's Sawan Ko Aane Do (1979), Vijay Kapoor's Raadha Aur Seeta (1979) and Satyen Bose's Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin (1979). Sawan Ko Aane Do became a major success at box office catapulting Govil to stardom.[8] Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin was another success at box office.[9] He featured in Kanak Mishra's Jiyo To Aise Jiyo (1981).
Ramanand Sagar cast Govil as Vikramaditya in his television series Vikram Aur Betaal and Rama in Ramayan.
His role as Rama provided him great exposure and led him to be cast in other roles such as Harishchandra in the TV series Vishwamitra or Buddha in the TV series Buddha. He lent his voice as Rama in Yugo Sako's Indo-Japanese animation film Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (1992).[15] He also played the role of Laxman in V. Madhusudhana Rao's Lav Kush (1997).[16] In the year 2020, he appeared on The Kapil Sharma Show as a guest along with Dipika Chikhlia, Sunil Lahri and Prem Sagar to promote book on Late Ramanand Sagar.
Personal life edit
Govil is married to actress Shrilekha.[17][18] They have two children together, Sonika and Amal. Their daughter in law's name is Divya.[18][19]
On March 18, 2021, he joined the Bhartiya Janata Party.[20]
Political career edit
Arun Govil was nominated as the Bharatiya janta party candidate for Meerut Lok Sabha constituency from Uttar Pradesh on 25 March 2024 to contest the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha polls.[21]
Filmography edit
Film edit
| Year | Film | Character | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Paheli | Balram | |
| 1979 | Sawan Ko Aane Do | Brij Mohan/Birju | |
| Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin | Ajay S. Agarwal | ||
| Raadha Aur Seeta | Shekhar Verma | ||
| 1980 | Judaai | Umakant S. Verma | |
| Ganga Dham | Mohan | ||
| 1981 | Jiyo To Aise Jiyo | Kundan Sharma | |
| Itni Si Baat | Anand | ||
| Shradhanjali | Raju Kumar | ||
| Commander | Rakesh Kumar | ||
| 1982 | Gumsum | Shankar | |
| Ayaash | Amal | ||
| Sasural | Narendra | ||
| Jawalaa Dahej Ki | |||
| Brij Bhoomi | Braj Bhasha dialect film | ||
| 1983 | Kalka | Shibu | |
| Lal Chunariya | |||
| Himmatwala | Govind | ||
| Justice Chaudhury | Inspector Ramesh Chaudhary | ||
| 1984 | Aasmaan | Doctor | |
| Kanoon Meri Mutthi Mein | |||
| Ram Tera Desh | Prakash | ||
| 1985 | Karm Yudh | Rajesh | |
| Do Dilon Ki Dastaan | Kamal | ||
| Yudh | Inspector Bhargav | ||
| Baadal | Thakur Kiran Singh | ||
| Lallu Ram | Shankar/Raju | ||
| 1986 | Devar Bhabi | in Hindi & Bhojpuri | Actresses Shoma Anand (Hindi) & Upaasna Singh(Bhojpuri) |
| Dilwaala | Mohan Kumar | ||
| Shatru | Salim | ||
| Nafrat | Vijay | ||
| 1987 | Maashuka | Arun Verma | |
| 1989 | Bidhir Bidhan | Bengali film | |
| Pyari Dulhaniya | Bhojpuri film | ||
| 1991 | Edu Kondalaswamy | Lord Venkateswara | Telugu film |
| 1992 | Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama | Lord Rama | voice only |
| Shiv Mahima | Lord Shiva | ||
| 1993 | Muqabla | Havaldar Satyaprakash | |
| 1994 | Govinda Govinda | Lord Venkateswara | Telugu film |
| Kanoon | Pankaj | Vishal's brother | |
| 1995 | Shanivrat Mahima | Bhagwan Indra/ Lord Venkestwara |
|
| Hathkadi | Arun Chauhan | ||
| Buk Bhara Bhalobasha | Soumitra Dutt | Bengali film | |
| 1996 | Great Robbery | Lord Venkateswara | Telugu film |
| 1997 | Dhaal | Inspector Deodhar | |
| Do Ankhen Barah Hath | |||
| Lav Kush | Laxmana | ||
| Gaon Desh | Bade Chaudhary | Bhojpuri Film | |
| 1999 | Upendra | Raja Vikramaditya | Kannada Film |
| 2006 | Babul Pyaare | Pandit Hari Singh | Bhojpuri Film |
| 2007 | Kanhaiyo | Rajashtnai Film | |
| 2023 | Sergeant | Nikhil's Father | on JioCinema |
| OMG 2 | Principal Atal Nath Maheshwari | ||
| Hukus Bukus | Pandit Radheshayam | ||
| 2024 | 695 | ||
| Article 370 | Prime Minister | Hindi Film |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Vikram Aur Betaal | King Vikramāditya | |
| 1987-1988 | Ramayan | Lord Rama | |
| 1989 | Luv Kush | Lord Rama | |
| 1989 | Vishwamitra | Raja Harishchandra | |
| 1992 | Phoolwanti | Pandit Vankatesh Shastri | |
| 1994-95 | Mashaal | Ajay | |
| 1995 | Jai Veer Hanuman | Ram | |
| 1996- 1997 | Buddha | Buddha | |
| 1998-1999 | Ashiqui | Sushil | |
| 1999-2000 | Pal Chhin | Pratap Singh | |
| 2000-2001 | Basera | ||
| 2001 | Kaise Kahoon | Zaheer Ahmed | |
| 2002 | Saanjhi | Amar | |
| 2003 | Ehsaas - Kahani Ek Ghar Ki | ||
| 2003 | Gayatri Mahima | Rishi Chavan | |
| 2023 | Jubilee | Narain Khanna | Amazon Prime Video series |
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Birthday wishes for Amit, Navina, Yash and Arun". Tellychakkar Dot Com. 30 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- ^ "Arun Govil movies, filmography, biography and songs - Cinestaan.com". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 2 April 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
- ^ "Arun Govil - BollywoodMDB". www.bollywoodmdb.com. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
- ^ "Ahead of contesting Meerut elections, Arun Govil in debt of Rs 14 lakh; A look at Ramayan actor's assets and qualifications". The Times of India. 3 April 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ^ a b c "Arun Govil: the first Ram". www.hindustantimes.com. 18 October 2014. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ "Nargis, Meena Kumari, Madhubala, Suraiya... they all loved me". www.rediff.com. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ a b "Paheli (1977) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos | Cinestaan". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ a b "Sawan Ko Aane Do (1979) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos | Cinestaan". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ a b "Saanch Ko Aanch Nahin (1979) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos | Cinestaan". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ "Vikram Aur Betaal: It was great storytelling with a twist". www.hindustantimes.com. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ "I would never regret playing lord Ram: Arun Govil - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "Recent news". www.friendsofprasarbharati.org. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
- ^ "Arun Govil in Jai Veer Hanuman". Archived from the original on 8 January 2022.
- ^ "Luv Kush, Uttar Ramayan episodes". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (Released) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos | Cinestaan". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "Lav Kush (1997) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos | Cinestaan". Cinestaan. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "Arun Govil with his wife Shrilekha". Photo Gallery. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ a b Ekta Chanana (15 October 2021). "Arun Govil real life Sita, Shreelekha". Bollywood Shaadi's.
- ^ "Remember Arun Govil Who Played Ram In The First Ever 'Ramayana'? His Daughter Is All Grown Up Now!". PagalParrot. 16 January 2018. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "Arun Govil of Ramayana fame joins BJP". The Indian Express. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
- ^ The Hindu (24 March 2024). "Kangana Ranaut, Arun Govil, Maneka Gandhi in BJP fifth list; Varun Gandhi dropped". Archived from the original on 25 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.