Mumbai, Jan 16, 2024
Actor Sharad Kelkar has added a dash of childhood Ram Leela magic to his Ravan character in ‘The Legend of Hanuman 3’, and despite the animated dubbing maze, he turned those tiny stage experiences into animated glory.
Elaborating on the same, Sharad said: “Throughout my childhood in a small town, we saw Ram Leela happening live every year. It was a great festive environment. It was mesmerising for me to see how these guys portrayed these characters through the 10 days of Ram Leela every day.”
“All the ‘adhya’s being played in such a tiny place without VFX or live action, with just a stage and costumes to express – it was a different feeling altogether. And that shaped my initial perception of the character of Ravan. But when you dub, you don’t quite have that ambience of a theatre and that kind of audience.
Also, the Ravan from Ram Leela is not multidimensional, as it shows only one aspect of his story. But I have tried to bring in awe in the character of Ravan from that experience, even though my portrayal of him in the show is very different,” shared the ‘Bhoomi’ actor.
He said: “As for the ambience, you have to believe that in a particular zone or moment when you are dubbing for the character or enacting, you have to be filled with that kind of invincibility or the ego or the power, so that you can portray it authentically.
“I think my childhood played a very important role. I saw actors with big ‘mukuts’ and costumes being loud enough on stage for the 5,000 people watching to be able to hear you.”
“Your voice should reach the last row of people. All this was very attractive for me. Sitting in a studio with a mic, you do have your limitations, but still, you try your voice to reach every viewer watching you on television or a mobile,” added Sharad.
‘The Legend of Hanuman Season 3’ showcases the timeless tales of Ramayana as the saga of Hanuman unfolds.
It is produced by Graphic India and created by Sharad Devarajan, Jeevan J Kang and Charuvi Agrawal. It is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.(Agency)
