Television in India started as a small business. The first Indian shows like Hum Log and Buniyaad were big serials but cost much less than the movies of that era. Even the shows that pushed the boundaries of Indian television like Ramayan and Mahabharat were not mega budget. But with the turn of the century, the budget and scale of Indian television shows skyrocketed. Today, the biggest and most expensive Indian show has a budget that is higher than any Indian movie ever made.
Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush
In 2019, Siddharth Kumar Tewary created a mythological show based on Ramayan called ‘Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush’. The show was the biggest show on Indian television at the time. According to reports, each episode of the show cost more than Rs 4 crore to make. Mid-Day reported that the show cost a whopping Rs 650 crore to make, more than any Indian show or movie before or after. Due to its scale, it is often compared to SS Rajamouli’s film ‘Baahubali’.
Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush
At the time of the show’s release in August 2019, the most expensive Indian film was ‘Saaho’, which had an estimated budget of Rs 350 crore. ‘Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush’ almost doubled it. Even ‘RRR’ (Rs 500 crore) and ‘Brahmastra’ (Rs 400 crore) couldn’t come close to it. Interestingly, in 2023, ‘Adipurush’, a film based on Ramayana, became India’s most expensive film. Although its budget was Rs 550 crore, it is still less than ‘Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush’.
Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush
Prabhas’ upcoming film ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ will surpass ‘Adipurush’ with a budget of Rs 600 crore but will not touch ‘Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush’. ‘Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush’ was based on Uttar Ramayana, which featured Luv and Kush, the sons of Lord Rama and Sita. The show featured Himanshu Soni as Lord Rama and Shivya Pathania as Sita. Krish Chauhan and Harshit Kabra played the roles of Luv and Kush. The show completed 141 episodes from August 2019 to end in February 2020.