Beyond 'Gandhi'

As Dashavatar makes it to the Oscar Contention list, a Maharashtrian millennial fan girls over the versatile veteran actor Dilip Prabhavalkar

- Manasi Y Mastakar

Growing up in the 90s was its own kind of adventure. It was almost the turn of the century, and while I was lucky to have a colour TV at home, entertainment was still limited to a handful of channels and, of course, no OTT. I belong to that in-between generation that moved smoothly from Doordarshan reruns to the sudden explosion of private TV channels, and eventually YouTube clips and streaming platforms.

Somewhere in that changing media landscape, Dilip Prabhavalkar became more than just an actor I admired. He became a familiar presence. The kind that quietly settles into your memory without needing grand entry scenes or heroic background scores. His characters were never loud or larger-than-life. They were rooted, flawed, funny, awkward, and deeply human. And maybe that is why they stayed with me.

I didn't grow up watching Chimanrao Gundyabhau when it first aired in 1977-79, like my parents. But I did catch a few episodes during Doordarshan reruns in the 90s. As a child, black-and-white television felt boring, but my parents insisted we watch ‘good old serials’ and classic movies. Back then, I didn't fully get the magic. But something got etched in my memory.