Geet Ramayan: A Timeless Musical Epic

 G. D. Madgulkar’s lyrical narrative of the Ramayana transforms an epic into a song that speaks across generations.

The Geet Ramayan is a landmark of Indian music and Marathi literature and the most popular Marathi retelling of the Ramayana across literary, classical, cultural and spiritual spheres. Highly acclaimed for its lyrics, music and rendition, it was written by G. D. Madgulkar and sung by Sudhir Phadke and his team. Broadcast on All India Radio, Pune, in 1955–56, the work comprises 56 Marathi songs that narrate the events of the epic in chronological order. Created to entertain and to impart moral values, the Geet Ramayan remains a musical classic that continues to resonate through generations.

Madgulkar’s lyrical narrative is marked by unity and continuity. His lucid, simple and emotive style touches the hearts of listeners. He deftly weaves together theory and practice, philosophy and a vision of Hindutva as a way of life. The work echoes moral values, encourages spiritual awakening and educates audiences through its messages.

G. D. Madgulkar adopted a distinct narrative technique and was widely praised for his lyrics, earning him the title of a modern Valmiki. Geet Ramayan is regarded as the pinnacle of his literary work. He exercised artistic freedom in choosing metres, shaping the storyline and conveying its messages. Across 56 episodes of songs and commentary, 32 characters from the Ramayana were voiced. The poet captured the emotions of Rama, Sita, Hanuman and even the most humble figures, focusing on key dramatic moments and dialogues. Far from a single poem, the work is a sweeping collection that elevates the doctrine of Rama to its highest peak, akin to the Kalasubai summit in the Sahyadri. As the central figure of both the Ramayana and Geet Ramayan, Rama is portrayed in varied tones and moods, making him the most appreciated and frequently voiced character, with ten songs devoted to him.

The vivid portrayal of the Ramayana through song, music and dance held audiences captive, drawing them into the poetic narrative. In music, prosody refers to how meaning is conveyed through features such as emphasis, orchestration, melodic or rhythmic structure, and shifts in musical parameters. Identifying prosody from a set of audio clips is a challenge that can be approached using machine learning.

Prosodic features—tempo, melody and instrumentation—have been computationally analysed. Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients have proved useful for instrumentation-based classification, while song tempo offers partial insight into mood; for instance, sad songs tend to be slower than those expressing fear. This study identified a set of prosodic features to determine a song's mood from its refrain, using a regression-based ensemble learning model that achieved 73% accuracy. Although the dataset was relatively small, this is, to our knowledge, the first attempt to apply machine learning to estimate prosody in Marathi songs, and the results are promising.

These timeless compositions have won the hearts of Marathi literature enthusiasts and continue to bridge generations. Geet Ramayan transcends time, carrying forward an era of truth, justice and vivid drama while retelling an ageless story. The beauty of the Ramayana is eternal, touching the vast horizons of Hindu philosophy and speaking to every generation. Today’s audiences seek forms they can relate to, and the work meets this need.

The epilogue notes that Geet Ramayan is not merely a dialogue between Rama and his kin but a “trilectic” creation, engaging the poet, the epic narrative and the vast, expressive Indian audience. It successfully conveys the moral and spiritual essence of the epic in the spirit of Saint Dnyaneshwar’s language.

माझा मराठीची बोलू कौतुके। परि अमृतातेहि पैजासी जिंके। ऐसी अक्षरे रसिके। मेळवीन

Maza Marathiche bolu kautikepari Amrutache hi Painjasi jinke as akshare rasike milvin.

चैत्रमास, त्यांत शुद्ध नवमी ही तिथी/गंधयुक्त तरिहि वात उष्ण हे किती! दोन प्रहरिं कां ग शिरीं सूर्य थांबला? राम जन्मला ग सखी राम जन्मला.

In many Marathi homes, these lines are familiar to both children and adults. With Geet Ramayan now translated into Sanskrit, Bengali, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Konkani, Sindhi, Telugu and even Braille, its creators hope the message of Valmiki’s epic reaches far and wide. In the spirit of the great master, Madgulkar shared this enduring melody with the public. As Dnyaneshwar observed, the true revelation of poetry unfolds over centuries.

(The writer is an assistant professor of English literature. Views personal.)