Arun Govil and Dipika Chikhlia, who were seen together as Lord Ram and Sita in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan, have teamed up once again after 29 years for the movie Notice. The Free Press Journal recently interacted with Chikhlia and spoke to her about the movie, her experience of working with Govil again, and more.
Notice has started streaming on Waves OTT. What kind of response are you getting for the film from your fans?
My fans have been loving it because I've been getting a lot of messages, DMs on Instagram. They have watched it and loved it. They love the scene where I am telling off Arun ji about the medicines, and when I touch his feet in the beginning. So, those two scenes, they really love. They have really enjoyed the movie, and I think it's doing well.
You and Arun Govil have come together after 39 years. So, what was the experience of working with him again after so many years?
Honestly, I felt very comfortable because I've known him for all my life now. The major part of my life, I have known and worked with him. There was a huge sabbatical from my end because I was not working. But once I got back into working, we were doing events. Of course, an event is always just for one day or a few hours. But whenever we talk, I think it's very easy-flowing. He's asking me about my children and my husband. I'm asking him about his children and wife. So, I think it just falls very comfortably. It's more like a family affair.
What made you say yes to Notice?
I felt very confident when they came to me and said that they will make a good film, which is a very big thing. I'm glad I'm part of something like this. It's not a very big-budget movie. But it was a very honest movie made by them (makers). I really liked the plot. When you see the movie, you will know that it's a very honestly made, simple story about emotions, regular people, and how you fight the system. I think it was wonderful.
In the past few years, we haven't seen you in many movies or TV shows. Are you very selective when it comes to choosing a project?
I'll be honest, I don't get too many offers to do movies, and if, in case, I get movie offers, then it's like a one-scene or a one-day work, which I don't want to do. I also have the thing that I would not want to overstep my image of Sita and start doing scenes where I am abusing or smoking and wearing sleeveless clothes. I have a genre or a niche that I have created for myself, which is bold, strong and a good person. I don't mind doing comedy, I don't mind doing a fierce lawyer's role or a judge's role or a police inspector or anything which is positive and good. But I don't want to just be randomly part of a movie where I'm not contributing in any way as an actor. So, things haven't come to me the way I would have wanted them to. I really hope that Notice brings about that change in my career and I get better work.
Directed by Pradeep Gupta and produced by Aditya Pratap Singh Raghuvanshi, Notice started streaming on Waves OTT on November 6, 2026.
