Vishnu Puran (TV series)
A television series on the ten incarnations of Vishnu.
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Vishnu Puran is an Indian television series produced by B. R. Chopra, based on the Bhagavata Purana and centered on the Hindu deity Vishnu. It aired weekly on Zee TV starting 23 January 2000 and later on DD National, with Nitish Bharadwaj—who had previously played Krishna in Chopra's Mahabharat—portraying Vishnu.
Episode guide
Episode 1 opens with the narrator Dharti Maa (Mother Earth) introducing herself. After the world ends in fire and flood, only Vishnu remains; he creates Brahma and Shiva, and Brahma forms the world and the first humans, Manu and Shatarupa, who fall in love. In episode 2, King Uttanpada, son of Manu and Shatarupa, is swayed by his ambitious younger wife Suruchi and neglects his elder queen Suniti and their five-year-old son Dhruva. Suruchi throws Dhruva from his father's lap, and Uttanpada does not intervene; Suruchi tells the boy that only Lord Vishnu can grant him the power to sit on his father's lap.
Episode 3 follows Dhruva leaving the palace to find Vishnu. Goddess Lakshmi pleads with Vishnu to protect Dhruva and manifests as a snake to save him from dacoits. Manu scolds Uttanpada, who reconciles with Suniti, and they search for their son. Sage Narada, sent by Vishnu, guides Dhruva to the forest and gives him a mantra.
In episode 4, Goddess Parvati, at Lakshmi's request, sends her lion to guard Dhruva from wild beasts. Dhruva, on Narada's advice, stops eating and drinking. Vishnu tells Lakshmi he cannot descend for one person alone. Indra, fearing Dhruva may ask for his throne, sends the apsara Rakshita disguised as Dhruva's mother, but Dhruva ignores her.
Episode 5 shows Uttanpada miserable and Indra's attempts failing. Dhruva, following Narada's instruction, stops breathing, causing the universe to halt. With more than one person affected, Vishnu appears. In episode 6, Dhruva asks why his father denied him his lap.
Vishnu takes Dhruva on his own lap, healing his burns and hunger, and Dhruva feels bliss. Vishnu tells him to return and be an enlightened king. Dhruva goes home and forgives Suruchi, acknowledging that without her he would not have found Vishnu.
Did You Know?
- The title song was sung by Shankar Mahadevan.
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, DD Bharati, DD National and Zee TV re-aired episodes.
- By March 2001, the series was consistently in Zee's top 10 ratings.
More in Television Series Based on the Mahabharata
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Vishnu Puran (TV series) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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