NEW DELHI: At Patna’s Digha Ghat, Panchayat star Chandan Roy spoke to The New Indian’s Executive Editor Rohan Dua in a heartfelt riverside chat, reflecting on his journey from Vaishali to Mumbai, IIMC days, personal sacrifices, and the values that shape his craft.
Actor Chandan Roy, widely loved for his portrayal of Vikas in Panchayat, offered a heartfelt reflection on the show’s quiet but firm stance against patriarchy during an exclusive podcast with The New Indian’s Executive Editor Rohan Dua.
In a segment discussing the character arc of Manju Devi—the elected female head (Pradhan) of the fictional village Phulera—Chandan directly addressed a key tension in rural governance: the reality of male family members assuming control over elected women leaders.
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“It’s a practical issue,” Chandan acknowledged. “In real villages, if a woman is elected Pradhan, people often assume the husband is the real Pradhan. Or the brother. It’s very natural. You’ll see it everywhere.”
However, he emphasized that Panchayat as a show actively pushed back against this norm.
“We never promoted the idea that a husband should take over or dominate,” Chandan clarified. “In fact, our writer Chandan Kumar deserves praise. He beautifully portrayed that a husband’s role is to support his wife. Like during pregnancy—he should hold her hand and walk with her. Not walk ahead of her.”
He referred to a powerful moment in Season 1, Episode 8, when Manju Devi asserts herself by hoisting the national flag, despite opposition. In that moment, a DM tells her husband that a true leader supports his wife, rather than replacing her. Chandan called this “the real message of Panchayat.”
In an era where even women in politics often operate through their male relatives, Panchayat chose to shine light on the woman herself.
“Being a Pradhan is not just a post. It’s a position of leadership—and respect,” he said.
Chandan’s clarity on the subject speaks to a larger truth: that gender equality in leadership is not about replacing one authority with another—but about partnership.
