I Am Rukmini Devi is an episode of Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum.
Plot[]
The Riddles do not appreciate their annual family tradition of walking down to a tree each year to lunch together.
The museum takes them back in time to 1911 to meet Rukmini Devi (born 1904, about seven years old at the time) and learn about her family tradition of Tiffin time where they sit down and eat together and talk.
There is then a time-skip twenty-four years later to 1935 (when Rukmini would be about 31 years old) and learn that Rukmini is resurrecting Bharatanatyam, the traditional storytelling dance fell out of practise under British rule.
Hearing her mom call for Tikki time again, the Riddles are impressed that Rukmini still carries on that family tradition. They are invited to join Tikki but refuse, saying they need to get back home to practise their own traditions.
Returning to the future, the Riddles are appreciative and go on the picnic, flashing back to how this was a tradition that goes back as far as their great grandparents.
Characters[]
- Xavier Riddle
- Yadina Riddle
- Brad Meltzer (character)
- Berby
- Dr. Zoom
- Rukmini Devi
- Rukmini's brother
- Rukmini's sister
- Rukmini's dad
- Rukmini's mom
- Riddles' dad
- Riddles' mom
- Riddles' dad's mom
- Riddle's dad's dad
- great grandpa
- great grandpa
- etc
Broadcast[]
It debuted 6:57am on Thursday 21st October 2021 on TVO Kids, followed by I Am Bob Ross. It will air in the US on the main PBS channel on January 28, 2022. The episode first aired on the PBS Kids 24/7 channel on January 14, 2022 along with Ross and I Am Fred Rogers.
Curriculum[]
Traditions tell the story of your family.
Trivia[]
- It's said that Rukmini Devi met up with Anna Pavlova sometime in her life, but it is never mentioned in the episode.
- Most notable in this episode to the Riddle family lore is the series of photographs shown at the end (see the gallery tab for more info). It begins with the character introduced in I Am Madam President, the woman referred to previous as Great-Great Grandma Riddle. She is pictured with the other great-great grandparent, presumably known equivalently as Great-Great Grandpa Riddle (even though he is never called that).
- It is shown that he and she were the ones who started the family tradition of visiting the tree, which was carried on through several generations. The last of four photos shows a young boy with them, presumably Great-Great Grandma Riddle's son.
- The next two photos are of the Riddles' dad as a boy (recognizable by his bear) with his parents and two sisters (never before mentioned!), and then a photo of their dad grown up with a young Xavier and Yadina (mom not pictured).
- Between these photos is a missed generation: it isn't made clear whether Great Grandpa Riddle (unless he isn't a parent at all and there was an unpictured sibling) had a son or a daughter, but one of those would be "Grandpa Riddle" or "Grandma Riddle" who was a parent to Xavier and Yadina's dad in the next image.
- The PBS KIDS video app lists this episode with Rukmini’s full name: “I am Rukmini Devi Arundale”, as opposed to just “I am Rukmini Devi”
