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WORK
 Radio has made a spectacular comeback in Bangalore. I can count at least eleven FM channels today. Earlier, radio only meant All India Radio, but when you tune in now, you have a huge choice.
Or do you? RJs at the private FM channels do their job with great energy, but is their enthusiasm matched by their programming? Do you really get to hear any variety on radio?
The truth is that you are bombarded with 'the latest hits', and that hardly makes for wholesome radio. (In recent months, some channels have discovered the beauty of older songs, and run what they call 'retro' shows).
Thanks to greedy government policies on licensing, private radio channels fashion themselves more as vehicles for advertising than as independent media. In fact, they do little that's characteristic of a newspaper or a television channel.
Private FM channels provide no news and no editorial judgment; they say nothing that could be described as serious. Come to think of it, the RJs have a tough job: it isn't easy to say frivolous things all day long.
Private FM channels feed off film music. They have no interest in any other kind of music, although if they opened their ears and eyes, they'd find diverse genres flourishing in Bangalore.
The bhavageete form, for instance, is as easy to package as film music. Each bhavageete is three to four minutes long, and is as easily accessible to a lay listener as a film song. But the private channels won't go near it! And when it comes to classical music, if it's the length they are worried about, why can't they broadcast three-minute raga renditions? Bangalore also has youth bands that would be happy to perform on radio, but they just aren't represented on the airwaves.
Private stations play a surfeit of Kannada and Hindi film songs. One station plays popular English music. But on the whole, the new channels do not serve a fare that would be considered balanced by people outside the marketing world. For an older generation which grew up on AIR and perhaps a bit of BBC, the idea of radio stations doing no original work is a bit hard to swallow.
But it's not as though we have no silver lining. I love AIR for Amritavarshini, its classical music channel, and its openness to many genres of music. Worldspace, a satellite bouquet of radio channels, hasn't caught on as widely its promoters would have liked it to, but it has been one valiant effort at providing variety programming.
Have you noticed that the government radio guys were always called 'announcers' and not 'radio jockeys'?
Critics used to say they had a funereal air. I'd call them solemn, and strange as this may sound, I've come prefer that tone to the false, unwarranted cheer on private FM!
Give me my iPod any day
Sanchaytha Biswas (23), Tech support executive
There is no point in listening to radio now since most FM stations play regional music, which I don't understand or appreciate. I am happy with my iPod, so I don't need to tune in to radio
Why so much regional music?
Anjana Jain (22), Graphics designer
I used to listen to radio quite a lot when I was in college. Now I don't get seem to get enough time. I make it a point to tune in to my favourite radio station when I drive. I love listening to house and rock on radio. Radio stations have changed their programming. They are into regional music and that puts off a listener like me. I wish they would go back to the earlier format
Love the variety, hate the jingles
Aashi Kashyap (23), Software engineer
I am an avid listener of Bollywood songs. I listen to radio on my cell phone when I travel to work every morning. But I hate the jingles. I like a variety of music, so it's a good thing that there are so many choices I have when it comes to radio stations
Riding herd on the new boom
Being funny on air is not about ad-libbing, says Radio One's Rakesh Kumar
Agent Rakesh is Bangalore Radio One's very own James Bond. His job description is to woo listeners with smart lines and witty repartee. Having shot to popularity with campaigns such as Gelrappo Gelli, Lakshadipathy, Summer Dhamaka, World Cup Cricket, College Champions and Bollywood Baadshah, he says he likes his life to be "eventful and exciting".
"I'm a roaming reporter on radio. I get people to rave and rant on air. I am present wherever the action is, be it a cricket match or a morcha," he says.
Being funny on air is not about ad-libbing freely, Rakesh insists. "We've worked hard to come up with concepts like Men's Day, World Lungi Day, World Washbasin Day, etc. We look for humour in everyday life. We look for a new twist in every old tale. Take, for instance, the lungi. Most guys have seen it, worn it, and made jokes about it but have we thought seriously about its origins? Let's consider another object that we take for granted the washbasin. Can you imagine life without it? After the mobile phone, I think it's an object that we use the most," explains Rakesh.
What is his sage advice for youngsters who want to become radio jockeys? "Keep your eyes wide open. Stay tuned to what's happening around you. Think on your toes. An RJ doesn't merely have to fill in the blanks between songs, but should make any radio programme worthwhile for the listener," he says
Kanglish is the key
Prithvi, who hosts the Breakfast Show on Radio One, believes that RJs connect with their audience only when they speak the local language
There's more to Prithvi that the Radio One Breakfast Show and Birthday Bakra. The tennis pro has a razor-sharp brain that is programmed to look at the funny side of life always. Few know that he began his career with All India Radio.
"I was the funny guy in the gang in school and college. I hosted corporate events and club nights. About seven years ago, I found myself auditioning for All India Radio. But it took me a while to get comfortable on air," he says.
Describing the evolving role of a radio jockey, he says, "When I began working, the RJ had to write every single word of his script. Now, Rakesh and I are mostly spontaneous though we do draw a broad outline of the programme before we go on air. In fact, I talk so much that my bosses often tell me to shut up!"
Prithvi's fans love the way he modulates his voice and the ever-so-modest RJ quips, "Oh, it comes naturally to me!"
On a more serious note, he explains that he does not have a formally trained voice but loves to experiment. "I speak Kanglish, which is a mix of Kannada and English. Being a Kannadiga and knowing Kannada helps me give my programmes a local flavour. Moreover, the connect with your listeners is always higher when you speak their language." |
