Radioduniya::June 2008

fm stations

public broadcasting

community radio

technology

www.radioduniya.in June 2008 | Vol: I | Issue: 8 Rs. 50/-

India’s first radio monthly

Radio is not competing

with TV Consumer Involvement is Increasing Abraham Thomas 15 The Colour of Music K Sanjay Prabhu

19

Host Talk Supriya Radio Jhankaar (WSR); Jimmy Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM Technology Its Time for Radio Data System

26, 31 Tapas Sen 37

Chief Programming Officer Radio Mirchi

4th

29 - 31 July 2008 Pragati Maidan, New Delhi Organisers

Co-organisers

Department of Information Technology, Ministry of Communications & IT Government of India

knowledge for change

UN Global Alliance for ICT and Development

Supporting partners

速

The World Bank e-Development Thematic Group

eINDIA2008 Exhibitors

eINDIA2008 Thematic Tracks

For Exhibition Enquires: sales@eINDIA.net.in For Opportunities and Information related to eINDIA2008, contact us at info@eINDIA.net.in

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editorial Alliance Between Radio and Cricket We know that people drive radio and according to media gurus, they are driven by cricket and films! So what does the big brother of entertainment in the form of cricketainmnet mean for radio? Since the IPL began we have seen a myriad of specials focused on the cricket fever that has gripped the country. We have had cricketers knocking on people's doors to get them to watch a match, several batting greats have donned the caps of radio hosts and enthralled the listeners with their wit and charm.

What does this marriage between radio and cricket mean for the listeners? How is the radio industry benefiting from the IPL and the cricket-craziness in the country and what really does it offer to the listeners? We take a look at these issues in our special story on IPL and radio.

We also take great pleasure in introducing a new section in our magazine with this issue, which we have christened ‘Programme Talk’. We all know that content is king, and the people who work on content are the programming people, so we decided to talk to them to get their perspective. We try to find out what makes radio the real medium of entertainment, what all goes into the planning of a show and how does the team catch the pulse of the city with its programming line-up.

We start the series with the interview of Radio Mirchi's Chief Programming Officer, Tapas Sen and in the pages that follow you will get to know all about the continuous innovation and hard work that goes into the creation of radio content. Such content that will establish a connect with the masses and thus prove beneficial for the advertisers as well.

We hope you enjoy the new addition to our content line-up and help us to evolve continuously as your magazine!!!

Ravi Gupta Ravi.Gupta@radioduniya.in

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Ravi Gupta President Dr. M P Narayanan Group Directors Maneesh Prasad Sanjay Kumar Marketing Team Bharti Malhotra Sr. Manager Marketing Bharat Jaiswal Sales Executive Email: sales@radioduniya.in

Content Team Sanjana Sharma Research Associate

Subscriptions & Circulation Lipika Dutta, Manoj Kumar, Prabhat Tripathi

Ayesha Khanom Research Assistant

Editorial Correspondence Radio Duniya G – 4, Sector 39, NOIDA 201301, India Tel: +91-120-2502180-85 Fax: +91-120-2500060 Email: talk2us@radioduniya.in Web: www.radioduniya.in

Design Team Bishwajeet Kumar Singh Chandrakesh Bihari Lal (James) Om Prakash Thakur Web Team Zia Salahuddin Amit Pal Anil Kumar Santosh Kumar Singh Shyam Kishore

© Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd. (www.elets.in)

is published by Ravi Gupta on behalf of Elets Technomedia Pvt. Ltd. India’s first radio monthly

Printed at Vinayak Print Media E-53, Sector-7, Noida, U.P. and published from G-4, Sector-39, Noida, U.P. Editor: Ravi Gupta

It is hoped that Radio Duniya will serve to foster a growing network by keeping the community up-to-date on many activities in this wide a n d v a r i e d f i e l d . Yo u r involvement in providing relevant information is essential to the success of this endevour.

Radio Duniya does not subscribe to the views expressed in the publication.

All views expressed in this issue are those of the contributors. It is not responsible for any loss to anyone due to the information provided.

contents

June 2008

34

Special Story Cricketainment on Radio

News

8,30,40

11 Campaign Events Industry Updates

23 11 15

31

19

49

Programme Talk 26

23 Station Talk Consumer Involvement is Increasing Abraham Thomas COO, Red FM

The Colour of Music K. Sanjay Prabhu COO, Radio Indigo

Supriya Radio Jhankaar (WorldSpace)

I am an Entertainer Jimmy Radio Mirchi

Radio is not Competing with TV Tapas Sen CPO, Radio Mirchi

Training

15

34

Understand the Medium Gopaal Malhotra, Dean, Live Wires

Technology

19 37

Host Thank God Radio Happened

45

Radio Data System Its Time for RDS

Community Radio

26 31

45

Pasumai FM 90.4

49

The Rural Radio

The People’s Radio

Nila FM 90.4

For your daily dose of Radio News Log on to www.radioduniya.in

Hi Radio Duniya team,

Dear Radio Duniya Team,

Its a revolution that you have created, one that would give a boost to the whole radio industry as such.

I just have received your magazine and I wanted to thank you for it. I really appreciate the work you guys are putting in to bring out a fabulous magazine. I really enjoyed reading through it.

I am a regular reader of your magazine, the content and the industry updates you provide are all really amazing.

I could gain lot of news about what’s happening around the industry and where lies the future of radio industry.

And apart from valuing the private FM’s, the interest shown by your publication in community radios is really appreciable.

Keep up the good work.

Vidushi Khera Lexicon PR & Corporate Consultants Ltd. Delhi

Keep going.

Hey friends, Rajkumar R Suryan FM 93.5 Dear Editor, We have started a Community Radio at Jadavpur University, Kolkata from 14th April 2008. We look forward to your magazine each month as it provides us with all the information on the happenings of the community radio movement in the country.

The success stories motivate us to devote ourselves to the cause of the community and we hope to provide a means for communication and empowerment to the local community and the University through our endevour.

Nilanjana Gupta School of Media Studies Jadavpur Univeristy

Thanks so much for the copies of the magazine. I am really very happy with the way you guys bring to the readers all the latest news and developments from the field of radio. Wish you all the best for the journey ahead.

Stay in touch Sowmya Ravindranath Radio Indigo Bangalore Dear Sir, Thank you for enlightening me regarding the licensing procedure for campus radio. Your magazine has ably guided our college management in pursuing the licensing issue further. We would like to thank you for the quick and informative reply to our queries and for acting as a guiding light for all campus/community radio enthusiasts.

Dear friend,

talk2us@radioduniya.in

Send your feedback to us at

TALK2US

I am a programme Executive of All India Radio, and I just wanted to write in and tell you that I am ardent fan of your magazine “Radio Duniya”. I would like to congratulate the whole team working on the magazine that brings the world of radio to us every month.

Raveendran All India Radio Kerala

N. Narasimha Kaushik Bangalore

Radio Careers Send information about job openings to

Hi Team Radio Duniya, The magazine is really good!

Hats of to the entire team that is working on the only radio magazine in the country.

Smita Khanna, Meow 104.8 FM Delhi

jobs@radioduniya.in June 2008 | Radio Duniya

BIG FM, organises blood donation camp for Jaipur blast victims BIG 92.7 FM organised a blood donation campaign in Udaipur to support the relief measures being undertaken for blast victims at Jaipur. The blast which ripped the ‘Pink City’ apart on 13 May left hundred of victims ailing and in need of blood, amongst other medical assistance.

As part of its endeavor of living its brand-line of Life Banao, the team at BIG 92.7 FM, Udaipur, came forward to support the relief measures by organizing a blood donation camp, where the employees and listeners came together to donate blood. The drive, organised on May 14, 2008 at the local government hospital Rabindranath Tagore Medical College, saw participation in huge numbers – where the RJ’s and employees of BIG 92.7 FM along with listeners came together for the good deed.

The severe blast that ripped through the ‘Pink City’ and tore apart the main commercial area had an immense impact on the state and consequently many activities came to stand still. The RJ’s of BIG 92.7 FM appealed to the listeners to join hands in the blood donation camp. Listeners registered themselves at the station by calling and sending messages.

BIG 92.7 FM’s Udaipur Station Director – Abhishek Sharma said, MY FM Jaipur connects people in crisis There is a certain level of power in radio that comes from its ability to mould according to the order of the day and needs of listeners. Radio yet again proved it by displaying a humane and friendly face in handling the serial blasts in Jaipur. When Jaipur was gripped in the serial bomb blasts tragedy, 94.3 MY FM Jaipur became the lifeline of Jaipurites, the voice of people, their personal media of seeking relief as well as seeking a connect with their near and dear ones, some of whom were seriously affected by the ghastly incident.

As soon as the news of blasts started pouring in, MY FM’s Jaipur station appealed to people to remain calm and peaceful. With the incident sinking in, MY FM started making announcements to motivate listeners for voluntary blood donations. MY FM Udaipur

“Tuesday’s serial blast in Jaipur have been a rude shock for all of us. Given the reach of radio today, the influence that it can have on the public at large is tremendous. The influence that Radio can have today is immense and especially so in times of crisis such as this. This initiative is an extension of our brand-line Life Banao and our endeavor to impact our listeners lives positively. “ station was able to enlist some 120 donors for a particular blood group which was scarce in Jaipur. Their data was transmitted to Jaipur and from there to Sawai Mansingh Hospital for necessary actions. The Jaipur station was also broadcasting its listeners’ inquiries from MY FM’s other 16 stations about the welfare of their relatives and friends.

At least twenty listeners from Jodhpur were connected to their loved ones in Jaipur who were making inquiry about their welfare. MY FM mourned the victims of mindless terror act by observing 2 minute silence on air, next morning on June 14, at 9.00 am. The station also urged people on air to light a candle on 16th May to mourn the departed souls.

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

BIG FM Kolkata gets new Station Head BIG 92.7 FM, has announced a new movement within the company by appointing Ramita Chaudhuri as the Station Head-Kolkata. With her new portfolio, Ramita will be working towards developing huge on-air properties for leading brands and providing integrated marketing solutions to clients.

cities across east, effective marketing spikes to get Brand Top of Mind and increase listener base – Shonar Brishti, Cool Maal Dhamaal, Tikey Thakun Gadi Jitun, tactical integrated marketing-programming initiatives like Para Picnic and regular local level consumer connect activities, product sampling through radio seeding in auto rickshaws, restaurants, hang outs, other catchments areas, product and marketing re-launch positioning for Bhuvaneswar (Voice of Orissa) and many others.

As Station Head - Kolkata, Ramita will report to Rohit Dhar - Regional Director-East, BIG FM. Her span of work would encompass overall functioning of the Kolkata station, adding value continuously to station profitability and finally amplifying listenership to an exalting status.

Ramita has over nine years of experience in communications and marketing industry with specialized knowledge in direct marketing and brand management. As the Regional Marketing Head for the eastern region, BIG FM, Ramita’s achievements have been multifarious successful launch of marketing campaign in Kolkata and 6

“Ramita’s excellent track record in creating marketing hallmarks for the station would surely help her in her new role and we are sure that Kolkata under her leadership would see new vistas in brand equity”, added Soumen Choudhury, Regional Head-East and South, BIG FM.

Radio Mirchi ties up with Bangalore Marathon 2008 Radio Mirchi has been roped in as official radio partner for the Bangalore Marathon (Sunfeast World 10K Run). The FM station has been promoting the Marathon through a campaign titled ‘Run Maadi Run’. The Marathon will witness some of the world’s best sporting talents, cine stars, and fitness freaks taking part on May 18.

Radio Mirchi is also organising a ‘pasta party’ in Bangalore at the Get Active Expo from May 14-18, 2008. Radio Mirchi plans to do a live broadcast from the expo venue on May 15-16, where RJs would interact with the listeners.

Rahul Balyan, Cluster Business Head-Karnataka & Kerala, Radio Mirchi, said, “Sunfeast World 10K will be a great addition to the already rich cultural landscape of Bangalore and we are happy to lend our support to this world-class event. There are many on-air innovations that we have done to create awareness about running and getting people to participate in the 10K run. We strongly urge everyone to turn up for the event and participate in all the fun and excitement. The entire team of Radio Mirchi is also training for the run and will be participating too.”

Radio City on the prowl for Pune’s Corporate May King and Queen corporate fraternity create a fashion statement and unfurl the latest trends while having the time of their lives! The Pune’s Radio City 91.1 ‘Corporate May King and Corporate May Queen’ pageant FM is partnering with will integrate the ‘Whatte Fun’ element with unique rounds Brain Cell to host an like Whatte Dance, Whatte Fashion and Whatte Fireworks absolute ‘first-of-its- and take the venue by storm with winners grabbing exclusive kind’ event exclusively entertainment and fine-dining vouchers. The Pageant winners for corporates in Pune. get to visit the Radio City studios and share a first hand In a quest to offer a ‘LIVE’ experience of a studio interview made complete with refreshing change to Pune’s Radio City RJs. all corporate professionals confined to their business routines, Radio City Commenting on the initiative, Rana Barua, National Head 91.1FM and Brain Cell are organizing a ‘Corporate May King and Marketing and Programming, Radio City 91.1 FM said, “With Corporate May Queen’ pageant spanning across corporate sectors of most of Pune consisting of a young, driven workforce our aim business. The response so far has been tremendous with about 2000 is to reach out to these Corporate Punekars who generally professionals participating in this trendy initiative fashioned by the have limited access to participate in such fun filled events Pune’s ‘Whatte Fun’ FM station! due to their hectic work schedules. Participating in such interactive forums boosts employee morale tremendously As part of this association, 15 lucky listeners will get the opportunity and provides them with an apt platform for self expression! to win couple’s entry for an electrifying Finale to be held at Sharao And what better way to accomplish this than in the Radio Lawns, Kothrud on. These contest winners can witness Pune’s City Whatte Fun style!” www.radioduniya.in

Anant and Saurabh return to Radio Mirchi Radio Mirchi’s morning show ‘Hi Delhi’ has been infected by a virus from May 12 with the return of hosts Anant and Saurabh, popularly known as ‘Radio Ke Virus’. The morning show features special segments like ‘Mausam Mausi’, ‘Jeene Ke Bahane’, ‘Horoscope’, ‘Good, Bad, Ugly’, ‘Topic of the Day’, ‘ Mirchi Giraftaar’ and ‘Mirchi Rap’.

Saurabh added, “Radio Mirchi is the number one radio station. Our main objective is to put a smile on our listeners’ faces. ‘Hi Delhi’ is completely entertaining, youthful and vibrant. Our listeners will get a daily dose of their own city and as well as the world through this show.”

Radio City takes on the melody music mantle Tapas Sen, Chief Programming Head, Radio Mirchi, said, ‘Hi Delhi’ is the completely mad, lunatic programme, which makes it unbelievably entertaining. This programme is done by two raving mad people – Anant and Saurabh – who are the craziest partners on air.”

Said RJ Anant, “We are back on the station especially for our listeners, who want to hear us again. Our main objective is to make our listeners smile at our pranks.”

Shankar B quits Hello FM, joins E18 as National Sales Head Shankar B is joining E18, one of Network18’s latest ventures, as National Sales Head. He moves from Hello FM, where he had a two-year stint as VP-Sales.

He takes charge from May 16 and will be based in Mumbai.

Shankar has 15 years’ experience in media sales, including eight years in the television space. He began his career in 1993 with Getit Yellow Pages. He was earlier with Raj TV for more than five years, before moving to Turner International as Director, Ad Sales for 13 months. He then rejoined Raj TV.

Radio City 91.1FM has launched an exciting new campaign highlighting its musical supremacy. Championing the cause of music by highlighting the monotony of noise prevalent in the domain, Radio City 91.1FM is unleashing its ground-breaking campaign ‘Baaki Shor Machaayein, Radio City Music Sunaaaye’, showcasing its claim on music.

Radio City offers a differentiated listening experience with its focus on melody music. Breaking through the clutter of cacophony, Radio City is reaffirming its promise to offer listeners a truly dedicated musical experience. The campaign ‘Baaki Shor Machaayein, Radio City Music Sunaaaye’ forthrightly underlines Radio City’s music authority in a scenario chaotic with noise.

Differentiating between this noise and melody, the campaign instantly draws a well defined line separating noise from music and Radio City reiterating the station’s musical commitment to Mumbai.

Commenting on the rationale behind the campaign, Rana Barua, National Head – Programming and Marketing, Radio City 91.1FM says, “We were the first to initiate a spark of differentiation in a cluttered market space with our Adult Contemporary melody music format. We are now creating a differentiated identity through the kind of music we play. As FM radio’s music experts, music has always been our forte. This is reflected in our music led programming innovations and the music we play. Our playlists are extensively researched and honed to provide Mumbaikars the music they really enjoy. The fact that the Mumbai listeners spend highest time spent listening on Radio City is a testimony to this. Our uncompromising focus on melody sharply makes us stand out. It is with great pride and confidence in our music that I say – that Radio City plays melody. Radio City plays music.

Period!”

This integrated campaign comprises arresting, hi-impact outdoors, innovative and disruptive activation coupled with onair support to create a holistic and interactive brand environment for listeners

Shankar is a graduate in physics from Madras University with post-graduation in systems management from NIIT. But his passion to meet more people saw his transition from a computer programmer to an ad sales professional.

The company will provide complete solutions for all BTL activities of corporate clients. The division will function as a full service agency for corporate events, including product launches, corporate seminars, meets and conferences, retail marketing programmes, and road shows, among others.

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

Cricketainment on Radio!

A

fter India won the inaugural edition of the Twenty20 World Cup, Indian Premier League better known as IPL, the private league of the BCCI has taken the country by storm. The earliest form of cricket broadcast for the Indian audience was through live cricket commentary broadcast on All India Radio. Then came the age of television, with Doordarshan first and later on satellite channels, telecasting matches live and the 24x7 news channels coming up with breaking news with each ball bowled and every wicket taken. IPL has in fact taken the game to virtually every household in the country.

Cricket has been growing on us with the ever increasing mediascape, but now it has reached a whole new level with IPL and the rise of cricketainment! From infotainment and edutainment to cricketainment, undoubtedly the radio scene in the country stands to benefit greatly from the frenzy around cricket in the country and www.radioduniya.in

the joy ride has already begun! All around us today, radio stations have tied up with some team or the other for the IPL. This association not only brings listeners closer to their favourite cricketers, but also helps them be a part of the game. The talk about increasing diversity of content on radio acquires a whole new impetus with the specials on radio around IPL. Bollywood and cricket drive the nation and until about last month, it was Bollywood that ruled the airwaves, with radio stations playing the latest film songs, day and night. Now, with the IPL frenzy gripping the nation, radio has a found a new raison d’atre! It has joined the march full-on with special shows, contests, endorsements and promotional activities. Radio City was the official partner of the Bangalore Royal Challengers, Red FM tied up with the Mumbai Indians, Fever 104 signed up with Delhi Daredevils, MY FM supported the Rajasthan Royals, while Big FM Hyderabad was the official partner of the Deccan Chargers among others.

11

Radio City announced a national IPL extravaganza by launching its own ‘Radio City 11’. Raising the entertainment quotient of the game, the station took its listeners and cricket enthusiasts through a thrilling nationwide roller-coaster of action-packed initiatives ensuring a delightful experience for listeners across Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad! Radio City was the official and exclusive radio partner for Vijay Mallya’s Bangalore Royal Challengers. As part of this association, Bangalore’s ‘Radio City 11’ got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet the Royal Challengers team.

Commenting on this national IPL extravaganza, Rana Barua, National Head – Programming and Marketing, Radio City 91.1FM, said, “Our national contest, partnership with the Royal Challengers and association with the ‘Super Kings Warrior Anthem’, each present a rich bouquet of irresistible offerings to the listener. Thus be it cheering for IPL teams, providing our listeners exclusive match and player access or expert on-the-spot match updates, we are gunning for sheer listener delight by ensuring live and wholesome cricket infotainment!”

Red FM, in an ultimate show of support for Mumbai Indians, Mumbai’s favorite team, unveiled a huge surprise for Mumbaikars. In a first of its kind brand integration, ‘Red FM’ became ‘Blue FM’, for a whole day, on 20th of April when Mumbai Indians played their inaugural match in the league.

It all started when Sachin Tendulkar captain of the

Mumbai Indians team challenged RJ Malishka to become the team’s lucky charm by turning RED FM to Blue FM for a day. Malishka then hatched a conspiracy internally, got all the jocks to rally with her and started putting pressure on the Boss to change Red FM to Blue FM in support of Mumbai’s home team. In the end it was the Captain of the Mumbai Indians, Sachin Tendulkar along with all the Red FM RJs who managed to convince the boss to turn Red FM to Blue FM as a good luck charm for the Mumbai Indians. On Mumbai Indian’s inaugural match day, to everyone’s surprise, the station name actually changed to Blue FM, the official color of the Mumbai Indians team.

Commenting on the initiative, Anuj Singh, National Marketing Head and Station Head (Mumbai), Red FM, said, “Red FM goes down in the pages of history as the first radio station to change its name, identity and jingle in support of a cricket team. Red FM is known for always doing things differently, and with this initiative the station once again proves it mettle in setting the standards in the industry. I hope that every Mumbaikar can relate to this spirit of solidarity and come together to support and cheer the Mumbai Indians to victory!”

Fever 104 FM celebrated Daredevil Deewangee and gave listeners a wide gamut of experiences – from leading the teams out onto the playing field, winning official merchandise and winning match tickets, to listening to their local heroes co-hosting shows on-air, getting a chance to see practice sessions, and a chance to have cricketers come and meet them at their homes.

As a part of the IPL Fever campaign, Fever 104 designed a number of innovative marketing and programming specials – creating a special song in support of the team, the ‘Daredevils Lalkaar ’, ‘Captain’s Knock’, ‘Dare to Win’ – an opportunity to win match tickets and Official Merchandise, ‘Jr Daredevils’, ‘Paaji Please’and ‘Wish the Captain’, apart from having the players as guests in the studio and chatting with them about the IPL experience, score updates etc.

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

“The IPL and radio association provides a win-win situation for all – the team gets a more involved and popular support within the city, while Fever gets a lot of refreshing content for the listeners apart from being able to create a strong bond with Delhi’s listeners”, according to Neeraj Chaturvedi, Station Head, Fever 108 FM. IPL team Delhi Dare Devils found another radio ally in the form of Radio Mirchi. The FM station even created a special on air character called D2 (Ditto), who gave his own brand of advice and strategies to be adopted by team Delhi. This apart, several contests were lined up for Mirchi listeners to keep them ‘Khush’ during the tournament.

According to Tapas Sen, Chief Programming Officer, Radio Mirchi, “Most of our programming during the time of the matches gets fully integrated with IPL. We regularly update our listeners about all the on field and off field activities taking place. We follow the teams in various cities and have players coming in to our studios and interacting with the listeners to give them a better perspective of what is happening on and off the field.”

Srinivasa Shenoy, Cluster head, Radio Mirchi, Delhi, said, “Radio Mirchi’s association with the Delhi Dare Devils team is yet another commemoration of the country’s favourite game – Cricket. It is also a way through which we not only connect with our listeners, but also join hands with cricket lovers across the country. We understand the passion that Indians have for cricket and are happy that such renowned international cricketers have joined hands with us to wish the Delhi Dare Devils team all the best.”

94.3 MY FM gave the Rajasthan Royals a huge playing field quite literally! “We pride ourself on our local content and cricket being a religion in India, it was natural for us to support the IPL frenzy in the state,” says Harrish M. Bhatia, COO, MY FM. Programming innovations on the station include continuous match updates, contests, cricket flavoured discussions and a plethora of on ground activities.

With entertainment fundas in the form of “Halla Bol”,

a big shout out to the Rajasthan Royals and on-air contests and on-ground activities like a ‘Halla Bol’ Bikers Troupe and The Loyals of Rajasthan Royals floats, MY FM has gone all out in the Mega War of the Indian Premier League.

Commenting on the campaign, Harrish adds, “Cricket is undoubtedly the flavour of the season and with IPL coming in, the fever has caught up everywhere. MY FM has stations in almost every part of Rajasthan, so we wanted to be closely associated with the Rajasthan Royals, bringing the entire state together as a team to support them and march into the cricketing warfare with ‘Halla Bol!’ - our shout out as The Loyals of Rajasthan Royals.”

BIG 92.7 FM added to the fun and euphoria surrounding the IPL cricket mania in Kolkata.

Apart from match updates and live feedbacks from the ground, it introduced a Mojar Adda on cricket with celebrities on BIG Chumuk on each day of the match. Personalities like Deep Dasgupta, Ranadeb Bose, LakhshmiRatan Shukla (Kolkata Knight Rider team player), veteran broadcasters like Kishore Bhimani, Rupak Saha and Hironmoy Chatterjee and celebrities from the galamour world like Madhumanti Maitra, Koneenica, Rupanjana and Chaity Ghoshal were brought on-air to discuss cricket with the listeners.

A special character called ‘Googly Ganguly’ was also brought in with his hilarious astro predictions, humorous quips about matches and his

‘Solli Addi’ also promoted the culture of community listening where people who could not afford a payed channel like Set Max or did not have access to a television set, could simply tune into Hello Fm and experience the real thing on air! As Rajeev puts it, “IPL matches were in essense telecast on Hello FM”

talkathon describing his obsession with Kolkata Knight Riders. Speaking on this initiative Soumen Choudhury (Regional Head-East and South) said, “Google Ganguly is a unique offering of BIG FM which would not only regale the listeners through a Mojar Adda but also forge their bonding with the station. Surely, the signature fun quotient that BIG FM promises would only be upped during the IPL matches”.

If these were all official tie-ups, then there was nothing official about the association between Hello FM and the Chennai Super Kings. The FM station launched an IPL centric cricket game, ‘Solli Addi’ and joined the IPL frenzy with an on air cricket carnival. The show was aired during the 14 Chennai Super Kings matches across India and was hosted

by RJ Suresh and team, who offered the callers huge cash prizes. The programme was a brain game that played on intuition and prediction of the numbers of runs per over with a cash price of Rs 1000 for each over. The callers who predicted the exact number of runs for each over won the cash prize for the respective over and progressed to the next round of the consecutive over.

According to Hello FM CEO Rajeev Nambiar, “With the IPL frenzy reaching out and impacting the lives of millions of Indians, we figured it apt to participate in the cricket revolution, with a new angle of livewire entertainment, drawing maximum audience involvement into the game, unlike the stale updates on the matches. Solli Addi gives the listeners a chance to actually experience the match setting with all the fun and tamasha that is part of watching a live game in the stadium. What really added to the fun was the manner in which the show was hosted by Suresh, who ensured that even those people who were watching the match on TV, would turn off the volume and tune into radio for the real commentary, in their own language.”

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The larger question though, is what does this mean for radio programming in the days to come. According to Harrish M. Bhatia, COO MY FM, “In India, cricketainment is one of the biggest avenues of entertainment as it appeals to one and all. Radio’s association with this is only a manifestation of its commitment towards its audience, which is of prime importance to radio.

It has always been a medium of the masses and it will remain so even in the long run.”

Though Rajeev agrees that there is a great scope for more cricket on radio, but the way forward is only through fun-filled, listener driven shows like ‘Solli Addi’. “Doing a ball by ball commentary is not very exciting and radio has to give listeners a different experience so that they can actually visualise what is happening on the field, something which can be done only with greater interaction between the public and the radio jockeys,” he adds.

IPL has entirely changed the way live cricket was delivered to audiences across the country. Almost all the major stations have signed up with some or the other team. Getting the players to don the cap of host has given the listeners an entirely new perspective of their favorite players. Listeners are getting huge prizes and big money by participating in all the on air contents that are held during match days. In this form of cricket where sixers, fours, wickets, cheerleaders, money and prizes are ruling the roost, radio has certainly helped in taking cricket broadcast to the next level. As Sachin Tendulkar rightly puts it, “The IPL has taken the game to virtually every house in the world.” and radio is surely contributing to this revolution.

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

Consumer Involvement is Increasing Abraham Thomas, Chief Operating Officer, Red FM started his career in the print media with The Indian Express, from where he moved to television as Director - Sales for SET MAX and AXN. From a mass entertainment channel he then moved to MTV Networks. Since March 2005, when he joined as COO, Abe has led from the front at Red FM and helped the brand emerge as the leading radio station in Mumbai.

He believes that his strong background in revenue generation and his experience in working with client brands helps him to drive programming and marketing towards increased listener pleasure, while co-creating win-win marketing solutions for his clients.

What are your views on the changing radio scenario in the country?

Consumers today want to not just participate but also create content, as is evident by the success of concepts like the Red Mike – which focused on user generated content. Involvement is actually increasing amongst the core consumer groups. It is this need of the people that radio players need to target. Radio has the potential of becoming a social media for India’s middle class!

Another important factor is the tendency to consume media while ‘on the go’. For radio this has a big advantage as the medium very comfortably lends itself to consumption while on the move. This has an impact on the way radio can be useful for brand promotions.

Radio is all poised to become more than just radio; stations are moving beyond radio to branding and marketing solutions for clients. Even today, advertisers are recognising the power of this medium in influencing consumers at a very personal and credible level. www.radioduniya.in

At the listener level, radio still has an advantage, as consumers don’t have biases about what is or isn’t acceptable on this medium, which means much more freedom to experiment!

Listenership has not increased with increasing radio stations, what do you think are the main reasons for this?

While overall listenership might not have increased, what is interesting to note is that, the quality of listenership has improved. About 2-3 years back, listeners couldn’t differentiate one radio station from another, today radio stations have a more loyal fan following, specially if they are relevant and consistent in their offering. For an advertiser looking for a long term association with this medium this is more important.

All radio channels are trying to develop a brand identity. What is Red FM’s brand strategy?

Red FM is currently the Number 1 radio station in Mumbai and has sustained itself on a very strong brand proposition of being the ‘Station for 15

We are continuously reinventing ourselves to remain relevant to our audiences.

philosophy of providing a station for expression for its listeners has gone down well with the audiences.

While earlier people took ‘Bajaate Raho’ literally to mean ‘Keep Playing music’ today, they have come to associate it with the attitude of ‘raising issues and bajaaoing them’.

There is a need for content differentiation to tap listeners. What sets Red FM apart from the other players?

We are the only fully formatted radio station based on the internationally successful, CHR (Contemporary Hits Radio) format. Our promise on air is that every song is a superhit song, even if it means a very tight play list. Besides that, the Bajaate Raho attitude is ingrained in all our programming, marketing and communications efforts. Our jocks like Malishka, Mantra, Nitin, etc. personify this attitude on-air. So, be it taking the case of a ‘neta’, or ‘bajaaoing’ a celeb for their antics we have been there and done that.

Expression’ of the common man. Our attitude of ‘Bajaate Raho’ has evolved over a period of time to being much widely understood for all its different interpretations, which are, to keep playing and to raise issues that effect people.

Today, listeners recognise the Red FM way of doing things and this is clearly differentiated in their minds. Our brand strategy has been based on the fact that, no matter what time of the day one tunes in to Red FM he can expect the same attitude and the same tempo of music on-air.

In the past year, through our various tie-ups across direct consumption touch points, such as Cinemax, PVR, Pantaloons stores, Big Bazaar, etc., we have tried to extend the same attitude to our listeners in their daily lives. A lot of our marketing efforts concentrate on BTL activities and that coupled with the use of innovative and novel media has helped Red FM gain a strong foothold in the market.

How did the concept of Bajaate Raho come about? How useful has it been in establishing Red FM as a brand?

In 2005, we changed our positioning from ‘Asli Masti’ to ‘Bajaate Raho!’, this change was because we felt there was a need for a more ‘real’ radio station which reflected the true state of mind of its listeners. At a time when most stations were in the realm of ‘escapism’, we were shouting ‘Bajaate Raho! – issues that matter to YOU’. Red FM’s 16

We also consciously develop properties and segments which communicate this attitude. For e.g. the recently held Bajaate Raho Awards which celebrated the depths of excellence in various categories from the entertainment realm, or segments like ‘Kamla Ka Hamla’, ‘Prayaas’ ‘Satak’ etc. all communicate our unique brand attitude.

What are the expansion plans of Red FM for the phase three of licensing?

We are now looking at extending the brand directly to the consumers and make it accessible to them through various platforms, such as on-air, off-air, on-ground and even television. We recently did that with the ‘Bajaate Raho Awards’.

What kind of radio stations do you see growing in the future?

The Rule of Three will apply in this industry, where the top three players will control majority of the shares and the remaining players will have to find suitable niches for themselves. So, while there will be a few mass players there will be a host of niches targeting different segments of the population.

What are the social roles and responsibilities of radio stations towards their listeners? How does Red FM balance between the commercial and the social aspects of radio?

‘Red FM Bajaao for a cause’ initiated last year on the occasion of the 2nd Anniversary of ‘Morning No.1’ with Malishka, was an initiative to club all social activities under a single umbrella, so as to direct a concentrated and sustained effort towards this direction. In the past three years, Red FM has June 2008 | Radio Duniya

been able to build tremendous equity and goodwill as a socially conscious radio station, continuously raising and talking about issues that affect the common man. Though we don’t claim to be social activists, we do provide a platform for people to express themselves.

So, if its helping underprivileged children in Mumbai or an AIDS awareness drive amongst truck drivers or working towards a cleaner Delhi – with the Nitin Jhadu Maar activity, it was all amplified under the banner ‘Bajaao for a cause’. The thought behind this is to provide a recognizable unit with the sole purpose of social awareness and aid. Being a mass media we have certain responsibilities towards the society and will always welcome partners and supporters, be it celebrities or even proactive residential societies, to contribute.

What are the most exciting technological developments for the radio industry today?

Radio is one medium which is complimented by new technology rather than being put at a disadvantage.

From a distribution point of view, radio on various platforms such as mobile phones, internet, etc. will help increase the reach of this medium. Initiatives like digital radio, better broadcast technologies, etc. will enable a richer consumption experience.

What are your views on Radio Audience Measurement? What are the kinds of tools you would like to see being used as the system grows?

I would like to say that a common currency is very important to increase ad spends in the medium. The diary method is widespread and has international acceptance, but all measurement systems, be it diary, DAR, or electronic have their pluses and minuses. I believe all three of them can co-exist in different tiers of the markets. The electronic measurement system is too expensive for tier 2 and 3 cities, but might be suitable for the main metros, but its important to do a cost – effectiveness analysis before adopting any mechanism.

name but also its tag line and station jingle in order to support a cricket team.

In the past such initiatives have been widely appreciated by both the clients and listeners and have also won us many awards. For e.g. Red FM’s ‘McDonalds Home Delivery - Breakfast with Malishka’ won a silver Abby at the Goafest for the ‘Best Use of Radio’. This set the trend of giving a ‘Reality show’ like feel to promotions. With the use of RJs in such advertorials on radio we have been successful in lending credibility to the client’s advertisements and thus add value.

For the specific purpose of delivering innovative client solutions, we have pioneered a creative

No matter what time of the day one tunes in to Red FM he can expect the same attitude and the same tempo of music on-air. solutions team, which is a dedicated in-house team responsible for creating radio solutions to meet the specific needs of the clients.

What are your views on the TR AI recommendations for private FM relating to news on FM, FDI, networking etc?

Allowing news on radio is a welcome move, as it will drive penetration and consumption of the medium and ultimately benefit all the players. But we will have to wait and watch in terms of how the mechanics of this will work out.

The TRAI recommendations reflect the state of mind of the radio industry. More FDI will enable better development, international standards and practices, for the industry as a whole.

Radio advertising has not really picked up, as most advertisers see radio as a reminder medium. What is Red FM doing to tap the advertisers / media buyers?

You have handled various mediums like TV, Print and radio in the course of your career.

How would you compare these mediums?

What is easier to sell and which is the most challenging?

We are continuously reinventing ourselves to remain relevant to our audiences. For e.g. with the cricket frenzy hitting the city with the DLF IPL, Red FM, partnered with Mumbai’s team ‘The Mumbai Indians’. To display our support towards the city and towards cricket, which is one of the main pillars of our programming strategy, Red FM turned to BLUE FM for a whole day, this was the first time a radio station had not only changed its

All three media are unique in their own sense. The essence of selling is that its finally about solution selling and marketing partnerships to meet the specific needs of the marketers. Different media adapt themselves differently to this need. Radio is live and real and works on the principal of the ‘Theatre of Mind’. As a medium it therefore offers a seamless integration for brands as compared to other mediums.

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Station Launch Club FM’s fourth station goes on air in Cochin Club FM, the FM venture of the Mathrubhumi Group, hit the Cochin airwaves on May 16. With this FM station, Club FM has completed the launch of all its four stations. Apart from Cochin, Club FM is present in Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Kannur.

Shreyams Kumar, Director, Electronics Media, Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing Co, is gung-ho about the Cochin market, which is considered to be the fiefdom of the Matrubhumi Group. Club FM will be on air from 5 am till midnight everyday. Apart from regular interactive and live shows, the FM station has lined up some live road shows as part of its exclusive ‘connect to people’ marketing strategy.

Kumar feels that the three RAPA Awards for station anthem, humour programme category and best female radio jockey is a reiteration of the fact that Club FM’s programme quality is the ultimate differentiating factor for its success.

Meanwhile, adding to its medley of music and game shows, Club FM will be coming up with a new lunch time show, ‘Meals Ready’, especially crafted to capture the distinctive eating-out habit of the people of Cochin. The show will cover various eateries and food joints of the city.

Radio One launched in Pune

Radio Mango 91.9 goes on air in Kochi

Radio One is increasing its reach in the western region. The station already has operations in Ahmedabad and Mumbai, and from May 12, 2008, Pune has been added to its fold. Vineet Singh Hukmani, CEO, Radio One, said that with this, Radio One has completed its presence in the western markets, which is one of the key areas of its target audience.

Radio Mango 91.9 launched its operations in Kochi on 18 May 2008. The latest initiative from Malayala Manorama Publications, Radio Mango 91.9 has already made its presence at Kozhikode, Thrissur and Kannur. As part of the Kochi launch, the station undertook an intensive multimedia campaign along with innovative on-ground promotional activities across the city. Predominantly a music station, the song list would include a mix of Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi and even English. In addition the station would also include its already popular jocktalks, stationalities, segments etc which are now specially created for listeners in Kochi.

An official communiqué stated: “Kolkata is the only station remaining in the Radio One footprint, and by August Radio One would be active in all metros -- Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Pune.”

Elaborating further on its target group, Hukmani said, “We are targeting a ‘masstige’, i.e., mass with prestige audience, which is Hindi speaking, loves Bollywood, and is definitely more educated. This target is largely the age group of 20 to 34 years. In Pune, Radio One clearly is for the young, urban Pune-ites.”

Hukmani is optimistic of Radio One’s performance in the Pune market.

When asked further on this, he replied, “We are already number one in our segment, as we are focussed. We are not competing against other radio stations, as they target a different section of audience.”

He added, “We feel the overall national play is going to be divided in two ways. First is a ‘Quantity Reach Player’, that is, a large network footprint play where the player with the most number of stations would win. The other is where we would focus on metro city attitude. The ‘Quality Impact Player’ comes into play here. We feel our metro strategy would help us provide better ‘quality’ audiences, especially to brands who target age group of 20-34. With this strategy, we would be the most efficient in value as we would not charge brands for what we call ‘crass mass’ spillover.

We will only charge them to reach their metro ‘masstige’ audience.”

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As a build up to the launch in Kochi, Radio Mango had initiated the country’s biggest on-ground reality show christened ‘Nattile Tharam’, meaning the ‘Star of the State’, the show covered over 800 panchayats across the length and breadth of the state in a span of just 30 days.

Commenting on the occasion, Amit Mathew, General Manager, Radio Mango 91.9 said, “Coming from the house of Malayala Manorama, we have an indepth understanding of the lifestyles, tastes and preferences of the listeners in Kerala. This has enabled us to formulate the right programme mix and marketing strategies. The recent IMRB study has ranked us No.1 at the 3 stations we currently operate. We are confidant that we will be able to replicate the success story in Kochi too”

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

The Colour of Music K. Sanjay Prabhu, Director and COO, Radio Indigo has been associated with the station since its inception. He led the radio station on the WorldSpace satellite radio network and has now established it as a popular FM station in the cities of Bangalore and Goa. Here he talks about the journey of Radio Indigo as the country’s ďŹ rst and only International hit station

What made Radio Indigo move from WorldSpace network to a terrestrial station?

Radio Indigo started its operations on the WorldSpace network. However, we found out that satellite radio is low on penetration, due to it being subscription driven and our reach was considerably cramped due to this factor. With the announcement of 2nd phase of radio licensing we got off WorldSpace on 31st March 2005 and decided to launch Radio Indigo as an FM radio station.

When the bidding took place, we placed bids for Bangalore and Goa and we got the license for FM operations, we worked on our programme lineup and began broadcasting from September 2006.

You launched in September 2006 as a terrestrial FM station. How has the journey been for so far?

In one word, i t s b e e n phenomenal! We have set many milestones in programming and on-ground activities. www.radioduniya.in

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We sent one of our listeners for an all expense paid Formula 1 weekend at Monza, Italy to watch the Gran Premio D’Italia 2007 with Rohit Barker.

We g a v e h i m w h a t every Formula 1 fan envies - a VIP weekend stay at Four Season’s Hotel, Ferrari paddock passes!!

We created history when we had two Aerosmith fans get a tattoo done live on air.

We had invited hardcore fans of Aerosmith for this challeng when the band toured Bangalore. The two fans dared this challenge and got their tattoos live on Rohit Barker’s show – with the entire city listening to the sound of the tattoo gun on them in the background of their excitement, anticipation and anxiety.

They also walked away with exclusive lounge passes and a backstage tour.

In July 2007, we brought Bangalore’s best acoustic talent on one stage – Indigo Acoustic became the first platform for fresh talent.

With over 15 colleges in the city participating, the contest brought some good acoustic talent into the spotlight, making it a refreshing departure from the much-hyped high decibel acts. Also, the Live Earth concert that took place across many countries was streamed live on Radio Indigo. Another first, was the 24-hour concert went live with our RJs linking up live with different countries. Our entire crew stayed in the office for the whole 24 hours and enjoyed the day.

We are now partnering with Hard Rock Café Bangalore to send one person on a concert experience of a lifetime.

This is a trip that dreams are made of – an all expense paid star weekend in London to watch some of the biggest artists perform – Eric Clapton, Sheryl Crow, the Starsailors, K T Tunstall, John Mayer and much more.

The winners gets air tickets, posh hotel to stay in, limousine to drive around London and VIP tickets to watch the stars up close!

Our target audience is those who have probably traveled abroad, experimented global cuisine, and are aware of International entertainment.

Radio Indigo has been capturing all the excitement from concert venues minutes before INXS, Deep Purple, Iron Maiden and Aerosmith performed in Bangalore. This has been very exciting for our listeners and for us. Quick updates on parking, entry gate scene and other relevant information have been much appreciated by all the listeners.

What are the kinds of concerts and specials that Indigo has organised for the listeners?

Indigo is networked with several international jazz bands and has organized more than 20 jazz concerts. In what was the biggest tribute to Jazz and Blues, Indigo partnered with Black Dog to bring in Indigo and Blues International Jazz and Blues Festival that featured some of the country’s best artistes with two international acts.Also, the Formula 1 weekend contest that we had created got an exhilarating response from our listeners.

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What is your target audience?

Our primary target audience is the Bangalore and Goa population that grew up on international music. They could be college students, working professionals, techies, and homemakers, just about anyone who likes international music. Broadly the target group is in the age of 15 to 45 years. We would like to be defined as a ‘non-mass channel’.

Our target audience is those who have probably traveled abroad, experimented global cuisine, and are highly aware of International brands and entertainment.

How has the advertiser response been to Radio Indigo?

Since we offer an audience that is up-market, well versed with global trends and ready to experiment, top notch brands have been advertising with us. Apparel brands like Levis, Lee, Bossini, the Pantaloon Group, Springfield, Shoppers Stop; big names in the technology space – IBM, Lenovo, HCL, Dell, AOL, Accenture; entertainment brands like VHI, AXN, History Channel, ESPN, retail

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

and real estate companies like Rohan builders, LJ Hooker, Home Stop, Home Center, and other big companies like Ford, Jet Airways, Srilankan Airlines, fine dining restaurants like Saigon, Tai Tai, Harbour Market, F & B; lifestyle brands like Titan, Swarovski, Nakamichi car audio systems and many others have tied up with us.

Our advertisers swear by our reach of up market audience. We have always worked towards providing the advertisers with potential consumers rather than undefined listeners. Our sales and creative teams work together with the advertiser to execute campaigns that bring value to them.

What made you decide to focus on International music when people say only Bollywood music works in India?

The number of international bands that have visited the country is a proof to the fact that there is a significant size of audience for such music. With the rapidly developing economy and the gradual globalisation of Indian cities, the consumer is exposed to foreign technology and entertainment; he has traveled abroad and is aware of the happenings around the world, and so his taste in music is also changing and they have started looking beyond Bollywood.

The fact that there are more English newspapers, T.V. channels, international magazines, is proof enough that people like experiencing international standards of entertainment. Even in a comparative smaller place like Bangalore, and in Goa, Radio Indigo has stood apart from all other radio stations because of clear definitions of their audience. This coupled with experienced radio personnel; Radio Indigo has created a sound, which is truly world class.

Can you elaborate on the programme line-up at Radio Indigo.

Indigo breathes ‘mood-based’ programming. Tracks are carefully selected to sync with the mood and pace of the day, which is what truly makes the programming - music to everyone’s ear!

Our Internationally packaged programming on weekends includes American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest, American Top 20 with Casey Kasem and Putumayo World music hour with Dan Stroper and Rosalie Howarth.

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To give International music connoisseurs of all ages, their colour of music, Indigo has genrespecific programming for the weekend. Time Tunnel is a show that lets the older Bangaloreans traverse back into the good old years with a large dose of retro.

Junior RJ showcases International music tastes amongst tweens. Indigo started the show ‘Junior RJ’ hosted by one young RJ every week. Defying popular belief that tweens like only girl/ boy bands, these young RJs host the show playing retro, pop, rock and sometimes even metal!

From break beats to scratching, the nif ty DJ duo Ivan and Rohit Barker transit from house to hip-hop to progressive underground during Indigo Hotmix. It brings fun young Bangalore the sweltering dance mixes from around the world.

We have lined up the biggest dance shows in the world to bring in the weekend. DJ Carl Cox, John Digweed, DJ Swerve, Matt Darey and DJ Armin Van Buuren take over the consoles every Friday and Saturday night ‘Indigo and Blues’ is a connoisseur’s delight as jazz artiste Radha Thomas hosts the show that lets one discover jazz standards, bebop, contemporary jazz, fusion, blues and soul featuring outstanding artists and bands.

What should people expect from Indigo in the coming months?

With the government announcing the next phase of licensing, we are exploring opportunities of having our presence in a couple of other cities. We have found out that there is a considerable demand for international music among the audience and we are trying to reach out to them. We will continue to bring qualitative and globalised standards of radio experience in the country.

What are your plans for expansion in the third phase of licensing?

We want to be in all those markets where we see some potential for International music. For now we have recognised and believe in the potential of Bangalore and Goa. As we go along the way, if we identify an opportunity, we will make our presence felt. We believe we can spread the colour of music everywhere.

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BIG FM, Surat celebrates Mothers Day BIG 92.7 FM, in its continual effort to contribute positively to the society, and impact listeners lives positively, celebrated Mother’s Day with a difference.

The station hosted an event, where its RJs, along with select listeners visited the Mahajan Orphan house with loads of gifts and compassion for the kids. The team involved the orphans in various fun sharing activities and ensured that they felt loved and cared for. “We cannot replace what a mother is for a child, but we sure did manage to bring smiles to the faces of the little kids, which was fulfilling”, said RJ Setu, who hosts the breakfast show.

Besides spending time with the kids, the station also organized various contests on air from May, which saw winners getting invited to the studio of BIG FM, where they were given an opportunity to speak with their mothers on air and share special messages with them. The activity saw some special moments on air, which made the day special for those mothers. Whats more, BIG RJ’s delivered gifts to winners’ mothers on their special day while the mothers spoke to their kids, from the studio!

Speaking on the occasion, Hitesh Budhbhatti, Cluster Head - Gujarat, BIG FM, said “We wish to make the Mother’s Day celebrations memorable for all our listeners and especially for the kids of Mahajan Orphanage. Of course we realize that it is not possible to fill the void in their lives, but through our gesture we hope that we were able to spread some joy and happiness in their lives. It is our endeavor to use every opportunity to live our brand-line of Suno Sunao, Life Banao, and hence positively impact the lives of listeners.”

Radio City celebrates World Mother’s Day! This Mother’s Day, all doting children longing to make Mother’s Day memorable for their mothers, were in for an absolute ‘Whatte Fun’ filled surprise! Coimbatore’s Radio City FM presented a spectacular opportunity to make this happen with ‘The Super Mom Contest’! Radio City 91.1FM’s RJ Martina (Love Beat) and RJ Surendra (Silmisha Bhalbhaje Shikarika Bilba) joined in this celebration with over 15 lucky Radio Cityzen families to commemorate the most precious bond of all – that of a mother and a child!

Considering the demanding life schedules of mothers and their children today, this initiative by Radio City was a ‘bridge-building’ session of sorts! Radio City shortlisted a team of 15 families including mother-child duos, from which 5 families were then selected, through a host of exciting preliminary rounds, to contest for the ace position. After a day long session full of fun, competitive revelry on Sunday, May 11, Shanthi from Town Hall bagged the title of Coimbatore’s Super Mom. She was joined by her daughter Sophia who was overjoyed at the victory!

Sharing his thoughts on this endeavour, Rana Barua, National Head - Programming and Marketing, Radio City 91.1 FM said, “Each and every initiative from Radio City is symbolic of the values that we stand for.

The Super Mom contest allowed our listeners great interactivity and the opportunity to express their love and gratitude for their dear ones. This helped bring the Radio City experience closer for our listeners making ‘Whatte Fun’ come alive for them. Thanks to the vivacity and zeal of Coimbatore’s Radio Cityzens, our initiative has been a great success!”

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

Tapas Sen, Chief Programming Officer, Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM, began

his radio journey in 1987 as a casual announcer with All India Radio. He joined Times FM in 1993 as the Programming Head of Delhi station. In his role as Chief Programming Officer, Sen is responsible for providing editorial direction to the programming team across Radio Mirchi’s 32 stations in the country. He believes that passion is the most important factor when one is working for radio and he is full of passion for the medium.

According to the FICCI Radio Forum, the penetration of radio has only risen from 4553%. An 8% rise is not commensurate with the large increase in the number of radio stations.

So in order to create a larger audience base for FM radio, diversity in content has to be significantly higher. What are your views on this as CPO Radio Mirchi?

The FICCI figures need to be contextualized. Radio listenership in the year 2000 was dismal. Most people in metros considered it a dead medium.

Majority of the cars did not have FM. From there to 2008, the medium has not only resurrected, it is scaling the heights of popularity. Today it is being viewed as a near total ‘youth medium’. And brands like Radio Mirchi have become iconic youth brands.

This growing popularity is further endorsed by an exponential growth being recorded by the industry top line. Before privatization, the total radio ad revenue was barely one percent of the total ad spent in the country. Today, it stands at four percent of the total ad spend.

Having said that, I do feel that the scope for growth of radio is still immense, and for that kind of growth to materialise, diversity of content is essential. I believe that the single most important step in that direction would be the governmental nod to multiple frequencies. That will increase the diversity of the offerings and it will lead to a greater number of channels in every city, each offering something different to the listeners in terms of content. That is almost a sure way of increasing radio penetration.

What role does content innovation play in keeping ahead of the competition?

In India, the content that people listen to, is primarily music. In other words music forms the major component of the content. The rest of the content comes through jock talk and through stationalities and utilities, such as traffic beats, stock updates, weather checks, etc. How you

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It is crazy telling Times of India that they cannot broadcast news through radio innovate in each of these components will really determine the final feel of the product, and hence will play a vital role in staying ahead of competition.

So, content has to be created in such a manner that it caters to the demands and the needs of the listeners.

What is the strategy of Radio Mirchi terms of deciding on the kind of content for each city?

We have an elaborate process for deciding the content for each city. We first do a demographic and psychographic study of the marketplace. We also try and understand the media consumption pattern of the city and its people. After that, we try and figure out the language of common conversation in that city. For example, in what language does a daughter speak to her mother, or in what language does she talk to the grocery store owner, or to the rikshawallah, etc. That then becomes the language of the jocks of that city.

Once we finalise our core strategy, based on all these studies and survey results, we decide the music line-up for that particular city. In terms of stationality, the language is once again, that which is extensively spoken. Stationalities is the one area where can showcase the real production prowess, and we pride ourselves in doing that.

There are some regulatory restrictions on content. What kind of changes in these regulations would you welcome?

The most important regulatory change that needs to come about is “Multiple Frequency”. That will truly ensure diversity of content and an exponential rise in radio penetration. But purely speaking about content restriction, News needs to be allowed on the private FM channels. The embargo on news is really impacting the industry adversely. Radio all over the world provides news. In fact radio News is highly respected (pretty much like All India Radio).

Preventing news content on air makes the listener feel very disconnected. If he is listening to radio for a longish period, during which a major event has occurred (say a 9/11), there is no way he gets to know of that from radio. So, when he finally does get to know from some other media, he feels betrayed. It need not be like that.

Not just Radio Mirchi, the whole medium is losing out if we cannot give news. Not allowing private radio players to do news, in my mind, is a major political superstition. Almost all FM stations are affiliated to major media houses, like we are to the Times of India. So, in light of that, such an embargo is preposterous. I think we will be able to deliver a 24

far more holistic and comprehensive experience to listeners if we are allowed to give out news.

Would you be happy if they allow only News from agencies and sources like PTI? Most of the radio stations are run by leading newspaper and media houses. So, I don’t think that they should be restricted to taking news only from certain Government prescribed sources. If this is done local issues will definitely be left out and what good will it serve to the listeners, if we cannot give them the happenings in their own city?

It is preposterous telling a publication like Times of India, one of the most widely circulated English broadsheet in the world, to take news only from approved agencies like PTI for broadcasting on their radio station. If we can run a newspaper successfully and responsibly for so many years, why can we not broadcast news on FM radio?

Do listeners differ from region to region or does music transcend all barriers?

Listeners do differ from one region to the other, but music is a great equalizer, especially Bollywood music. A punjabi song, once it is seen as a Shah Rukh Khan song, is free from all limitations of language. That Punjabi song then becomes a Shah Rukh song, and clearly transcends the language barrier. A good example of how music transcends all boundaries is the manner in which the song Chandralekha, became so famous in all discos and hang-outs across North India that people forgot that it was actually a Tamil film song.

I always believe (what one of my colleague once said), that music in India is not a three minute experience, rather a three hour experience. When we listen to a three minute song, we are immediately transported to the three hour movie. And all the movie association including the stars, the locales, the emotions, etc, they all get transferred to the three minute song. That’s how the three minute song becomes a three hour experience. When you listen to a song, you don’t say this is an Udit Narayan song, you say that this is a Shah Rukh Khan song, because that is the image that comes in front of your eyes. So, Bollywood is a great equalizer and it establishes a connect with listeners all over the country, going beyond the language barrier.

What is the extent of regionalisation that is done in the content?

For each city it is the Programing Head of the station who decides what is finally going to be on air and how, within the parameters of the brand and the ethos of Radio Mirchi. Each Station Head has the freedom to innovate and offer the best possible fare to the listeners. And the beauty of a country like India is that the diversity is just endless, dialects change every 100 kilometers. And June 2008 | Radio Duniya

within a particular region itself, the youth and the elderly speak differently.

For example, within, Chennai, the Tamil spoken by the city youth is very different from say the Brahmanical Tamil spoken in Mylapore. Even the issues they would discuss or want to listen to are very different, so you need to constantly innovate and offer people content which is of specific interest to them. In terms of songs also, there are a lot of regional factors which need to be looked at.

For instance, in Kolkata we found that the common denominator is Hindi music, but we also discovered that most people, even the non-Bengalis were absolutely comfortable with Bangla. So, we decided to let the jock talk be in Bengali while majority of the songs be in Hindi.

Do you make any extra effort during the peak TV hours so that you don’t lose listeners?

Actually, we are not competing with television at all. Every medium has its own importance and also its own advantages and disadvantages. The big difference that I would like to point out is that in India, most households are one TV households.

So, it has to be consumed collectively. Radio on the other hand is rarely consumed collectively. It’s a private medium and is increasingly being consumed through personal devices. At the peak TV viewing hours, a lot of family members break away and listen to their own thing on radio. Hence, we are not overtly worried about losing audiences to TV. Secondly, we add a lot of contests so that there is a tangible benefit to the listener. By focusing on the target group we have discovered that the overlap between our hours and the television soap hours isn’t that high.

Which would be that one show that you would call extraordinary and feel proud of?

local Programme Heads to ensure that they are completely steeped in the local (Mirchi) flavour, both in terms of form and content.

What would you say are the major challenges and issues for the industry today, specially in terms of programming?

The biggest challenge in programming is to truly understand ‘Who is your audience?’ Having understood that, the second biggest challenge is to create programming that uniformly appeals to them all. India is one of the most heterogeneous countries in the world and making programmes that can uniformly appeal to these varied groups of people can be an extremely difficult task. The language, dialect, custom, traditions, faith, belief change after every 100 kilometer. Within a city, the economic disparity is so high that it creates several parallel worlds and hence a countless variety of listening sensibilities. The third biggest challenge is to remain relevant and remain modern in a constantly changing market-place. What was very significant for your audience yesterday, may be completely irrelevant today. And if you do not have a pulse of that, then your product will fast become old and obsolete.

What kind of radio stations do you see growing in the years to come?

More of niche stations should grow in the coming years. I would love to see talk radio come up in India in a big way. I also hope that community radio picks up in a big way in the country as community radio can provide the platform for people with similar ideas and interests to come together and express their views freely and fairly, and be heard. When radio becomes an instrument of social change, that in my mind would be the day of reckoning for radio as a medium.

We have a character called Sud, who is becoming very popular these days. Mirchi Murga is another popular segment, so, we are planning to introduce this in other cities as well. On popular demand, we have just got our RJ duo of Anant and Saurabh back for the breakfast show in Delhi. And the Bombay breakfast show has acquired a completely new and delightfully bizarre dimension after Jeeturaj took over a few months ago.

What all goes into the finalisation of every show? Can you tell us the processes involved?

The one thing that we ensure for a show in any of the Mirchi station is that it must be delivered in the characteristic Mirchi manner. Additionally, the programme must have a huge local connect, including the use of local dialect. All this and other finalisations are done by the respective www.radioduniya.in

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‘Thank God Radio

Happened’ Supriya Jambunathan is the spontaneous and enthusiastic host of Chai Pani, a fun afternoon show on Radio Jhankar, the 24 hour Hindi music station of WorldSpace Satellite Radio. Great music, interesting content and an enjoyable time is what she always aims to give to her listeners through the show. A graduate in Journalism and Psychology, Supriya considers herself fortunate to be working for radio as she enjoys it immensely.

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

How does it feel to be judged as the Best Radio Host at the Radio Duniya Awards ?

Its a great feeling as it makes one realise that your talent is being recognised. There is so much talent in this industry and everyone is doing really well today and to be singled out from this sea of talent is a real honour. It is also very exciting from a personal point of view because the award makes one realise that all the hard work one is putting into each show is being appreciated. Thanks to ‘Radio Duniya’, there is a greater number of people who know me now and they are not just listeners of my show, but other people, who might not have heard my show before.

What made you choose radio hosting?

Initially I never thought of radio hosting as a profession. While I was doing a course in media, all I knew was that I had to do something creative in this field. It was just my luck that I got an opportunity to work with radio. I would say that I was fortunate enough to enter this field and things just fell in place for me. It just happened to me and now I thank God everyday that radio happened to me or I would have missed out on many things.

What is the best thing about being a Radio Host?

The best part about being a radio host is that there are so many people who know you and connect with your voice and thoughts. The fact that there are so many people listening to what you have to say is very exciting. To you they are just listeners, but you might be passing them so many times on the road; it might be that your listener took the auto you wanted to to take. It is also very exciting because there is a mystery involved with radio, which is not there in other medium like television, films and newspapers.

Is there any aspect of the job that you don’t enjoy?

It would be extremely mean on my part if I said that I did not enjoy any particular aspect of my job.

I have been in this field for the last 3 years and there has not been a single day when I thought “Oh my God why am I here?”, instead it has always been “Thank God! I am here, doing something I enjoy”.

Describe your most memorable radio moment?

I have listeners writing in from all over the world.

There are listeners who actually tell me that on 23rd of March last year you said “Bye”, but on 23rd

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You cannot afford to be redundant on radio because people are listening to you everyday, you need to be creative and spontaneous.

March this year you said “Bye – Bye”. It makes me feel so good to realise that another human being who has enough things to do for himself, dedicates so much time to listen to my show and then take time out to actually write in and tell me how I do the programme and what I say. There are many instances when people tell me many things about my show and I am overwhelmed to see that there are people who listen to my show so intently.

There was a listener from Kenya, who was staying in one of the most badly hit areas during the political turmoil there. She mentioned how their shop was burnt, how her neighbours had fled the country, why she can’t leave due to her family issues and all. It made me feel very emotional as I was able to make her feel comfortable enough to share all these details with me. Just the fact that she thought of me at a time when you think only of people who matter the most to you made me realise how much people love me.

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How do you establish connect with listeners?

I look at it in such a manner that if I was a listener, what would I expect from a radio host. The most important thing for establishing connectivity is not to be fake. If I talk in a certain way, then that is how I do my show. I may try to speak in a certain way, pronounce words with a certain accent, but this will not work in the long run and it will start showing. You just have to be yourself and that is how you build up rapport with your listeners.

What inspired you to take up radio as a profession?

When I was graduating, radio was something that was really growing. I felt radio was more challenging than the other media, because here whatever you do, you have to do it with your voice.

So, If I have to portray that I am angry, happy or sad, I have to do all of it by just using my voice.

The element of challenge in portraying everything through your voice is something that is really exciting. The potential of this medium is huge, there are so many things that one could do, so I chose to take up radio as a profession.

What are the essential requirements for being a Radio Host ?

You need to be very passionate about radio, because it is not an easy job. Believe me, it is not as simple as one would imagine it to be. You cannot afford to be redundant on radio because people are listening to you everyday, you need to be creative and spontaneous. You have to be natural in the way you speak, and knowing your music well and love for music makes it so much simpler to be a good host.

Where do you see yourself a decade from now ?

Definitely in the media, doing something creative.

I would love to continue hosting my show, but that also depends on how long people want to listen to me. But I guess people would want to listen to me if I am impressive. It would be an ideal situation for me if I could continue doing this for a long time.

I would like to get more involved not just in radio but in various aspects of the media .

There is so much that one can do with the media today and the reach is phenomenal; you can actually get across any message that you want to.

My mission to interact with people is definitely going to increase, I am definitely going to be working with the media. I would love to make a movie someday, I have ideas and stories running in my head all the time.

A radio jockey is “born” or “made” ?

The gift of being able to talk well is something that is inborn, but a radio host is definitely made. Unless someone has that inborn talent, becoming a radio host is difficult, but if you have a natural gift of the gab becoming a radio host is easier.

Getting trained, in terms of the technicalities that go into being a radio host is important.

There is a lot of confusion in the minds of people about what

How do you prepare yourself for every show ?

I take a look at the songs that I am going to play in my show, and I prefer not stating the obvious in my show. So, if a song picturised on Shah Rukh Khan, I do not say that because almost the whole world knows that. I try to find out some interesting anecdote about the song, try to find out if anything interesting happened during the shooting the song and discuss all that.

I try to add value to the song in that way, so I have a lot of preparation to do before the show. I need to do a thorough research about what I am playing. Unless I know what I am playing, the show is not going to be meaningful to all the listeners .

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

really is expected from a radio host. Some people think that you need to be a good singer in order to be a radio host, but that is not the case. I think it would be really great if the hosts are properly trained to host the programmes.

What is your show Chai Pani, all about?

When I was told about doing the show, I decided that my show was going to be very chatty, with lots of interaction with my listeners. The concept I had in mind was that the sound of my show would to be like one would chat with friends over a cup of tea or stay over at a friends place, attending a pajama party and gossiping.

The show is totally about Bollywood, and as our listeners pay to listen to our station, it is extremely important for us to give them the best content Content is an important factor, but I also wanted the show to be very “me”, in the sense that I wanted to bring a bit of myself in to the show, because, once people come to know that this is Supriya’s show, they must know know why it is her show.

If you look at the name of the programme in another way, it would mean bribe, I saw some humour in this, while listening to film songs, you do not need to give chai pani, you just need to listen to it and enjoy it with Supriya.

Snapshot Queries

What segment of the show do you enjoy the most?

Will never forget .......

I enjoy the segment called Lyrical Tuesday, the most. In this segment I pick up songs that I think have very interesting lyrics. Some of the songs have interesting stories that people generally do not know, so, I give out the interesting bit and ask listeners to write in if they have anything interesting to share. This adds to the level of interactivity with my listeners.

I never forget things, I have this weired quality of remembering everything

How do you get listeners open up and talk about their feelings and issues?

Talking to me on radio is just like being with a group of friends. In the group you are not going to open up and talk to everyone about your secrets.

Now, I want everyone to come up to me and confide in me about their secrets and and desires.

First of all, I try to make them feel that I am an approachable person, by being as real as possible, and not someone they cannot relate to. Second, I create an image and rapport with my listeners where they feel that they can just approach me and talk about anything under the sun.

www.radioduniya.in

Love listening to .....

Hindi music, my life revolves around that Love watching ...... typical masala tearjerker Hindi flicks My epitaph would read ..... she is still talking, just pay a little more attention, you will hear her!

My USP my sense of humour and the fact that I am who I am

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Radio City FM premieres Strings’ latest album!

Get an exclusive sneak peek into some of the most soul-stirring melodies only on Radio City 91.1 FM! Resonating ‘Whatte Fun’, the station has partnered with Sony BMG for the exclusive National Radio Premiere of internationally renowned Pakistani rock band, Strings’ latest album ‘Koi Aanay Wala Hai’ featuring John Abraham. In its continued endeavour to offer an enriching musical experience to listeners, Radio City presents this exciting premiere of a music album on Radio!

Radio City has exclusive access to air songs from the album, which premieres nationally on the FM station a week prior to its official release. The station is also conducting ‘The Strings Epiphone Contest’ exclusively for Radio Cityzens nationwide where one lucky listener stands to win an Epiphone Guitar by

Gibson, personally autographed by the Strings duo - Faisal Kapadia and Bilal Maqsood themselves!

Commenting on this association Rana Barua, National Head - Programming and Marketing, Radio City said, “Known for our music expertise, we are very selective about the kind of music we showcase to our listeners and Strings’ creative genius in this domain is exemplary. We are extremely excited to join hands with Strings’ latest album! Exclusive access to their tracks and the national contest with the bumper prize – an autographed guitar, is certainly creating a huge wave of excitement among our listeners”.

Radio One presents “Gamblers’ Night” In what was a high energy evening at Bandra’s all new Trafalgar Chowk restaurant the entire cast and crew of Jannat participated in the ‘Gambler’s Night’, a pre-release party presented by Radio One, 94.3. Emraan Hashmi, Sonal Chauhaan, Kunal Deshmukh, Vishesh Bhatt, and Mukesh Bhatt were all present to ensure an exciting event on the eve of their film’s release.

The station ran a contest that allowed listeners to instantly win passes to the party, tickets to the movie, music CDs as well as an opportunity to meet the cast of the film.

The contest began on the 12th of May and ran for three days, the winners were selected by a randomizer, and 10 couples were invited to participate in the fun evening, while a 100 tickets and CDs were given out.

According to Raj Gopal Iyer, Station Head, West, Radio One, “Radio One’s audience is mostly made up of urban professionals. Our research shows that music, bollywood and cricket are big points of interest for this group. Jannat’s music is a chartbuster, the theme revolves around cricket, and there’s a lot of interest in the movie at the moment.

So it’s a perfect fit for our brand.”

Adds Vineet Singh Hukamani, CEO Radio One, “Today’s generation of radio listeners, is very clear about what it wants and wants it instantly. That’s why Radio One is positioned as “The Station for the Fatafat Generation” and all our events follow this theme.”

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

I am an

Entertainer

Jimmy

my us on air, Jim ro u o m u h d n Witty a ves alore airwa g n a B e th has ruled He nd charm. a e ic o v with his ducer r as a pro e re a c is h started radio to become a n o g in v o m before e learnings th t a th ls e s host. He fe and he ha e s n e m im n have bee radio a complete to in d re tu a r now m at works fo h w s w o n k person who w s not and ho e o d t a h w d the city an set ect with any n n o c ly te ia to immed of listeners.

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and were threatening to break up. I managed to get them together on a call and make up on air and gave them tickets to go watch a movie over the weekend.

It was a lot of fun getting the guy to apologise and getting the girl to accept the apology. Hey, maybe I could be a good shrink as well.

Was there anyone or anything that inspired you to take up this profession?

My passion for delivering entertainment and performing was my only inspiration to take up radio.

How does it feel to be judged as the Best Radio Host at the Radio Duniya Awards?

It’s a surreal feeling. I’ve been an RJ for just about a year, and to have already won an award…

WOW!!!

What made you choose radio hosting?

I am an entertainer and a performer at heart. I believe I can bring a smile to people’s faces with the things I do and say. I believe that the best way to reach out and make a lot of people smile is through the medium of radio and so, here I am.

What are the pros & cons of the job?

I love the job, so its not really a ‘job’ for me. It’s a great medium to be part of, especially since the industry is still growing. The cons, well… one has to be constantly on the look out to source gripping and relevant content for the listeners. Basically it’s a 22 hours 28 minutes job but since I love it so much it isn’t actually a con.

If not radio hosting, then what?

Hmmm… let’s see. I could explore singing, but the only people left in the audience would be me and the musicians… wait, even they might leave.

Seriously… well, I’d have to do several things to reach the number of people that I have been able to do by working for radio – theatre, stage shows, television, maybe even movies. I could be a chocolate villain.

Describe your most memorable radio moment?

On mother’s day, our on the road jock was at a hospital giving away gift hampers to mothers who had just delivered a baby and we got a sound byte of a mother who was just going in for a delivery. It gave me goose bumps and made for awesome radio.

Another one was where a couple had had a fight

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What is your USP? I’m very real. I get upset, happy, and angry. I’m like any other person who goes through myriad emotions in a given day. Except, I have a way of always looking at things tangentially and giving even the most intense moment an absurd twist.

What are the essential requirements for being a Radio Host?

Be real, honest (as much as possible that is), have your pulse on the talking points of the day and have an interesting take on them. In today’s SMS age, news and stories are available at the clk of a bttn (that’s sms vocab for click of a button). So chances are that any story one decides to put out on air might have already been consumed by the listener. What the radio host should bring to the table is, his / her unique take on the story.

How do you prepare yourself for every show?

The preparations are massive. They include one plate of mutton biryani floating in oil, one chicken roast, actually half a chicken roast and a heavy dose of love. Also, I prepare for the content, in terms of what stories I’m going to use, ensure that they are of interest to my listener and then figure out my take on the story. To reiterate, before I enter the studio I ensure that I enter on a full stomach. Never ever discount the effect of a full stomach. The world looks very different when your stomach is full.

Does hosting a particular prime slot matter to you?

Of course it does. Let’s not kid ourselves. The breakfast show is the most coveted slot for a radio host.

What is that one most important factor that makes listeners connect to an RJ? The most important thing for me is how real and relatable you are to your listeners. The Jockey must

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

be humane and in tune with the listener’s need, he must know very well what to say and when to say. You must be very sensitive to your listener’s, the few words that you utter on air can make a huge difference to their lives, so chose your words very carefully.

A radio station is known by its RJs, particularly in these times when all stations sound alike.

Would you agree?

At this point of evolution in the radio industry I would tend to disagree with that point of view.

A radio station at this point is known by the kind of music it plays. In this country, music is primarily defined by movies. Therefore the soundscape of the station is what makes it stand out. Now soundscape is an outcome of three factors primarily - choice

can become an extremely good RJ and ahem… win awards as well.

What would be your message to the budding radio hosts?

This is quite funny considering I’ve been hosting shows for less than a year myself. But I guess winning an award means I’m an expert. Heh heh…

Don’t have a message. When you’re on air, have a blast. As long as you’re having fun everyone else also will.

Snapshot Queries The 5 most important things in life Biryani Shorts Sleep / comfortable mattress Twenty Twenty cricket I think I’m supposed to mention radio somewhere, so erm… radio When not on-air I am off-air?

I live by the mantra typical masala tearjerker Hindi flicks Will never forget My birthday Can’t stand

of music, packaging / imaging and jock talk. These elements have to be interwoven masterfully to create a seamless product.

Where do you see yourself a decade from now?

Depends on how much I age in the next 10 years. I’m trying to get into the Twenty Twenty cricket team. I think I’ll do a decent job in the Bangalore IPL team considering their horrendous performance. If that doesn’t happen then I guess I’ll become a celebrity chef.

This normally happens when in a fit of josh I go to the gym and after a super hectic routine.

Can’t stand for a while after that Love listening to World Music. Yeah right… all kinds. Love Kannada, Bollywood and Tamil film music Love watching Leave-your-brain-in-your-bike-and-come-andwatch-kinda-films

A radio jockey is “born” or “made”?

My epitaph would read

There are of course naturals, but they are just a handful. With enough preparation and work, one

If my epitaph could read, I’ll resurrect…

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Understand

the Medium What is your view on present state of the radio industry?

Live Wire Career Institute in Broadcasting and Film is the only integrated media school in India that caters to radio, television and films, in both the performance and the technical field.

Radio Duniya spoke to the Dean of the institute, Gopaal Malhotra to find out more.

The radio industry is booming in India and with more than 500 commercial radio stations slated to come up next year, the industry is only going to grow bigger. This figure is great, but there are more than 500 radio stations in New York alone, so there is still a lot of ground to cover in terms of growth of radio in the country.

Radio is a wonderful means of communication, if its potential is utilised to the fullest. At one point of time everyone thought that the radio industry was finished and nothing could revive it, but now you see a tremendous growth and progress happening in this industry. There is a huge scope for the growth of radio and we just need to identify those areas and work accordingly.

There is a need for radio stations to develop and broadcast content that will appeal to the listeners.

Keeping this mind we put a special emphasis on training our students in the art of scriptwriting, so that they can make programmes differently.

What are you views on the growth of radio training institutes in the country, with the growing number of FM channels?

If you take a look around you will see that many training institutes are coming up these days, but most of them are not managed, operated or maintained properly. Many celebrities have also tired their hand at running such institutes and they have had to close down after sometime .Just because one is a good RJ, does not mean that he will be a good teacher as well. So, it is very important for the right kind of people to train students in the right manner.

There is a scarcity of trained manpower and this is something that needs to be taken care of urgently.

It is with this aim that we started a dedicated radio training course for budding radio professionals.

Trained manpower is definitely going to help ensure

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

that we address this issue so that they know exactly what they need to do in this field and how to do it well.

How did Live Wires decide to enter radio training?

Live Wire is the only integrated media school in India that caters to radio, television and films in both, the performance and the technical field.

We realised the need of the hour for the radio industry is trained manpower and that is why we decided to enter the field of radio training . that the industry does better in the long run as the number of radio stations operating in the country are set to increase.

Do you feel there should be greater synergy between the industry demands and the kind of training given to students?

There should definitely be greater synergy between the industry demands and the kind of training given to students. The whole purpose of giving training to students is to make them capable of doing their work and if there is no synergy between what is needed by the industry and the training given, the institute cannot become successful, nor can the students make their mark in the field of radio.

It is very important for the students to understand the medium properly, only then would they be able to work well. They must realise that this medium is unlike other means of communication like television, newspapers and films. We make sure

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At present we rank at the top among the institutes that provide radio training in the city and our students are working with all the big names in the industry. The placement that the students get after passing out from our institute is purely due to the

It is very important for the students to understand the medium properly, only then would they be able to work well.

quality of education provided and the knowledge they have gained about various aspects of the radio industry.

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What is the kind of placement guaranteed to the students by Live Wires? Is there any tie-up with the industry?

We do not give a guarantee to our students that we will give them placements, as other institutes do. All we tell them is if you are good, you will get a job and do well in your chosen field. But the truth is that all our students are very well placed in the industry today because we give them the best training and develop their capabilities so well that they face no problems in getting good jobs.

What kind of radio training does your institute offer? Is it only focused on RJ training or it trains people for all kinds of radio related jobs?

We give our students full hands-on training so that when they are actually working in a studio they do not face any difficulty in doing their work. We have a fully equipped studio set up in our institute where the students are given training about what all they will have to do when they are working in a studio and while they are on-air. Our course on radio jockeying not only trains students as jockeys, but also as programme producers and script writers.

The course we offer also focuses on script writing, where we teach students the intricacies of on air do’s and dont’s. Scripting is the most important element of radio programming and we emphasise on this aspect. An RJ can speak on air with the help of a readymade script, written by somebody else, but what happens when the jock is doing a live show and he has to take calls from the listeners, he needs to prepare a script on the spot, so it is very important to train them in this aspect.

Can you tell us about the faculty at the institute? Do you have any institutional tieups?

We have the best faculty at our institute who are dedicated to their profession. We regularly have celebrities from the field of entertainment, like radio jockeys, station heads who come to our studios and interact with our students to give them a clear idea about what it takes to be successful in the industry.

We do not have institutional tie ups as such, because no university is really doing radio training, but we give the best training to our students by using the latest technology and software.

Are there any plans of expansion to other cities?

We have plans of expansion to other cities to reach out to those students who cannot come to Mumbai for some reason or the other. We are planning to set up centers in Delhi and Pune and this should materialise very soon, maybe by the end of this year.

What sets Live Wires apart from other media institutes in the country?

We offer hands-on training to all our students, besides using the latest software, equipment and technological support to give them the best training to work in this industry. We have a studio set up in the institute, where the students get real time training and experience about how to conduct contests, promotions and interview celebrities.

We train the students to develop their intelligence quotient and entertainment quotient, as those are two essential element for being a good radio host. We train them to be the best in every manner possible. We are the only institute that conducts an enterance test to select students for the radio jockey course.

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

Radio Data System Its Its Time Time for for

Radio Data System is a data sub-carrier that transmits advanced radio tuning and programme information from the broadcaster to the listener.

Radio has finally come of age in India, and the airwaves are now being stretched to the limits by frequencies on which radio stations operate.

With more than 500 radio stations slated to enter into the sector of broadcasting in India in the coming years, it will get increasingly difficult for the listener to tune in to conventional radio and listen to programmes of their choice. Innovations in the field of technology will help make it possible for listeners to find out and tune in to their favourite radio station in the host of frequencies.

So, listeners can tune in to their favourite radio station without any hassles. Listening to radio will be of no use to listeners, if they do not get the kind of information that will help them and some of the latest technologies being developed, aim to do exactly that.

Radio Data System is a data sub-carrier that transmits advanced radio tuning and programme information from the broadcaster to the listener.

RDS is injected into the composite signal with the help of an encoder, it is used only on the FM band and does not require the station to broadcast in stereo. The data is transmitted in a continuous cycle, resulting in a robust data stream. The data is then organised into functional groups so that www.radioduniya.in

only the relevant data is transmitted. Information that needs to be regularly transmitted appears in every data group for easy decoding by the receiver.

The most widespread use of RDS is in display of titles, artists and station identification information.

Typical radio displays allow for a scrolling display of eight (or more) characters at a time, allowing listeners to see what is playing as well as being able to listen to the song.

Fields of information available: • • • • • • • • • • •

Alternative Frequencies Clock Time Enhanced Other Networks Programme Identification Programme Service Programme Type Regional Radio Text Traffic Announcement Traffic Programme Traffic Message Channel

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RDS is a device in a radio set that allows small amounts of text and data to be transmitted along with the radio signal, that can be picked and processed by radios that have inbuilt RDS. Radios having this capacity can display various type of information in the form of texts to the listeners. A few of the information commonly transmitted through RDS include station name, travel information, programme type, alternative frequency and time besides many others.

Radio data system can change the way a listener interacts with his radio, unlike any other technology used till date. Radio data system receivers are of various types including home tuners, car and home receivers, portable, data-only receivers, pocket pagers, home theater, and receivers for personal computers. Statistics indicate that about 60% of all receivers sold in Europe are equipped with RDS facility, and almost all broadcasters in Europe including Denmark, Finland, Italy transmit radio data system data. There is a wide variety of encoding equipment available these days and by now manufacturers have introduced over 30 different models of radio data system receivers.

RDS was originally approved by the EBU for implementation by European broadcasters in the early 1990’s. RBDS was approved by the NRSC for use in the United States shortly thereafter. The two standards are virtually identical with only minor differences in the numbering schemes for musical formats. RDS was specially meant for car radios, where a transmitter network with alternative frequencies allows the listner to keep listening to his favourite radio station. The travel news that is offered by the RDS feature is considered to be the

most useful aspect of this technology. It is a very useful service for motorists as by listening to the local radio station, they can be updated about the local road conditions and travel news, without having to listen to the station’s commercials or other broadcasts. Listeners who have RDS in-built in their radio sets can avail this facility, presently there are no add-ons available in the market.

When a station starts broadcasting the travel news, they instruct their transmitter to switch on the RDS travel flag. Radios that have RDS can see this flag, and inform the listener that there is a travel report coming up. This can be done either by interrupting the CD or the tape that is playing or simply by increasing the volume to catch the listener’s attention. By tuning in to a radio that has RDS feature, additional data about other programmes from the same broadcaster can be received. It enables the listener to operate the radio according to their choice and also have their radio operating in an automatic switch mode for travel information or a preferred programme.

The following fields of information are generally available on a standard radio data system: Alternative Frequencies (AF) enable a receiver to re-tune to a different frequency of the same station when the available signal becomes too weak, due to moving out of range. This is generally used in car stereo.

Clock Time (CT) synchronises a clock in the receiver or in the car.

Enhanced Other Networks (EON) allows the receiver to monitor other networks or stations for traffic programmes, and automatically tunes into that station temporarily.

Programme Identification (PI) is a unique code that identifies the station, every station has a specific code with a country prefix.

Programme Service (PS) is an eight-character static display that represents the station name.

Most RDS capable receivers display this information and, if the station is stored in the receiver’s presets, it will cache

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

this information with the frequency and other details associated with that preset.

bulletins whereas the TA flag is used to stop the tape or raise the volume during a traffic bulletin.

Programme Type (PTY) is a coding of up to 31 pre-defined programme types which enables users to find similar programming by genre.

Traffic Message Channel (TMC) requires an RDS-TMC enabled decoder, and appropriate licensepaid software.

Regional (REG) is used where the national broadcasters run ‘region-specific’ programming on some of their transmitters. The functionality allows the user to ‘lock-down’ the set to their current region or let the radio tune into other region-specific programming as they move into that region.

Radio stations who wish to implement RDS will have to find a way to get the information from their playout system. Most automation systems have the ability to collect and transfer the ‘now playing’ data. There is a huge potential for this technology in India, especially when the FM revolution has taken the country by storm. In India, music binds people and studies have revealed that majority of the people listen to the music being played on FM radio stations.

Radio Text (RT) allows a radio station to transmit a 64-character free-form textual information that can be either static or in sync with the programming such as the title and artist of the song being played Traffic Announcement, Traffic Programme (TA,TP) The receiver can be set to stop the tape or pause the CD or re-tune to receive the traffic bulletin. The TP flag is used to allow the user to find only those stations that regularly broadcast traffic

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Dynamic RDS that enables the listener to see information about the song like the name of the artist, the duration of the song, title of the song being played, besides showing several other information can be of real help to listeners.

Any emergency news or information as well as advertisements can also be seen by the listener through RDS enabled radio.

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BIG FM now 24/7 in Jamshedpur From May 14, 2008, BIG 92.7 FM, rocks Jamshedpur for 24 hours, as against the 17 hours before. This move has been hugely welcomed by the people of Jamshedpur, who gave BIG FM a welcome with open ears when it launched on 21st November, 2007.

Station Director, BIG FM, Jamshedpur said, “The 24 hour station is a testimonial to the ever increasing popularity of BIG FM in the city and this would not only push listenership to an exalting status but also the new mix of shows that are high on entertainment and create more opportunities for living the brand promise of Life Banao. We look forward to entertaining the city of Jamshedpur”

Precisely speaking, BIG FM was being transmitted for 17 hours in the Steel City i.e. from 6 a.m. to 11p.m. The city revelers would now tune into three brand new shows two in the evening band on weekdays and one on Sunday. These shows were unveiled towards the end of the month with a promise to offer a wholesome entertainment mix.

Once the station began transmitting shows for 24 hours, it also offered further entertainment, thus strengthening its bond with the city and furthering its brand promise of Life Banao. The host of the new interactive shows would also be high on celebrity quotient and regale listeners.

Speaking on this new offering of being able to offer the people of Jamshedpur 24 hours of entertainment, Sanjay Ghoshal, Radio One identifies “Mumbai Ki Awaz Ka Raaz” Radio One FM 94.3 the joint venture between MiD DAY Multimedia and BBC worldwide, launched “Mumbai Ki Awaz Ka Raaz”, a three week contest from May 5 – May 26, 2008 that invited listeners to identify secret sounds of the city.

The contest began on Radio One’s very popular ‘Good Morning Mumbai’ and ‘Horn OK Please’ shows. Unusual and mundane sounds of Mumbai were recorded and played on air once every hour. Examples include the sounds of the Siddhivinayak Temple Aarti, the Mount Mary Church Bell, a BEST bus horn or a cold drinks vendor advertising his wares by running a bottle opener on the bottles he had for sale. Radio One RJs invited callers to dial into the station at twenty minute intervals, and identify the sounds he or she heard. One of these callers was randomly selected to be on air every hour and got to guess what the sound was and where it was from.

According to Raj Gopal Iyer, Station Head-West, Radio One, “Radio One is a station for the city’s listeners who are typically short on time and want everything in quick, easily digestible bites, hence our tag – Station for the Fataafat Generation. Mumbai and life-in-Mumbai, are big connecting points between our programmers and audiences. That’s the inspiration behind this property Mumbai Ki Awaz Ka Raaz which we launched. The contest challenged our listeners to identify the sounds we have captured, and reveal how much they really listen to the city, in a fun, always-rewarding and very entertaining way.”

40

Meet Brothers opt out of Radio Chaska Singer composer duo, Meet Brothers, who recently launched their own music company, have pulled out stakes from Radio Chaska 95 FM after a financial fallout with the GM and director of the station, Tarun Goyal.

While sources say that the fallout was a result of financial and inter-personal rivalry between the station head and the brothers, the Meet brothers, who aver that as partners in the venture, “we were not satisfied with the state of affairs. This fallout is a blessing in disguise for us as we could go ahead and open our own music company.” Harmeet Singh adds, “I have realised now that FM stations do not have a future in small towns.”

However, Gwalior Farms promoter Tarun Goyal, who floated the venture, insists that the Meet brothers were never partners in the venture and had not made any investments in the station. “The programming was taken care of by them and they were regular employess of our radio station.” About the fallout, Goyal says, “In any kind of organisation, you first have to think in the line of interest of the organisation and then about the interest of the employees. Else, you have to take decisions which will help the orginasation grow and not fall, that’s exactly what I did.”

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

Radio Mango hunts singers, invests 20 millions

BIG FM, Jalandhar celebrates its first anniversary

Malayalam Manorama’s radio venture Radio Mango has planned to invest over 20 millions for a new talent hunt show “Naatiley Taaram” - star of the countryside. The show that kicked off on 10th April will conclude on 4th June.

BIG 92.7 FM, celebrated the first anniversary of their Jalandhar Station.

The network which already boasts of its presence in 44 cities across India, began with its launch in September 2006 and in a short span of time, has ensured presence across the length and breadth of the country.

The Jalandhar station was the second to launch after Chandigarh in the Punjab cluster and has in the last one year grown to be an addiction amongst the people of Jalandhar who are ardent lovers of RJ’s and the shows on BIG 92.7 FM.

Elaborating on the talent hunt, Radio Mango director programmes Ravi Nair says, “Generally all talent hunt shows take place in the cities but here we hope to spot talent at the village level. So, we have a studio van which travels to 800 panchayats touching over 200 centres in Kerala, record the video and audio for the auditions.”

The shortlisted contestants will perform in mega final round to be held in Kochi and the finale will be held in Trivendrum where two winners, one male and a female will be declared.

The station also has plans to cut an album with the top 10 finalists selected across all cities.

“The album will be launched under our own music label Malyalam Music.

It will be recorded by five of Kerala’s leading music directors - Jassie Gift, Deepak Dev, Mejo Joseph, Rahul Raj and Balabhaskar”, says Nair.

The finalists will get tips on the finer aspects of singing from renowned playback singer Padmashri Chitra and grooming from noted stylist Ambika Pillai. A prize money of 25 lakhs is on offer for the contestants. The grand finale will be telecast on MM news.

Radio Mirchi shines at 33rd RAPA Awards Radio Mirchi swept the 33rd RAPA Awards with 12 awards. The awards are organised by the Radio and Television Advertising Practitioners’ Association of India Ltd (RAPA). This year, over 87 winners were announced across all categories, which includes the RAPA Special Awards Trophy. This year’s RAPA awards saw an increased participation of radio stations from all over the country cutting across language barriers.

Radio Mirchi won awards in various categories like Best Radio Jockey – Female and Male, Radio Mirchi Chennai and Jaipur stations won the Best Radio Jingle awards. Mirchi also won awards for Best Radio Spot Gujarati, Telugu and Bengali.

Mirchi Mumbai won the Best Trailor (Film) Hindi award, while Mirchi Chennai won the Best Radio Spot in Tamil. Mirchi Bangalore bagged the award for Best Radio Sponsored programme - humour in Kannada language.

Radio Mirchi Delhi bagged the RAPA Pandit Vinod Sharma Award for outstanding copy writer for the Lead India Rajniti campaign.

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The celebrations saw a sizzling performance by singer Master Saleem. Jalandhar’s favorite singer Saleem has got huge recognition by his latest hit ‘Dil da Mamla’ (Hey Baby). His father Ustad Puran Shah Koti is a big name in Sufiana singing. Saleem performed some of his latest numbers during the celebrations at Lilly Resort. RJ Mamta, RJ Vikrant, RJ Sugandha and RJ Vikas also performed to some of their favorite numbers.

In a press meet hosted by BIG 92.7 FM to mark the 1st Anniversary of Jalandhar Station, Siddharth Bhardwaj – Regional Director – North - I, BIG 92.7 FM, said, “We have been entertaining the people of Jalandhar for the past year now and are thankful to them for welcoming us with open ears! The response has been phenomenal, which has worked as a great encouragement for the team. Our offerings have always been a cut above the clutter and has ensured a positive influence on the lives of the listeners – whether on air or on ground. The coming year will only see our offerings strengthen. We are a true reflection of the ‘vibe of the city’ and will continue to play the role of a platform for self expression for the people of Jalandhar”.

Big FM won seven awards – mainly for Radio Jingles in Assamese, Bengali and Kannada languages for Big FM Guwahati, Mumbai, and Bangalore stations, respectively. Big FM Guwahati also won the award for Technical Excellence in Radio Assamese, Matinee Moza and Sound Recordist as well as for Jingle singing, while Big FM Mumbai won the Public Service Spot and Matrimonial advertisement.

Red FM bagged five awards – Radio Jingle Hindi – Prayaas; Radio Sponsored Programme (Humour) Hindi – Red FM Profile (Shendi); Radio Programme Channel Produced – Hindi - Mumbai Local – Mantra; Radio Jockey Male (Hindi) – Nitin (Delhi); and RAPA DS Mittal Trophy Campaign of the Year on Radio – Kavi Ki Kalpana.

Radio One, too, won five awards – Best Radio Programme was given to Flashback, Best Female RJ Hindi for RJ Tarana, Radio One Delhi won the award for Best Hindi Radio Promo; Radio One Bangalore won the award for Best Radio Programme produced in Kannada - Birthday Day Bakra; Radio One Chennai won the award for Best English Spot.

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TAM radio division will RAM into Kolkata in July Radio Audience Measurement (RAM), an independent division of TAM Media Research that serves as a measurement of number of radio listeners introduced in October last year, will be extending its services to Kolkata by July 2008. Subsequently, RAM will be introduced in Chennai and Hyderabad respectively by the end of 2008, according to industry sources. Following this, it will venture into other metros and tier-I cities.

Currently RAM, a joint venture between market research firm IMRB International and Neilson Media Reseach, is operational in the cities of Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. On being asked Pradeep Hejmadi, Head, RAM, and vice president TAM Media confirmed RAM’s entry into Kolkata this summer.

“We have already completed our baseline study for Kolkata, a pre-requisite for RAM before it rolls out its services in any particular destination. We will offer services in Kolkata latest

by July 2008”.

However, Hejmadi refused to reveal further expansion plans into other cities. “We are taking a step by step approach and

currently our focus in on the Kolkata roll out”. Another TAM Media Research official said, “We are constantly in consultation with industry people. Any further official decision will be taken only after industry people are taken into confidence”.

The introduction of RAM was one of the key developments in October 2007 in the Indian radio industry. Other than RAM, radio listener measurement tools include Indian Listnership Track (ILT) from Media Research Users Council (MRUC). Overall radio advertising revenue, that was at Rs 31.8 crore in 2005, was estimated to have touched around Rs 68 crore in 2007, a figure that would still be around 6% of the total media ad pie.

While a majority of the stations contributed to the RAM service, the initial findings released by RAM led various FM radio players to stake claim to have topped the chart in various categories like reach, listenership etc. RAM on the lines of TAM ratings is supposed to spearhead growth in advertising for the radio industry by making the measurement of Return On Investment more scientific and assessable.

Raj Gopal Iyer Appointed as Radio One’s Station Head –West Radio One, the joint venture between MID DAY Multimedia and BBC worldwide, has recently roped in Raj Gopal Iyer as Station Head-West.

His primary responsibility at Radio One is to make the Mumbai station even more exciting and engaging for its audience, in line with its position of being the “Station for the Fataafat Generation”.

Vineet Singh Hukmani, CEO, Radio One says, “This dual strategy strategy has not only helped Radio One grow, but also attract new talent in all the cities.”

“Mumbai is a very important market for Radio One, specially since it is our flagship one. We are delighted to have Raj onboard, because he really understands the business and programming aspects well. We are looking forward to making the station even more exciting with him in the lead,” he adds.

Viplove Gupte joins Big FM MY FM national programming head Viplove Gupte has moved on from Synergy Media, to join ADAG’s Big FM as the National Programming Director. Prior to My FM, which he joined in September 2006, Gupte was the Group Head - Creative of Mirchi Movies, the Times Group subsidiary for film production.

Raj brings to Radio One his considerable experience in the field of media and entertainment, having worked in sales and marketing in companies such as Sony Entertainment Television, Start TV, Jadoo Works, Times OOH Media and Percept Picture Company. Prior to joining Radio One, Raj was working with BIG FM, where he was heading NTR business nationally.

Says Gupte, “I was in Delhi for quite some time and wanted to move back to Mumbai. I am pretty excited about my new job and really looking forward to it.” He has already joined Big FM and is busy with meetings. Gupte will be reporting to Big FM national programming head Manav Dhanda.

A few months ago, Radio One announced its decision to decentralize its management structure across various cities and make them truly independent. It also decided to empower station heads and city based programming heads to become the custodians of growth at the city level. Simultaneously, the company felt it necessary to strengthen its national strategic programming intent with a common fabric of building audience and therefore value share in the market, and this responsibility would continue to be held by CEO Vineet Singh Hukmani and also recently appointed National Programming Head, Vehrnon Ibrahim.

Gupte, who began his career at Swift Advertising, moved to Brainwave Visualisers and then on to Radio Mirchi as the first programming head of Mirchi’s first ever radio station in Indore. At Synergy, Gupte was part of the core team that launched 16 stations of My FM in 18 months.

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June 2008 | Radio Duniya

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PASUMAI FM - THE PEOPLE’S RADIO

Building Self-confidence Among The Young Unorganized Workers

Pasumai - The People’s Radio – is an innovative venture of Peace Industrial School, a unit of Peace Trust, in the field of communication and interaction.

Pasumai FM is ably assisted by other wings of the Peace Trust.

Now the web radio has been updated with Pasumai FM community radio programmes.

The anniversary celebrations of Pasumai FM, the People’s Radio, and the simultaneous inauguration of the Pasumai web radio will undoubtedly usher in an era of universally available medium of infotainment and edutainment in their own mother tongue to the Tamil community the world over.

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‘Tannambikkai Neram’ or ‘Self-Confidence Time’ a programme transmitted from Pasumai Radio, a community radio service based at Dindigul, the agro-based industrial city of Tamil Nadu, is injecting motivation into the hearts of illiterate masses of this backward agrarian community and making them self-confident. The broadcast teaches them the methods of judicious and gainful management of their time and energy, besides successfully changing the basic attitude of the common man, who were politically subjugated, socially compartmentalised and economically marginalised for centuries by power-brokers.

First Anniversary To coincide with its first anniversary of successfully fulfilling its declared status as a ‘People’s Radio’, the internet radio edition, http://www.pasumaifm. com has also been launched in April. Pasumai, the only Radio station in Dindigul, has an audience of 15 lakh people, most of whom are backward and illiterate. With the launch of web radio, the programmes aired by this community radio station reaches out to listeners across the world. Thousands of migrant Tamil labourers in South Asia and the Gulf are expected to benefit through the internet radio programmes especially intended to help them get over their difficulties and hardships.

45

child care, participatory role in local governance and other subjects are given priority.

THE PROGRAMMES Infotainment and Edutainment The programmes aired for 18 hours a day consists of local music, interwoven with other programmes.

Short verbal presentations on child labour, consumer awareness, domestic and migrant labour problems and good governance, guidance for employment and higher education, cultural heritage of Tamil Nadu are aired. Other programmes include information on the latest developments in electronics, information technologies, special programmes for housewives on village festivals, lessons on organic farming, health and hygiene, HIV/AIDS, etc.

Reviews of recently published Tamil books, presentation of poems and short stories from Tamil literature, programmes for children with stories and songs, and information programmes covering notable local, provincial, state-level, national and international events are regularly aired.

The radio station has established a very good connect with the people as is evident by the fact the on an average a hundred listeners are spoken to in a day, SMSes are received during programmes hosted by students of Peace Industrial School and other colleges in the area. Apart from the regular programmes, 300 special programmes have been aired during the first year of operation. Music played on the station encompasses various Indian languages, including Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi, as it encourages national integration.

Children and Youth The station functions as a platform for the marginalised children of the rural sector to voice their grievances, air their demands, proclaim their rights and campaign for a brighter tomorrow for themselves and their community. It is an effective instrument to unleash the dynamic energy of the youth towards rebuilding the nation as the world leader in economic growth, scientific achievement and social equitability.

It motivates the youth with the message of collective action for corrective social intervention and prepares them for the social, economic and environmental eventualities and upheavals that can be expected in the wake of the new wave of globalisation and consumerism.

Farmers The farming population is always kept up-to-date with all the latest developments in the field of farming and the business of product marketing.

They are constantly informed about climatic changes, introduction of new seed varieties, innovative and eco-friendly measures of pest control and fertiliser inputs, environmentally safe fertilisation techniques, soil and water conservation techniques, scientific storage methods and current market fluctuations.

Labourers Programmes documenting labour issues and labour policy matters, awareness campaigns for the welfare of the labourers, giving priority to problems faced by migrant labourers, liberation of child labourers, ratification of core labour standards,

THE TARGET SEGMENTS Women The station publicises programmes detailing activities of Self-Help-Groups. Skill-imparting and capacity building training programmes for gainful employment, micro-credit projects for entrepreneurial initiatives, vocational training for self reliance, marketing assistance for profitability, etc., are given due importance. Campaigning among women listeners for awareness on women empowerment, women’s rights, health and hygiene, 46

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

ethnic culinary habits, apparels, utensils and jewellery, timehonoured customs and etiquette, conventional medicines and therapies, etc., are brought into the limelight for reviving the rich heritage of the country.

The dying folk art forms are documented and revived for future generations by giving ample opportunities for their performance. The station functions as an instrument for restoring national identity and regaining the place of pride in the global cultural scenario.

With the launch of web radio, the programmes aired by Pasumai FM now reach out to listeners across the world. documentation of labour issues, etc., are aired periodically by the station. Local issues that crop up every day are given ample time for discussion and for finding solutions. Employers and employees are brought together in interactive sessions and their opinions are aired for a more broad-based discussion in the community at large.

THE THRUST AREAS Health and Hygiene Pasumai Radio airs regular programmes on health and hygiene, like talks by medical experts, discussions by women and youth forums, features on notable initiatives in this field, question and answer sessions and educational programmes involving the institutions in the target area. Treatment of effluents from industrial units, eradication of mosquitoes and other health hazards, instructions on first aid and other emergency medical attention, education in mother and child care, campaigns against HIV/AIDS, smoking, drinking, tobacco consumption, and the importance of personal hygiene are given top slot in the programming.

Culture and Tradition The classic and folk theatre, folk songs, traditional celebrations and ceremonies, traditional architecture, sculpture, painting and handicrafts, www.radioduniya.in

Environment Protection Pa s u m a i c o m m u n i t y r a d i o broadcast programmes that focuses on the environmental hazards of industrialisation, treatment of industrial effluents, eco-friendly farming methods, conservation of soil, water, forests and other natural resources, intervention

by NGOs in ecological catastrophes, reforestation of plundered natural forest areas, replacement of mineral fuels with bio-fuels, use of bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides, watershed management, rain water harvesting, etc. It links and energises all voluntary like minded organisations and institutions that are engaged in the protection of the environment and encourages all eco-friendly activities.

Child Rights and Human Rights Talks, discussions, news analysis, etc. are aired on the rights of children and human rights in general, highlighting the right to universal education and healthcare and freedom from child labour in the case of children and the right to equal opportunities and equal justice to all human beings. Campaigns and interventions for social justice are given prominence.

Economic Information All the notable developments in the economic front, from the cost of agricultural products to the demand for industrial products, from the market fluctuations in the share market to the interest rates in banking and other financial institutions, from the ill-effects of consumerism to the challenges of globalization, from monetary exchange rates to the changes in taxation rates, all current and relevant information is made available to the audience without delay.

Development Information News and information related to development of the area, especially about eco-friendly and sustainable development, are given prominence and aired regularly at prime time. The damages 47

The Tamil migrant labourers, especially those in South Asian countries and the Gulf, who suffer a lot due to the illegal migration agencies, heartless employers and their own ignorance of their rights have benefited immensely due to this initiative.

The Pasumai Internet Radio makes them aware of their rights and of the means of getting justice and liberation. It also prepares potential migrants for their journey and for understanding the work conditions in their destination countries. to the environment and the health of the common people caused by developmental initiatives that do not take the ecology into consideration are also highlighted so that the necessary precautionary measures are taken.

Official Announcements Official announcements from the District General Administration authorities, the Police Department, the Agricultural Department and other official sources are aired for the benefit of the people, as and when they are available. The weather forecasts and information such as warnings regarding contagious diseases to humans and animals are promptly aired.

LISTENERS’ RESPONSE During the first year of interaction with listeners, this community radio station learnt a lot of things from the audience. The response from the listeners were encouraging, objective and constructive. Out of the 6200 letters, SMSes and emails received only 2% expressed dissatisfaction with the programmes in general. About 21% had some disagreement with some particular programme, while 77% were letters from listeners who were appreciative of the programmes aired. 68% of the letters contained suggestions for improvement of the programmes.

Generally, the letters were objective and even the criticisms were constructive.

Apart from letters, people had other platforms for interaction like phone-in programmes, discussions and interviews. Participants were very enthusiastic and co-operative in all such programmes, considering the growth and development of the station as their own.

WEB RADIO Tamil communities in India and abroad and Tamil migrant employees and labourers around the globe, who have no access to Pasumai FM, are able to listen to the radio programmes through web radio.

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BACKGROUND Pasumai - The People’s Radio – is an innovative venture of Peace Industrial School, a unit of Peace Trust, in the field of communication and interaction.

Peace Trust, Dindigul, is a non-governmental, nonprofit-making organization involved, since 1984 in welfare activities for the sustainable and equitable development of the society. Pasumai FM is ably assisted by other wings of the Peace Trust like Peace Information Technology Centre, Peace Watershed and Organic Farmers’ Centre, Peace Environment Education Centre and Peace College of Education which has been running a web radio meant for Tamil migrant workers in the Gulf and the South East Asian countries.

Opinion

R. Sreedher Director, CEMCA I am all praise for Pasumai FM, which is doing a very good job but I wonder why they are not mingling with other CR stations. In these days of networking, it is essential that CR stations should share knowledge and experiences. The website of the radio station is highly informative and impressive even though is still under construction.

I also understand that they broadcast Film music with permission from South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce. They must share their experience with others. I’m sure after reading this article, many people will get in touch with them for some positive tips on running a CR station.

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

The Rural Radio

Nila FM 90.4 Nila Community Radio broadcasts programmes focusing on making the villagers educated so that they are aware of their rights and duties. Issues related to legal rights for women, new technologies in the field of agriculture, self employment opportunities and schemes, higher educational opportunities are given priority by the station. As it is part of an engineering college it also helps in educating the rural population about the latest technology through its programmes. Some of the programmes that it has broadcast have made a major impact on the lives of the people residing in the community.

Nila Community Radio covers an area of about 15 kilometers, that includes villages like Bhaghur, Natapakkam, Manadipet in the state of Pondicherry.

The livelihood of most of the people in this area comes from agriculture. The programme that are aired on the station focuses mainly in making the villagers educated so that they are no longer ignorant about their rights and duties. Some of the aspects that are given priority in the station are legal rights for women, new technologies in the field of agriculture, self employment opportunities and schemes, higher educational opportunities and others.

Nila FM Community Radio is the part of an Engineering College and this helps the station in educating the rural population about the latest technology through their programmes. It is very important for an agricultural community to learn and be educated about the latest and advanced technologies in the field of cultivation and production if they want to sustain in the long run. Some of the programmes conducted by the radio station includes workshop on learning about computers, tips and diet for pregnant women, awareness about diseases like AIDS, cancer and others.

The station also broadcasts health related programmes from time to time. During the course of one such programme an entire village was sensitised about cancer, they were told about the kind of treatment a patient needs to undergo.

Nila Community Radio focuses heavily on airing agricultural awareness programmes as this helps the people in cultivating their land with the latest technology available for farming with pesticides, fertilizers and natural manure for yielding a good product.

Nila FM also broadcasts programmes that provides knowledge to the community about self employment, business development, formation of co-operatives, vocational training, awareness about marketing rural products. The programmes also give out information to promote kitchen garden, formation of self help groups, entrepreneur development program, scientific training prospects of home management, disaster management, women in agriculture / biotechnology and farming, economic and effective utilization of fuel and power.

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villagers were provided with proper treatment and medicine besides being given a through knowledge about cancer and its preventive measures.

Nila Community Radio Station or Nila CRS has broadcast a great number of Public Service Announcements (PSA) on number of issues which plays a vital role in creating awareness among the public. Some of the announcements were based on special celebrations like Mothers Milk Week, Polio Drop Day, Forest Day, Nutrition Day, Ozone Day, National Youth Day, Freedom Fighter’s Day etc.

The station plays a very active and vital role in the promotion of the well-being of the people living in and around the community.

Nila FM focuses on these the following aspects: • • • • • • • • • • • •

Agricultural awareness Medical awareness Importance of Education for the rural sector Health and hygiene Environmental awareness (pollution – Air and Water) Science for the effective utilization of alternate fuel and power Science and knowledge about the implementations of Disaster Management System (Flood, Earth quake, Fire and Tsunami) Women’s awareness on basic rights against violence and to resist alcoholism.

Science to reduce myths and misconceptions.

Narcotic / Alcoholic problems.

Importance of child care and their development Mother Feed – Lactating.

The station plays a pivotal part in uplifting the standard of life of the rural masses. Some of the programmes that they have broadcast had made a major impact on the lives of the people residing in the community.

The station has conducted number of health camps that have created awareness among the people.

A village named Kamala has been adopted by the station, where a number of people were suffering from some unknown disease. After doing a spot study, the students of the Engineering College along with NSS volunteers of the college and doctors from Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospitals, conducted a study and found that the villagers were suffering from cancer. Prior to this, the villagers were completely ignorant about the disease. After the station took up the cause, the 50

The agricultural awareness programme that was aired by the station created quite a revolution in these areas. Nila FM Community Radio along with M.S. Swaminathan Agricultural Science Research Centre have aired many programmes which educated people on the usage of natural manures.

It was helpful to the people in cultivating the lands with latest technology in farming which resulted in surplus production.

Programmes that focus mainly on the empowerment of the rural women, where interviews of existing self help groups were broadcast. The interviews acted as a motivator to a large number of women and they in turn have started their own self-help groups. The programmes gave a guideline to women on various aspects like self employment, business development, co-operative forming, marketing rural products. Nila FM along with their student volunteers and sister concern institutions have taken up the responsibility of uplifting the standard of life of the rural masses through their innovative programmings.

Opinion

R. Sreedher Director, CEMCA

Nila FM Puduchery is a perfect example of a Community Radio station housed in a campus.

The surroundings are typically rural and when I went and met some of the listeners in the coverage zone of the station, I found many of them listening to the programme. At that time Suryan FM was not available in Pondicherry and the villagers jocularly said that they get Nila FM (Moon FM) in the day time and weak signals of Suryan FM in the night time. The incident showed that community radio stations attract listeners. I feel that the station is doing very well and they are doing good follow up work with the nearby medical college pitching in. I only wish that this station increases its transmission timings and broadcast at least 12 hours a day so that its usefulness will be felt by many listeners.

June 2008 | Radio Duniya

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Celebrate the Spirit of a Vibrant India Embarking on a Knowledge Renaissance

This July, eINDIA2008 will mirror the phenomenal growth of ICT in the socio-economic development of India and will provide a wide canvas for those involved in this sector to reach out to its biggest audience. From news, views and opinions of policy makers, community of practitioners, stakeholders and so on to opportunities for networking, in-depth interactions etc., eINDIA2008 will celebrate ICT for development, by grabbing millions of eyeballs, on the largest ICT event of our nation.

India's Largest ICT Event 29 - 31 July 2008 Pragati Maidan, New Delhi

www.eINDIA.net.in Organisers

Co-Organisers

Supporting Partners 速

knowledge for change

Department of Information Technology, Ministry of Communications & IT Government of India

UN Global Alliance for ICT and Development

The World Bank e-Development Thematic Group