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This blog captures the life experiences of the Enigmatic India team in the beautiful and enigmatic country of India.We capture our experiences through our writings, photos and products that depict the very essence and fabric of India.Through this platform, we invite you to join us in our journey as we explore.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Growing up with Doordarshan


As I was surfing through the TV channels, something caught my attention i.e. the logo of Doordarshan(DD)National - with 50 Golden Years inscribed. I was taken unawares that DD(as it was called had completed 50 years of existence. Looking back I realized why not...I have been watching DD since 1982, when we(the family) got its first TV(a Rainbow Delux colour) just before the start of the Asiad games.

DD had played a significant role in our lives when we were growing up through the various programs it aired during those years....I remember that we used to come back from school and wait with impatience the start of the DD broadcast at 6:00 p.m.

Many programs that we waited very eagerly were:

1. Hindi Songs - Chitrahaar on Wednesday and Rangooli on Sunday.
2. Cartoon/Children programs - HeMan and the Masters of Universe, SpiderMan, Malgudi Days, ,Telematches, Mowgli, Famous Five etc.
3. Education programs - Bharat Ek Khoj, What's the Good Word, Sidhhartha Basu's Quiz, Turning Point, Surabhi, Sports Quiz by Norattam Puri
4. Movies - the movies on Saturdays and Sundays.
5. Religion/Mythology - Mahabharat and Ramayan. I remember that the streets used to have a deserted look when these programs were aired on Sundays.
6. Family Drama -Tamas, Hum Log, Buniyaad, Karamchand,.
7. Comedy - Yeh Jo hai Zindagi, Didi's comedy show, Yes Minister, Different Strokes, Mind Your language
8. English Program - Sherlock Holmes, Star Trek(Mr Spock etc), Lucy Show
9. Sports - Olympics, Asian Games and all cricket matches
10. Cultural Programs - various dances,

Apart from these the Election coverage with lot of breaks for movies, Union and Railway budget, 9:00 o'clock news with Rini Khanna and others.

As years passed DD contributed in one way or the other to my growth atleast, and slowly apart from DD1, we got the privilege of watching DD2.

However with the advent/liberalization of media a lot of channels started coming up and my viewership shifted to them. What I did not realize that DD which formed the essence of India and its culture moved away from my radar due to various reasons.

Having said that my current connect time with DD is very low - I would like to congratulate this media for upholding the true Indian essence/life/culture and contributing to the development of folks and the nations.

Kudos to DD and I am sure you will continue to do a good job in the years to coming years.

5 comments:

  1. With DD, it was a different TV culture altogether! Simply can't imagine how we were happy watching highly regulated stuff in terms of time, variety, quality and content. Even today when I want 'real' news I watch DD News, it's such a relief to see something that's not hyped or made sensational. Perhaps it may be too late for DD to catch up with other channels but the 'show goes on...' Check out the link:

    http://ibnlive.in.com/news/india--9-no-curtains-down-salma-sultan-bets-on-dd/101473-3-p0.html

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sandip, you simply put them all that i wanted to always speak abt DD..
    its an lovely piece!

    i remember the time when we used to wait for the rainbow on the screen to go off and then the logo would swirl around with the famous music..paiyeooooon :) not sure if it sounds the way it used to:)

    and the occasional " Rukawat ke liye khed hai"

    the mahabharath and ramayana aired on DD would bring the entire society into one room with not every home having a TV set at tht time...
    times have changed...times are changing...
    wondering if the next gen would even understand and imagine how we have grown up watching DD...:)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sandip, i give you 10 on 10 for this one.. A very good consolidation, brings back the memories of the past and DD which we forgot. Please also add the news for impaired hearing, which is so unique of DD.(badhiro ke samachar):-)
    ~Shaheen

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Sandip,

    Thanks to google (it got me to this page), at times it really produces nice surprises, which you can't avoid to spend time on.

    I have chewed over this topic quite a few times with people of our generation. You are so right, DD gave us lot of things... entertainment to "just enough" extent and left us time for friends, family, sports and books.
    It also made it desired, which today has no value.

    BTW the list of program clearly shows that you miss it too, same here. Your blog really took me to good old days, thanks.

    Plenty is not always good...

    Regards
    Rahul

    ReplyDelete
  5. a nostalgic feeling. nowadays DD seems to have lost its plot among viewers who got access to other channels.

    ReplyDelete

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