By Col JC Sindhwani (Retd)
It was perhaps 1956 or 1957 when an Indian Industries Fair was held in the Pragati Maidan Exhibition Grounds in New Delhi. I happened to visit that Fair with my friends, all school going, and family. It was almost my first exposure to such a vast display of industrial development that was happening in our country. I was thrilled beyond words when we landed in the crowded stall where the first glimpse of a Television struck me like a bolt. Having seen cinema screens where a beam of light from the projector room brought live images before you, here was a box with a very miniature cinema screen without any beam from any direction. I went as close to the TV box as was permitted, and looked all round to see who was controlling the screening. Then the stall guide explained how something like a radio which captured and reproduced sound waves, this invention captured transmission to give us a continuous run of an event along with sounds. Wow… Eureka, I was an enlightened young teenager that day. All the while my imagination ran wild, even wondering if some sort of aliens were involved too, as I had recently seen a Science Fiction movie about aliens having the ability to jam or enhance electronics on Earth!
y7uAs TV got into production, some brand names came up with bulky sets, Black and White to start with. Our family acquired one, too. The thrill of fixing an antenna on the roof had its own technology. A vertical iron pole with a number of aluminium rods was fixed in a socket. Then you had to rotate the fixture slowly while a relay group call from ground would tell you when to stop, as the picture and sound reached clarity. Initially, TV with only one channel, Doordarshan, would telecast programmes only for 3 to 4 hours in the evening. It would start with the then popular introductory tune with the Doordarshan Monogram on screen, followed by
‘Krishi Darshan’, a programme for the farming community. Then would be News in Hindi and English, some advertisements, etc. Every Wednesday was a celebration for all classes of viewers as Chitrahar came on the air at 8 p.m.
Slowly, more programme were added. One was the famous tele-serial, “Hum Log”, with veteran actor Ashok Kumar in the lead.
Then, when India hosted the Asian Games, colour televisions came to the market. Later and gradually, the bulky models gave way to more compact ones, with wider screens. Later, even these underwent a revolutionary change and the age of Flat Screened Televisions of varying sizes and configurations flooded the markets. One could go for a wall fixed or table model, and of sizes to suit one’s room. Some were as large as Theatre Screens too which found place in community halls in multi-storey buildings. Also more channels were brought in and with a wide range of programmes to suit all ages and their interests.
A word here about similar journey of the antenna industry. The initial one described above had one big flaw. Strong winds or birds choosing to play on the antenna would disturb the angle and result in distorted pictures on screen. It required regular orientation adjustments. And if a monkey chose to visit you and decide to do trapeze swings on it, you would surely have to replace the entire setup, as they would leave them in the beyond local or economical repair state.
Hence the antennas also changed to big dishes of various sizes. Most houses with 4 feet to 8 feet to still larger dishes on their roofs would give the look of a Space Observatory, a Satellite Monitoring Station. Then with the culture of compact and sleek production of gadgets in vogue, a new and small dish, the size of a serving tray came into to the market. These then replaced the bulky Space Monitoring dishes.
A word about Television Channels and programmes which have come as Tsunamis in this Electronic World. Now there are hundreds of channels, and they cater to all tastes of viewership. You have multiple channel owners with loads of varieties like news, Religious programmes, Sports, Adventure, Entertainment, Cartoons and Kids’ channels. You have the likes of National Geographic, Discovery and Science channels if you like. And of course movies on demand and what have you, all on your remote control in hand.
You can even see the live battlefields, natural calamities, daring rescues, anything happening anywhere, sitting in the comfort of your home. You can see the whole world right inside your homes. What a treasure of knowledge before you!
So, that is the journey of this Invention called Television.
And with Artificial Intelligence fast catching up, you can imagine what is in store for future generations. Even wars are being fought in “Work From Home Mode” thanks to Drone Technology. These are both – intriguing and frightening.
The lists of possibilities are simply…ENDLESS.
(Sindhwani family migrated to Dehradun in 1947 after Partition and settled down in Dalanwala. They belonged to Sargodha and Multan in West Punjab. The writer did his schooling in St Joseph’s Academy. Joined National Defence Academy, Kharakvasla in 1959 and got commissioned into Regiment of Artillery in 1962 from IMA. Saw action in 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars. Retired in 1992 (voluntarily). He is fond of traveling).
