By Vimal Kapoor
In the late seventies, a magical box called Television, complete with four legs and a wooden shutter was introduced in the Doon Valley. City roofs turned into a forest of aluminum antennas. Each house had its own tree on the roof, you needed them to receive Doordarshan signals being relayed from Mussoorie, but these antennas were not rooted, a strong gale of wind or even the burden of perched crow would disorient them leaving you staring in exasperation at an eruption of white and grey dots and one had to run upstairs to set it right. While one person acted as an engineer and moved the erring antenna deftly the other would lean out of the window, and give him instructions and by the time the antenna was guided to its original position the whole neighborhood knew about it. It was literally the case of shouting from the rooftop, after that you could continue enjoying Chitrahaar, Wimbledon finals or Sunday movie. Though there was nothing you could do if a national leader died. During days of national mourning, DD would shut shop and drowned you in an overdose of ‘Shastriya sangeet’.
The favourite programme of entire household was ‘Chitrahaar’—a Bollywood music show and the guiding principle of selection of songs was suitability for viewing in a family setting. It was also the era when Indian television went commercial. Those memorable ads—Liril, Bajaj, Nirma, Rasna, Paan Parag, just to name a few, all of them became part of our collective memory – also the songs ‘Ek chidiya, anek chidiya’ and ‘Mile sur mera tumhara’.
Gradually Indian TV became less preachy and more entertaining with a little foreign help. ‘Star Trek’ found an immense Indian following; usually drab weekday evenings were brightened by English detective serials. There was no English music on DD but once a year we would be glued to ‘Grammy highlights’ and superstars like Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie and Whitney Houston came alive on our mini-screens.
In 1982, the introduction of colour TV coinciding with the Asian Games held at New Delhi was a landmark event. This propelled the growth of TV in the country. Iconic shows such as ‘Ramayan’ and ‘Mahabharat’ in the late 1980s captivated viewers. The popularity of these serials was mindboggling. The streets and roads wore a deserted look when these serials were aired; it was as if the entire country had come to a standstill.
Over time, more TV channels were introduced, and the programming became more diverse. People could watch dramas, comedies, reality shows, and documentaries. News channels became popular, and people could devour live events like sports matches and concerts from the comfort of their homes.
From humble beginnings as a tool of education and beaming tedious ‘Krishi darshan’ to becoming a powerful tool of education as well as entertainment, television took rapid strides until the ‘cable revolution’ stepped in and proved to be a game changer. The 1990s saw a big change in Indian television, as satellite TV was introduced. This meant that people could watch TV channels from all over the world, not just from India. It opened up a whole new world of programming options and gave people access to a wider variety of shows and movies.
Since those early nascent years the flickering screen and entertainment industry have come a long way. The OTT (over-the-top) revolution significantly transformed television viewing in India by offering a wide array of content accessible via the internet, bypassing traditional cable or satellite TV. The rise of platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar and others introduced on-demand streaming, allowing viewers to watch shows and movies anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Last week I felt the urge to watch the timeless blockbuster ‘Sholay’, I simply toggled to ‘Amazon Prime’ and relished it for perhaps the 20th time—that is the power of OTT.
The OTT revolution also brought about a change in content quality, with higher production values and a focus on stories that were often more daring and experimental compared to traditional Indian TV programming. The OTT boom changed Indian television by giving viewers more control over their entertainment, encouraging diverse content, and fostering a new era of digital consumption. The revolution continues….
(Vimal Kapoor, a Dehradun resident, is passionate about literature, creative writing, cricket and exploration through travel)
