At the outset, he exhorted, “Mahatma is within us.” In fact, he proclaimed this to the audience when he swapped Mahatma Gandhi’s great saying “The kingdom of God is within you.” This was the opening sentence of his address while receiving an award for his programme on Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy in the 14th Iranian International Radio Festival, 2019 in Tehran. The delegates from across the globe instantly greeted him with a standing ovation. An eminent public service broadcaster, Tarun Kanti Rout has also won International Prix Italia nomination for his plays twice. About twenty plays written and directed by him have turned into radio blockbusters being repeatedly broadcast on demand. He probes the inherent tragic flaw in human existence with empathy, puts it in the cusp of high drama in all his plays that overwhelms the listeners. A couple of his plays including “Dhalu” have been staged by many leading troupes. A bilingual poet, Rout having been published by prestigious Odia literary journals like “Jhankar” has authored English poetry anthologies “Twilight Zone” and “River in Impasto” and “African Poetry in English”. In the sphere of radio broadcasting, his corpus of work marks him as a serious programmer to reckon with. Thirty years of active life in radio programme productions, winning of national and international awards in almost all categories, six months training abroad have made his professional life competent and prepossessing. Currently, he is the Head of Programmes at All India Radio, Cuttack. In an interview to The Pioneer, Rout spoke to Sugyan Choudhury on his activities at the AIR during the Covid-19 pandemic.
How does radio contribute to social cohesion during lockdowns, shutdowns?
These measures are imperative to counter the pandemic along with bolstering Indian economy as envisaged by the Prime Minister. We at AIR, Cuttack with the support of a skeletal staff started a new programme entitled “Battling Corona” everyday at 9 am from April 2. The programme is going to complete its 100th episode this month. While featuring corona warriors, the programme busts many myths and presents facts and creates an atmosphere in which social stigma is dispelled. I myself have interviewed Mrs Chhayarani Sahu, a corona warrior from Bhadrak who freely distributes vegetables among villagers, doctors at Sir Gangaram Hospital and Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi, policymakers and stakeholders to foreground a viable solution to tide over the crisis. My colleagues have produced life-enhancing programmes overcoming many hurdles catering to the needs of the listeners. Engineers have provided us with requisite phone-in platforms to have a ringside view of the public life.
During the Cyclone Amphan, AIR, Cuttack reached out to audiences ensuring last mile connectivity. Did you have a specific plan for such efforts?
We took shelter under an order by our Ministry issued in August 1992 by which the transmission was kept open overnight on May 19, 2020 so as to reconnect with the audience, obviously under serious strain, in a crisis of such magnitude. I personally anchored a late night group discussion using telephone and involving our part-time correspondents for updates on the cyclone. Frequent weather warnings and tips on precautionary measures were broadcast throughout the night. I talked to DG, IMD, Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra and conducted a telephonic interview with him. Such efforts were reassuring for the audience and the feedback we received was phenomenal. This is how a public service broadcaster has been mandated to function.
Was there any chink in your armour which you now want to repair?
Nothing in particular except the fact that we could not mingle with the audience or visit people in shelter homes with our roving microphones owing to Covid-19 pandemic. But we had a plan in place which was based on our previous experiences during Fani, Bulbul, Hudhud, etc. Day in, day out, our efforts have been to espouse disaster preparedness strategies vis-Ã -vis demography, geographical diversities and weather pattern.
How does Prasar Bharati management prioritise these issues?
Hon’ble Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar has envisioned an orchestrated fusion of Akashvani and Doordarshan in catering to the people’s needs vis-Ã -vis Government policy formulations. The Minister went into retro mode; and we could watch classics back on TV screen during lockdown. That catapulted DD into a top class channel with a thwack. AIR did the same thing. Our CEO Mr Sashi Sekhar Vempati, a member of technically-skilled elite, was responsible for technological makeover of Prasar Bharati. Under his guidance, Prasar Bharati has conducted videoconferencing, implemented e-office and VPN-enabled programme sharing. He even could foresee that audio CD has in its hospice stage. Therefore, 48 stations, including AIR, Cuttack, are in server-based production mode. AIR has also adopted international DRM standard. AIR is now being live-streamed on news-on-air and on social media. A multi-platform scenario has enabled the public service broadcaster to carve out a niche for itself in the global media scenario.
You’ve been trained abroad as a broadcaster. How does that help in your professional life?
A lot! You will be surprised to learn the relevance of that training even today. In 2000, I was given a fellowship under the Colombo Plan of Government of India to undergo training on programme production at Radio Netherlands Training Centre for six months. The thrust of that training was “Labour and Employment”. And look at the importance of labour and employment in the current situation! Therefore, I believe the Prime Minister’s call for converting this misfortune into an opportunity is significant. Radio can motivate youths to find newer pastures.
Is there a surge for AIR in foreseeable future?
Surge? When was the ebb? AIR will be one of the next big things. Of course, there will be metamorphosis. The fact that the Prime Minister has chosen it for his monthly “Mann Ki Baat” reinforces my idea of its immense future.
How do you feel being recognised in an international competition?
It was an unforgettable experience being in Teheran and receiving the award on behalf of AIR. My public service programme was a small song interspersed with announcement which advocated Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of life “The kingdom of God is within you”. I said, “Mahatma is within us”. The entire crowd cheered shouting “Mahatma”. Earlier, my documentary “The Butcher” based on World War-II was shortlisted for International Award PRIX ITALIA in 1996. My radio play “The Descent” was nominated from India for PRIX ITALIA in 1997.