Durga Puja and cultural programs

Durga Puja today is celebrated on a grand scale in Kolkata and anyone remotely connected with the celebrations invariably enjoy the fruits of labor in the form of fringe benefits. It happens irrespective of the size. I remember in our township where it was on a scale much smaller than that in Kolkata but large by local standards.
The venue was fixed – it used to be in an open space that the organizers covered up to ensure sitting spaces for those who would come to enjoy the entertainment programs in the evening.
I am talking of the period of the 1970s when TV was an object of desire that was available in only a few selected houses. The TV set was B&W and the programs were only from Doordarshan.

Anyway, in those days, the organizers of the Pujas in township would make arrangements to have one entertainment program every evening for all the four days. Due to the proximity with Mumbai, volunteers would go there and contact orchestra groups and reputed drama groups. The intention was to have programs that would appeal to different sections of society. The entertainment would be Bollywood based with artistes who would sing, dance, and perform mimicry. The drama would be Marathi. And, then, there would be a local program where local talent would go on stage.
Obviously, all these involved finance and, since the number of Bengalis was limited, the organizers had to reach out to others. Volunteers would fan out beyond township and collect donations. Everyone who donated would be given passes to attend the entertainment programs in the evenings and arrangements would be made to request the MSRTC buses for special trips at the end of the show.
However, all good things do not last for long and, in this case also, the social scenario gradually underwent a sea change – the reason was the arrival of color TV and a variety of entertainment channels. The days of ‘Ramayana’ and ‘Mahabharata’ on Doordarshan was over, it was replaced by serials like Hum Log and Buniyaad. (to be continued …)
Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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The changed face of TV serials

Indian TV depicts unbelievable lifestyles of the rich – millionaire families in the serials have only one servant to take care of a household of around ten highly influential individuals who always remain dressed from head to toe in all their finery? They can make things happen in the twinkling of an eye. The city they live in boasts of only one road, one hospital, and one temple.
And, in the family, the heroine is the medicine for all evil even though she continues to earn the wrath of some of the characters. She wants to help anyone in the family who has a problem but her noble intentions are not allowed to take fruit thanks to some evil characters who plot to spoil her party.

The answer is – yes, TV serials of today in India dream up even more weird situations. These are contrived by the story writers to garner TRPs and remain on top of the charts of popularity.
And, the episodes keep coming and the audience is kept glued to the TV sets waiting for the next turn of events. At times, for a change, the team is taken out of the make believe sets to some foreign location for variety. Who knows – the heroine might have suddenly insisted that if she is not taken to Australia, she will leave the serial!!
In comparison, the TV serials of yore aired on Doordarshan were treats to watch – usually, each serial was of 13 episodes and these were weekly shows. There were a couple of exceptions like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata – these were morning slots while other serials occupied evening slots.
Doordarshan was, in those good old days, the only TV channel available till other brands invaded the space and made TV a 24X7 affair with increase in the number of couch potatoes.
How one longs for serials like Udaan, Airhostess, Mungeri Lal ki haseen sapney, Hum Paanch, Buniyaad, Wagle ki duniya, Ghar jamai, Malgudi days etcetera. Each of these had plausible story lines and the viewer could relate himself with the characters.
Alas, today there is no story line and new twists are introduced on a regular basis to ensure that the serial goes on and on from 1000 episodes to 5000 episodes. (to be continued …)
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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