Doordarshan

History

Beginnings

The channel began modestly as an experimental broadcaster in Delhi on 15 September 1959, with a small transmitter and a makeshift studio. Regular daily transmission commenced in 1965 as part of All India Radio, with a five-minute news bulletin read by Pratima Puri. Salma Sultan joined Doordarshan in 1967 and became a news anchor. Gitanjali Aiyar, Neethi Ravindran, and Rini Simon became popular news anchors in the 1970s.

Krishi Darshan, which debuted on Doordarshan on 26 January 1967, is considered Indian television's longest-running programme.

Television services were expanded to Bombay (now Mumbai) and Amritsar in 1972. By 1975, only seven Indian cities had access to television, with Doordarshan being the sole provider in the country.

On 1 April 1976, television services were officially separated from radio. All India Radio and Doordarshan were placed under the management of separate Directors-General in New Delhi. In 1982, Doordarshan transitioned into a national broadcaster.

Nationwide transmission

National telecasts (DD National) were introduced in 1982. Colour television in India was introduced with the live telecast of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's Independence Day speech on 15 August 1982, followed by the colour broadcast of the 1982 Asian Games held in Delhi. Two years later, Doordarshan evolved into a structured TV network. The sole TV channel was split into DD-1, a nationally broadcast channel, and DD-2, a city-focused channel. In 1993, they were rebranded as DD National and DD Metro to compete with the then-newly privatised television industry.

According to Mitra, with the start of nationwide transmission in the 1980s Doordarshan began to push a homogenous hegemonic national image of India as a North Indian Hindu Hindi-speaking nation via the broadcast of shows such as Mahabharat (1988 TV series) and Ramayan (1987 TV series). Mitra states Doordarshan's choice of programming depicted other religions, regions, and languages as "marginal or sometimes deviant".

The live telecasts of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics were aired on Doordarshan's national channel, while DD Sports offered round-the-clock coverage of the event.

On 17 November 2014, Doordarshan director-general Vijayalaxmi Chhabra introduced a pink-and-purple colour scheme with a new slogan: Desh Ka Apna Channel ("The country's own channel"). In 2017, Doordarshan operated a network of nearly 1,400 terrestrial transmitters and had 46 studios producing television programmes. After introducing private channels, Doordarshan has faced challenges in maintaining its position in the television industry. Currently, Doordarshan focuses on improving its studios and programmes, primarily aimed to serve the nation.

DD National and DD News—along with 17 regional satellite channels, 11 state networks, an international channel (DD India), a sports channel (DD Sports), cultural and informative channels like DD Bharati and DD Urdu, and an agricultural channel, DD Kisan. On DD National (formerly DD-1), regional and local programs are aired on a time-sharing basis for terrestrial broadcasting only. DD News, launched on 3 November 2003, replaced DD Metro (formerly DD-2), providing 24-hour news coverage. These channels are relayed through all terrestrial transmitters in India. The regional-language satellite channels consist of two components: a regional service for a specific state (relayed by all terrestrial transmitters in that state) and additional regional-language programs available through cable and DTH operators. DD Sports broadcasts national and international sporting events and is the only channel to air rural sports such as kho-kho and kabaddi.

A new regional channel, DD Arunprabha, was initially scheduled to begin broadcasting on 15 February 2018, focusing on the North Eastern region of India as a 24/7 satellite television channel. However, its launch was delayed and eventually took place on 9 February 2019.

On 9 March 2019, Prasar Bharati expanded Indian's satellite footprint through DD Free Dish by adding 11 more state DD channels. This included five channels for the North Eastern states: DD Bangla, DD Chhattisgarh, DD Goa, DD Haryana, DD Himachal Pradesh, DD Jharkhand, DD Manipur, DD Meghalaya, DD Mizoram, DD Nagaland, DD Tripura, and DD Uttarakhand. DD Bangla, launched on 9 August 1975, features a programming mix that includes soap operas, infotainment series, news and current affairs, social programs, and films, all in Bangla.

On 13 April 2020, Prasar Bharati launched DD Retro, a channel dedicated to airing classic Hindi serials from Doordarshan. However, the service ceased operations on 1 April 2023 due to low viewership.

Channel list

Doordarshan operates 44 channels, including HD feeds.

National channels (7)

{{anchor|Regional language channel}}Regional channels (28)

Former channels

International broadcasting

The DD India satellite channel has been broadcast in 146 countries. In the United Kingdom, it was available through the Eurobird satellite on the Sky system's channel 833, under the logo Rayat TV. However, transmission via Sky Digital ended in June 2008, followed by the termination of its broadcast via DirecTV in the United States the following month.

Record viewership during the pandemic COVID-19

The Ramayan on DD National set a world record by becoming the highest-viewed entertainment programme globally. The 9:00 p.m. broadcast on 16 April 2020 was watched by 77 million viewers. The show reached over 285 million viewers during its broadcast. In response to the nationwide lockdown, DD network aired several nostalgic shows, including Mahabharat, Chanakya, Shri Krishna, Malgudi Days, Byomkesh Bakshi, and Shaktimaan. Due to increasing public demand for such content, Prasar Bharati launched DD Retro, a full-time channel dedicated to classic programming. Within five weeks of its launch, DD Retro garnered viewership of nearly 50 million. Additionally, the DD network played a key role in public messaging during the pandemic, reaching over 400 million viewers through COVID-19 awareness messages and shows during the first wave of 2020.

{{anchor|Allegations of state control|Commercial viability}}Criticisms

Prasar Bharati is the parent body of Doordarshan, and the Government of India appoints its board members through the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

Doordarshan has been used, particularly during the Emergency, to disseminate government propaganda. During Operation Blue Star in 1984, only government sources were relied upon for reporting the events. Additionally, Doordarshan was involved in the production of a video that claimed acts of violence, which, when investigated by independent journalists, were found to be false.

In 2004, it censored a controversial documentary on Jayaprakash Narayan, an opposition leader during the Emergency.

In 2014, Doordarshan broadcast a 70-minute Vijayadashami speech by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader Mohan Bhagwat, which led to criticism of the Narendra Modi administration and the BJP for "misusing" the public broadcaster. DD Director-General Archana Datta responded, "The speech was like any other news event; therefore, we covered it."

Since private television channels were authorised in 1991, Doordarshan has experienced a steep decline in viewership.{{cite web|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/doordarshan-turns-60-here-is-a-nostalgic-look-at-the-broadcasters-milestones/first-on-dd/slideshow/71241736.cms?from=mdr|work=India Times| title=Doordarshan turns 60: Here is a nostalgic look at the broadcaster's milestones |first=Shephali |last=Bhatt| date=Sep 22, 2019}} Although Doordarshan earns significant advertising revenue, due to its compulsory feed from the highest bidder for national events, including cricket matches, there has been a proposal to fund the network by imposing a licence fee for owning a television in India.

Legacy

A film named after the broadcaster, spiritually motivated by the 2003 German film Good Bye, Lenin!, was released in February 2020.

References

References

1. (15 September 2016). "Doordarshan turns 57; watch the video of its first telecast plus 7 lesser-known facts about DD".
2. (November 2016). "The future of Doordarshan is on the block".
3. Kumar, Anuj. (2023-06-07). "Gitanjali Aiyar, popular Doordarshan news anchor, passes away". The Hindu.
4. Sharmila Mitra Deb. (July 2009). "Indian Democracy: Problems and Prospects". Anthem Press, 2009.
5. Kamat, Payal. (18 January 2012). "Short essay on Development of Television in India".
6. "A Brief History of Television in India".
7. Bhalla, Sahil. (25 September 2014). "Flashback 1982: The Asian Games that transformed Delhi".
8. (December 24, 2009). "1982-Colour television is introduced: Out of the dark ages".
9. Mitra, Ananda. (1993). "Television and the Nation: Doordarshan's India". Media Asia.
10. (25 July 2012). "Doordarshan to live telecast London Olympics opening and closing ceremonies". The Times of India.
11. (15 November 2014). "DD National to be relaunched as 'Desh Ka Apna Channel'".
12. [https://www.channellist.in/dd-free-dish/ Doordarshan Channel List (2017)] {{Webarchive. link. (17 February 2017 . DD Free Dish Channels, 17 February 2017)
13. (6 March 2018). "Doordarshan: A struggle for relevance".
14. (7 February 2019). "India's radio signals got more reach in Pakistan than they are in India: Rathore".
15. (14 September 2010). "'Irregular' Doordarshan appointments quashed". The Hindu.
16. "PM Modi To Launch New Doordarshan Channel for the North East in Arunachal Pradesh". NDTV.com.
17. "PM to launch DD Arun Prabha on Feb 15". The Times of India.
18. (7 October 2018). "Launch of DD's Arun Prabha put on hold". The Asian Age.
19. "PM Modi launches DD Arun Prabha channel in Itanagar today".
20. "11 more State DD Channels on Satellite footprint". NewsOnAIR.
21. "Prasar Bharati brought 11 more state Doordarshan channels on satellite footprint: PM Modi". TheIndianExpress.
22. "Covid-19 lockdown: Prasar Bharti launches DD Retro to invoke nostalgia".
23. Singh, Dr Paramveer. (2021-08-05). "Indian Silver Screen". K.K. Publications.
24. (April 28, 2020). "Coronavirus Lockdown Creates Captive Audience for '80s Show". wsj.
25. "Powers of the Director Doordarshan Kendra Bhopal".
26. (26 January 2004). "Channel war drives DD to shelve bias". The Telegraph.
27. Kuldip Nayar Posted: 9 November 2004 at 0012 hrs IST. (9 November 2004). "Censoring his own past". The Indian Express.
28. (3 October 2014). "Doordarshan telecasts RSS chief's speech live, stirs controversy". The Times of India.
29. (3 October 2014). "A dangerous line was crossed when Doordarshan telecast Bhagwat's speech live". Quartz.
30. (3 October 2014). "RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's speech covered just like a news event: Doordarshan". The Indian Express.
31. (23 July 2002). "DD leads viewership sweepstakes &#151 Tops among all homes nationwide, but lowest in C&S". Business Line.
32. Himanshi Dhawan. (10 July 2007). "Govt mulls 'licence fee' on every colour TV". [[The Times of India]].