Sold on Doordarshan

Gursharan Singh

IWAS comfortable in the guesthouse at my new place of posting, staying in a well-furnished room with an attached washroom, an air-conditioner, television, etc. But I noticed that there was limited access to channels provisioned by the cable operator, blocking some of my favourite channels — BBC, CNN, Discovery and National Geographic. Interestingly, all channels of Doordarshan were accessible; be it DD National, DD Bharti, DD Sports, DD Kisan and all regional channels. In addition, all commercial news channels were also available, but I feared watching them for repetition of content was a letdown; sometimes blown out of proportion. I was desperate and contemplated getting a Dish TV installed for a wider range and variety of programmes. 

Going down temporary lane, I remembered the days, when during the pre-cable era, I enjoyed the two telecasts by Doordarshan to the fullest of my amusement and knowledge. One was Surbhi on the national channel and the other Beesswaal on Jalandhar Doordarshan. I felt proud of my English teacher from DAV College, Jalandhar, Prof GC Mago, who would invariably succeed in telling the name of the book till the 20th question put to him. I kept surfing Doordarshan channels, hoping to find more such interesting programmes, but had no such luck. 

One fine morning, DD National was telecasting an interview with a reputed orthopaedic surgeon. The programme kept me absorbed for half an hour or so. It was informative, interesting and immaculately compered. I was hooked.

Over the next few mornings, there were top scientists, artists and also a politician on the programme. I developed a taste for the programme, Aaj Savere, telecast at 7.30 am. This inspired me to try other channels. I was impressed with the programmes on DD Bharti as well; be it yoga, Earth Matters or Mausiki Ek Khoj. These programmes filled the void in my evenings. It felt a lot like regaining the paradise lost.

I shelved my plan for a new cable connection covering an array of entertainment and issues. I wondered why I had not tried Doordarshan earlier. Thrown in were lesser number of advertisements and unwanted repetition — a blessing in disguise, really. I realised that had I not been deprived of my favourite channels, I would not have known the worth of Doordarshan and the quality of its programmes. This was my experiment. Others could try too.