Ten GR8! Years...!!
Ten GR8! Years...!! Yes, with this issue we have now effectively and positively have completed a magnificent decade together. Thank you ALL… my superb team here in Mumbai and my wonderful readers across the country for the encouragement and support you’ve provided us throughout this period. We couldn’t have done it without you and we look forward to another fantastic decade together.
Politics and political debates, as I have often stated, are definitely the most entertaining content we have on air these days… Telly-land has been gripped big-time with politics & political drama these past few months. The fever and the pitch in News Channel studios however are rising steadily, given that all are assuming that elections are barely around the corner.
Yes, we all enjoy these debates but lately the politicians, their supporters and mostly the new breed of wannabe politicians (usually creators of some websites proclaiming perpetual devotion and support to certain political parties) are shouting themselves silly, literally! It’s becoming impossible to understand what anyone is saying anymore because the other is yelling to drown out any sounds coming out of the mouth of their opponents. This new breed I just mentioned is the most exasperating lot… They bellow non-stop… They drive us bananas… They will never answer a question that’s been asked. A question pertaining to why the ruling party has done A is always answered by a why did the opposition decades ago do B? They don’t let others viewpoints be heard and are sort of following a sadly popular mantra which has proven that utter sycophancy and unflinching support to a particular political party, no matter how ridiculous and irrational you come across, is a sure shot way of becoming first a spokesperson, then a MP and then a Minister. And that’s the sad part… all the reasonable, intelligent & balanced persons who call a spade a spade get left out of our political class. It’s a vicious cycle & I wish we could get out of it somehow, soon.
Other than that, watching & then winning the Champions Trophy was terrific fun. Kudos to the men in blue! Wimbledon too was exciting this year. It was great to see Andy Murray’s determination & undying resolve finally bear fruit. I hope someday we too are able to provide the mental foundation and physical infrastructure needed to be a nation capable of producing this quality of sportsmen. I personally feel that we as a country are too satisfied with mediocrity & we are too generous with compliments, we applaud the better than average to no end and we don’t push for brilliance or distinction - as such our sportspersons typically fare substandard on global platforms.
And, on that note, it’s adios for now. Happy Tenth Anniversary to you too and cheers to even GR8’er times ahead… Until next time, happy reading!
ANU RANJAN
anu@indiantelevisionacademy.com
