SIGHT & SOUND

Leopards change spots
Amita Malik

WITH the elections drawing near, it is hardly a secret that political parties are asking their TV performers to smarten up and improve their images on television. A few have even hired media experts to take classes on TV imagery.

From Chandrababu Naidu to BJP leaders, everyone is getting into top gear to win votes through TV. And in more general terms, the Shining India PR exercise on TV has already attracted the attention of the new Chief Election Commissioner, who has sounded a warning note about using the taxpayer’s money for government propaganda. This controversial issue will be followed with interest by TV viewers, who have a keen eye for political propaganda before elections take place.

True to form, DD is openly giving a lot of time to the party in power, which it always does. It was interesting, for instance, to see how much time was given in the news to the Minister for Information and Broadcasting. A sudden shot of Sonia Gandhi or some other neta of the Opposition is thrown in hurriedly in between for good measure, but the viewer is far too canny to be taken in. One notable change has been in the appearance of Sushma Swaraj. One usually saw her in ornate sarees with a lot of gold work and sindoor copiously spread on her forehead and head. In her last TV appearance, she was wearing a dull, pale cotton saree and the sindoor was only discreetly visible. Obviously, development scoring over Hindutva.

Opposing her in debate was silver-haired Kapil Sibal, looking smart in gray coat and tie. Very photogenic indeed, and his technique was to smile indulgently instead of entering into loud arguments whenever Swaraj got excited, which was often. And Sonia Gandhi is cultivating a rural image for the villages. I would like to suggest that parties should hire fashion designers, who could advise them on what to wear on TV.

George Fernandes could also do with advice in this direction. Parties need make-up artists too so that the men don’t look too red around the lips or the women don’t look too fair. I presume speech experts are already do their job.

But it is as well to remind ourselves that in a recently conducted panel discussion which also evaluated TV performers on TV, Nalini Singh and Jaipal Reddy placed Laloo Prasad in the top place, while the BJP spokesperson and Alyque Padamsee voted for the Prime Minister.

I spent the last two weeks in Kolkata. At the risk of being branded a parochial Bengali, I must take off my hat to the Bengali channels which covered the Kolkata Book Fair with dedication, intelligence and amazing depth. One channel CTVN devoted at least one hour every evening to the fair, which is unique to Kolkata. On the vast grounds of the maidan, endless stalls attract people of all ages, views and reading habits. The Bengalis’ love for books made it clear that TV had not yet scored over books.

This particular channel held impromptu interviews with those who had come to the fair. While learned professors explained why they liked certain international authors, three schoolchildren were sitting around a computer which was playing CDs of well-known Bengali novels. Taslima Nasreen was very much in evidence, defending her banned book and entering into spirited discussions with Bengali intellectuals.