Punjabi antenna
A flair for anchoring
Randeep Wadehra

Kamaldeep

POISE is essential for successful anchoring. Live TV shows can test the best of comperes as there are no retakes. Things become all the more demanding when a show, like Dial-E-Punjab, is interactive too. One has seen many a seasoned anchor, in the absence of scripts, fumble for right words and be at their wits’ end when the listener phoning in comes up with a clever poser.

Therefore it was a pleasure watching the telegenic Mubarakan girl, Kamaldeep, sparkle onscreen with off-the-cuff repartee.

Full marks to her for speaking fluent Punjabi with audiences from such diverse places as Patiala, Jammu and Atlanta. Although she is articulate in French and English too, she does not twist her tongue to sound firangi, like most Punjabi anchors, while conversing in her mother tongue. An ideal blend of impressive screen presence and flair for anchoring, her conversation with the audience was devoid of artificiality.

Not so frequently, one comes across original and entertaining productions. One such programme was shown on the local cable channel, viz., Bhajna Amli Sappan Wala which vibrates with rustic humour and that occasional acid touch that’s so typical of Punjabi satire.

The milieu may be rustic but it unerringly dissects human failings, which are universal. Targeting politicians, snake-charmers, eve-teasers and small-time thugs, the fast-tempo comedy keeps viewers in splits. Free of ribaldry and double entendre, it can be enjoyed comfortably by families.

One really wonders why amateurish singers supersede professional performers on major Punjabi channels. MH1 has made a move of sorts by telecasting the comedy competition Hasde Hasande Ravo, with Rakesh Bedi and Gurpreet Ghuggi, among others, as judges. Let us hope this does not fizzle into a
one-time affair.

Tailpiece: Invitations for the Miss Zee Punjabi 2006 contest are being telecast several times a day. Every year Zee and ETC Punjabi go through the ritual of conducting beauty contests like Miss World Punjaban. Our mutiars are invited to participate in the show. But what happens to the winners thereafter is something of a mystery. One has yet to see them in any telefilm/drama or other major productions. One feels that it is only fair that winners and runners-up should be offered contracts by the channels. Would this time things be better for the beauty queens?