Remembering “नमस्कार आजच्या ठळक बातम्या” By Pradip Bhide on Doordarshan

Senior news correspondent Pradip Bhide, known as the face of Doordarshan, passed away in Mumbai on 7th June 2022 after a long illness. For more than forty years 1974 to 2016, the Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra, which is now the ‘Sahyadri’ channel, has lost the loud voice saying “नमस्कार आजच्या ठळक बातम्या” (Hello, today’s headlines). Bhide’s dignified voice, clear pronunciation and a pleasant personality remained unchanged during his 35-year-long career as a newsreader.

Education & Family Background
Pradip Bhide’s was 65 years old. He is survived by his wife Sujata and a son, a daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren. His mother and father Shubhalakshmi and Jagannath were working as teachers in Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil’s Rayat Shikshan Sanstha. Pradeep was educated in five to six villages in Maharashtra as he was being transferred to different schools. After completing his 11th SSC, he came to Pune for college education. After graduating with a degree in science, he also completed a course in journalism from Ranade.

Language rites were inculcated at home from childhood. As both mother and father are teachers of Sanskrit, Marathi and Hindi language. But the fifteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita were recited aloud every day. It was also called ‘Vishnu Sahasranama’. According to Bhide, this helped him to have pure and clear pronunciation and to make a ‘sound’.

Video Court Marshal Program on Sahyadri Channel

Job opportunity at Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra
In an interview given to Loksatta in 2017, Pradip Bhide shared his memories of his entry as a ‘news reporter’ on Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra. At that time, he said, “I was attracted to radio or television. It felt like we had to work there. While doing journalism course in Ranade College, Mr Bhagwat who was the Deputy Director at Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra, used to come to teach us the subject of ‘Doordarshan’.
If any of us wanted to work at Doordarshan Kendra, they should come and meet us. Accordingly, I met Bhagwat. I started out on television as a ‘trainee production assistant’. While doing this, the then director of Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra, Mr Shastri heard my voice, why don’t you read the news? It was an opportunity for me.

I auditioned for the post of ‘News Correspondent’ and I was selected for the post. Mumbai Doordarshan Kendra was started in 1972 and in December 1974 I read my first newsletter as a news reporter.

But within the first few minutes the repression subsided and I submitted the newsletter. Now I don’t remember exactly what news I read. But I got the acknowledgment that the first newsletter was presented nicely and neatly, ”he had said.

Pradip Bhide’s Achievements
In his career, Bhide has given voice to more than five thousand advertisements, documentaries and short films and has hosted / narrated upto two thousand programs. He hosted the Pune Festival for seven-eight consecutive years from the first year. He also received the award for ‘Best Announcer’ of ‘Pune Festival’.

Bhide officiated the swearing-in ceremony of the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance at Shivaji Park in 1995, the swearing in of Devendra Fadnavis as the Chief Minister, some public functions of the President and the Prime Minister and many other important political and cultural events.

News then and now…
He also commented on Doordarshan’s ‘news’ and today’s ‘news channels’. Doordarshan news and news reporters have their own style. There is more emphasis on vocabulary. The standard Marathi language is preserved there. It is the ‘news’ that is calm, restrained. On the contrary, today’s news channels have become ‘husky’. In order to create and develop a good news reporter, a ‘News Reporter’ quality search competition should be held.

The work of a news reporter or presenter is not ‘recognized’. This work is considered to be of relatively low quality. I was saddened that the award was not given to the news correspondent / presenter with few exceptions.

– Pradip Bhide quoted to Loksatta

This article is excerpt from the Marathi article in Loksatta – Read here