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The
Behind Etc
The
rise of etc as one of the most viewer-friendly channels of the nation
has been quite meteoric. One minute it wasn’t there. The next minute
it was inundating every home. The CEO of etc Pradeep Dixit has been a
part of the electronic medium for the past 21 years. His past experiences
sit lightly on his shoulders, and the boulders that are bound to obstruct
the flow of a music channel don’t deter his resolve. Though in the
course of our conversation Pradeep Dixit often consults his team about
the channel’s nittygritty,y he’s very much a man in-charge.
“First of all, let me clear one thing. etc has nothing to do with
the ATN channel. We don’t telecast only film music round-the-clock.
You’ll find loads of pop music videos on our channel. If people think
we’re in any way related to ATN then they’re highly mistaken.”
Within nine months etc has become one of the big players in the game.
Pradeep explains, “We the directors of etc were sure about one thing
when we started- the channel had to be visible all over the country, and
that the quality of the music programmes should lure viewers into our
channel. Luckily we were very familiar with the satellite business and
knew exactly which buttons to press. We have a very professional distribution
team at our disposal.
Therefore we have been able to penetrate into the remotest areas.”
Three months back at Calcutta’s cable fair, etc won a prize. “You
see,” Pradeep explains. “We don’t just promote our channel
to viewers. We also promote it among cable operators”. Regarding
the competition Pradeep says a lot depends on the attitude and the intentions
of the individual channel. “The best is bound to lead in the market.
etc has achieved a remarkable success within nine months. And we’ve
been growing constantly. We’re always keen on giving equal importance
to consolidation and expansion.”
etc looks at itself predominantly as a family entertainment channel. Though
there are no immediate plans of introducing soaps on etc, the channel
has begun to air music-related programmes then of course there are the
ever-dependable ratings-boosters, the feature films.
Says Pradeep, “Ever since sponsored television started in India,
feature films have always attracted the maximum viewership. We’ve
already telecast films like Tere Mere Sapne, Mrityudaata and Chachi 420”.
Point out the futility and redundancy of flooding the home viewing medium
with feature films, and Pradeep heatedly defends his channel’s cine-mania.
“Films still are and always will remain the cheapest and most enjoyable
means of entertainment in this country. Good blockbusters are always a
treat to the people. We do have non-film programmes on etc, like Kahani
Kismat Ki. But we aren’t looking at soaps at the moment. The market
doesn’t seem very encouraging.”
When etc was planned, a music channel seemed to be in the fitness of things.
“We cater to viewers from the age of 6 to the age of 60. There’s
something for everyone on etc. The other music channels like MTV and Channel
V claim to cater to youngsters only. But we incorporate the youth into
our channel and expand the viewership base in every direction.”
The programmes on etc are described by Pradeep Dixit as, “Well researched
and backed by excellent packaging. Channel V and MTV have access to a
small part of our overall viewership. We beam only Hindustani music. We’re
trying to preserve the culture of the country.”
I am stuck by the naivete of that declaration. With the sort of clothes
attitudes and rhythms that are on display in our films these days, what
sort of cultural preservation can a film-oriented music channel subscribe
to?
“Our channel’s slogan is Aakhir Dil Hai Hindustani”, Pradeep
Dixit insists stubbornly. “If you watch our programmes like Geet
Gata Chal or the feature films like the Rajesh Khanna-Hema Malini film
Premanagar you’d see that we try to maintain certain standards of
decency.”
Since etc must perforce, maintain close and cordial relations with the
music industry Pradeep sees the promotion of new albums on etc as a two
way traffic. “We have sizeable viewership which the music industry
acknowledges and wants to make use of. Where else can they reach into
homes all over the country?”
The track-attack on etc is paying rich dividends. The channel has broken
even in the very first year of its existence. Music promotion is an important
and lucrative business on etc. One wonders how much objectivity the channel
can maintain in giving every album fair airplay when one album has a monetary
advantage over another.
The channel also arranged tie-in contests for films like Mela and Phir
Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani. “And why not?” Pradeep defends his channel’s
monetary intentions. “Film music is part of our business. And promotion
comes in a package. The music companies have a product to promote. We
do the needful. It’s as simple as that. I hope etc gives the music
companies their money’s worth.”
Strangely there was no countdown show on this music channel until very
recently. Pardeep says etc’s newly introduced countdown show determines
the popularity of songs through viewers’ ratings. “By and large
we look on the music industry as our friend and we share a relationship
of equals with it. Nobody can accuse etc of being partial to or prejudiced
against his or her album. We don’t want to get into controversial
situations.”
As a public broadcasting channel etc feels it is its duty to give the
public what it wants. Pradeep Dixit is very sure of the channels intentions.
“We are very confident of what viewers want. That’s the secret
of our success.”
Right now Pradeep Dixit seems very unsure about the channel’s future
plans. “But we do intend to promote new talent. At the same time
we have a show like Taal where Ustad Zakir Husain speaks on various music
forms and instruments. We’re constantly trying to better our services.
One of our channel’s aims is to know and meet viewers’ demands
at the appropriate time”.
In the next couple of years etc aims at becoming one of the top revenue-earning
channels in the country. “We’ve been growing constantly and
yes, you’re right, so has our confidence. One reason why we’ve
grown so rapidly is we’re willing to learn from our mistakes. One
learns and rectifies one’s mistakes all one’s life.”
Subhash K. Jha