From The Hindu Archives, December 6, 1976: ‘Mythological Programmes on TV Enjoyed Most by Villagers’

“Television audiences in rural India are highly appreciative of the mythological programmes dealing with subjects like Ramlila, Karna and Kunti and Devaki and Krishna. However, if these programmes are used for conveying development messages, even if they are enjoyed, the message is lost.”

This was stated in a paper presented at a symposium on “Mass media and integrated rural development” as part of the Indian Science Congress here to-day.

In his paper, Mr. Binod C. Agarwal of the Research and Evaluation Cell of the Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad, said the preliminary findings of the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) showed that the farmers preferred programmes with a direct development message.

Data were being collected by anthropologists stationed in nine villages of seven States to which the SITE programme was beamed.

The audience in general showed a high level of awareness of the family planning campaigns due to repeated exposure to the family planning programmes, but the programmes had not generated any further interest. Instead, the audience seemed indifferent to the family planning programmes.

Culinary programmes for women audiences had evoked mixed reactions.

Observations showed that schoolchildren were the most sincere viewers in the villages under study. Drop-outs and non-school going children were induced to come to school due to the TV programmes.

Did the TV help break caste barriers? The observations showed that “TV is not contributing towards breaking such barrier. But the TV has brought together children of all castes and religious groups for viewing the TV.”

The observations also showed that a number of cultural programmes, being “culturally not compatible” created disinterest and apathy among the audience.