On April 14, BR Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary, Tamil Nadu’s first Dalit-centric television channel, Velicham TV, hit the airwaves. Curiously, however, this channel has no Dalit reporters on its roster yet.
Velichcham TV was launched as the mouthpiece of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, a party with a strong Dalit base, whose leader Thol Thirumavalavan is a former Lok Sabha MP. According to the VCK, the channel's main motive is to provide unbiased reporting.
“Although Velicham TV will provide news of our party, we are aiming to maintain it as a neutral channel," said party general secretary D Ravikumar. "We do not want to project it as a solely pro-Dalit channel. Instead, we would like it to be a reliable source for news”
Telling a story
He added that although the channel had employed mainly non-Dalit staffers, they were looking to develop talent from marginalised communities.
The channel will feature six news bulletins, and a number of entertainment programmes as well.
“All other mainstream political parties have their own television channel; we decided it was time to start one for ourselves,” Ravikumar said, adding that the party had a 51% stake in the channel, and was being supported by Thamizhaga Cable TV Communication Pvt Ltd. The channel was also finalising talks with Tata Sky.
The party is hoping that major players like Arasu Cable and SCV will also support the channel in the future. “If we maintain neutrality in news, it will be possible to bring in Dalit issues, allowing people to see them in a new light,” Ravikumar said.
Quoting an article in The Hindu by Robin Jeffrey, Ravikumar said that stories from the lives of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are unlikely to be known, and very rarely written about.
Appreciated step
VCK's initiative has been hailed by the media and Dalit activists. Speaking about the lack of Dalit reporters in the mainstream media, Gnani Sankaran, a senior journalist, said that around 30 years ago, there were very few women in the media, a scenario that is now changing.
“A lot of women have entered both visual and print media, and a lot of women’s issues are being broadcasted. In a similar way, a Dalit-centric news channel will help improve the coverage of Dalit rights,” he said, adding that Velicham TV may not revolutionise the media, but it would definitely provide a much-needed space for Dalit rights.
For this scene to change, however, Sankaran feels that more focus needs to be paid to the education of first generation and second generation learners from Dalit and other socially backward classes.
“The higher education system is partly to blame for Dalits not participating in mainstream media," said Sankaran. "If you look at any college in the state, courses like BA Tamil will have 80% Dalit students. Unless there are more students from Dalit families admitted to courses like Visual Communication, it will be difficult for them to gain entry into media houses,” he said.
Hailing the move, Dalit activist R Murugappa from Villupuram said, “At present, unless there is a major incident, there is very little mention of SC/ST rights in mainstream media. With the introduction of VCK’s own channel, this scenario will change. The channel will also be an inspiration for Dalit children to enter the media, which is a career that very few consider."
Southern trend
In Tamil Nadu, it's common for political parties to launch television channels of their own. In addition to the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s Jaya TV, and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s Kalaignar TV, other political parties, too have their own channels.
Vijaykanth’s Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam launched Captain TV a few years ago. Ramadoss’ Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) has its own channel – Makkal TV.
Even the Bharatiya Janata Party's Tamil Nadu unit has its own Lotus TV along with Congress leader Vasanthakumar’s Mega TV.
Thirumavalavan’s Velichcham TV has now become the latest entrant into the cluttered regional language television space in the southern state.
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