Dear, …………,
Namaskar. With my blog yesterday, I have generally recounted the events and happening till I was attached to All India Radio. However, there are a couple of interesting mini stories that I remember being there. You may enjoy reading them.
This one shows how some people can be mean and act in a manner to have an upper hand. We had Diesel Generators in the Studio Centre and Transmitter area. These generators would be run whenever the city incoming power supply would fail or its voltage/frequency would be low. Earlier generators had to be started by rotating a crank with a Z shaped metal handle. This was also true with cars of earlier times before self-start motors were introduced. When these generators were upgraded, the self-start facility was also got introduced. The day the generators were installed, the Diesel Generator operator was handed over the key and the process of starting the Diesel Gen set was shown to him. This person did not tell his colleagues that the set could be started by a key instead of cranking. He would keep the key with him and when he had to start the engine with the key, he would cover his hand and key with a part of his shirt so that no one could see how he was starting the generator. All others continued to use the cranking handle to start the generator. This continued for some months when the boss saw them cranking with the handle. He asked for the key. No one knew about it. The fellow who had the key was called. He could not offer any explanation for his act. From that day, the key started the gen set. The erring employee left the job. (I do not know whether he left it on his own or was asked to leave.) This episode happened before I had joined AIR.
There were great personalities in All India Radio when I joined there. The senior programme personnel were veterans. They were very impressive and very talented. Most of them were locals. Just before I joined there was a local Director in charge of the station. At that time a producer from Delhi was transferred to Srinagar. He was very eager to learn the local language. He expressed his desire to the officers around him. They agreed to coach him. They told him that they would first teach him how to greet a boss when you first meet him during the day. What they taught him was a very rough line denigrating the sister of the boss. (Behn ki gaali in the local language.) It took him a few days to remember the line and speak it in chaste local language. Then one day, early in the day, he went to the director’s room. The Director was there along with another officer. As soon as this officer entered, he spoke his line and extended his hand to shake the Director’s hand. The Director on hearing him, froze in his seat. It took him some time to compose himself. Then he disposed off the officer who was there first. Next, he asked the officer to take his seat. He complimented him on learning the local language. Then he asked him who had taught him. The officer proudly mentioned the names of the officers who had taught him. The Director then asked the officer to leave. The Director next called all the named officers into his office chamber. Then he gave each one of them a piece of his mind They all were shamed for their behavior. Later in the afternoon when that Delhi officer learnt what had happened and also the meaning of what he had said, he came and tendered his apology to the director. The Director told him that it was not his fault.
One day an American citizen came to
the Radio Station. He was to be interviewed as a guest for the programme, “A
Guest in the Happy Valley.” The interviewer was to be the Director. (Different
one than in the above story) Till the Director could come, there was some time
for the guest to roam about and look at the TV Studio system. He was a six and
half feet tall gentleman with sturdy shoes which we associated with “Hippe” type
Americans of those days in the sixties. When he came to the Control room, he
saw the transmitter panel in front of him. Word “COLLINS” was written on the
chassis. He enquired whether it was the USA Company “COLLINS” make transmitter.
When we said yes, he felt proud of his country and asked us whether we were
facing any issues with its working. Hearing the word, “No” from us, his doubly
felt proud. Then he went to the next room. At that time, a colleague of mine,
remarked in Hindi language that “this person must have been roaming somewhere
and has been brought to appear as a guest in the programme” The American in the
other room heard it. He came back to the control room. He folded his hands and addressed
in chaste Hindi as follows. “I have been approached and I have reluctantly
agreed for the interview. If you have any objection, I will go and not attend
the interview”. The person to whom he replied got shamed. He did not expect the
American to understand Hindi. Just then the Director arrived at the VIP Studio
and the interview started. The American during the interview said that he was a
Peace Corps member from USA and was on a two- year programme in India. During
the first year, he had learnt Hindi language and in the second year he had been
teaching Hindi in a school in Rajasthan. I learnt a lesson from this incident.
No loose talk ever even when I know for sure that the other person does not
understand my language.
Bye.
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