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TV evangelism hits the Indian airwaves
NEW DELHI: From the day Saroja Subramanian was crippled by arthritis she stopped attending her ‘satsangs’, or mass devotional singing, at the neighbourhood temple.
But today she does not feel the spiritual vacuum that she once did, thanks to a proliferation of religion channels beaming satsangs and sermons right in her living room.
“I haven’t missed a thing since I started watching Sanskar TV. Be it satsangs or spiritual discourses, I feel I am very much part of everything,” said Subramanian, 66, whose daily chores are now tuned according to programmes beamed on the channel.
Sanskar is one among the growing number of religion channels that are gaining popularity among millions of senior citizens and slowly establishing their presence in India’s airwaves dominated by entertainment and news channels.
“The swamis perform yoga in front of a live audience and I can do the aasanas (postures) right from the comfort of my home,” said C.R. Israni, 65, another regular viewer.
The programmes on spiritualism laced with a slew of lifestyle serials have also gone down well with urban Indians, who are increasingly tuning into such religion channels in search of health and heartiness.
“It is better than watching mindless serials that show women as chaste wives whose suffering is made out to be a virtue,” said social researcher Radhika, who uses meditation techniques offered on Sanskar’s lifestyle shows to cope with the stresses of day-to-day life.
The religion channels –Aastha, God, Jagran, Maharishi, Miracle TV, Om Shanti, Sadhna and Quran TV — cater to followers of various religions and have captured a devoted audience that ranges from housewives to senior citizens.
The religion channels have become so popular in a short period of time that even conventional entertainment channels like ETC Channel Punjabi have made room for religious shows like the live telecast of ‘gurbani’ or readings from the Sikh holy text at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the holiest of Sikh shrines.
Zee TV network, one of India’s major media houses, has even launched its own religion channel, Jagran.
Despite their number, each channel has its own distinct identity. Aastha focuses on values of life, Sanskar is more into devotion than spiritualism, while Sadhna has a mix of both.
Sadhna also caters to children and features a child ascetic Sri Bal Shuk Ji Maharaj.
“The eight-year-old child guru has succeeded in attracting children towards spirituality,” said Sadhna vice president Barkha Arora.
Discussions, meditation techniques, documentaries and coverage of major festivals, besides astrology, form the staple on these religion channels, with prime time slots being in the early mornings or late evenings.
“I certainly don’t support every single doctrine preached. But I have found some programmes that really spoke to my heart,” said Edison Amirthraj, a chemical engineer.
His favourite programmes include gospel sessions hosted by Chennai-based Christian evangelist Paul Dinakaran on God TV.
Their popularity notwithstanding, the channels generate meagre revenue from limited advertisements.
“The reason they are able to survive is because they have succeeded in providing relief to people from the sick programming in entertainment and news channels,” said N. Bhaskar Rao of the Centre for Media Studies, a Delhi-based independent multi-disciplinary research and development organisation.
Though scope exists for more advertising to boost revenues, the channels have to be conscious of their socio-spiritual profile while booking advertisements.
“I believe everyone is in it for a good cause and not for the money. Besides, there is hardly any competition among religious channels,” Satish Kohli, Sanskar TV’s Delhi regional head, told IANS.
Media analysts, however, point out that competition exists among the channels but is limited to inviting famous gurus or religion experts, who are few and far between.
The most popular ‘godmen’ on the channels are Ram Dev, Sant Morari Bapu, Guru Maa, Maa Jasjeet, Sukhbodhanandji, Sudhanshu Maharaj and Asaram Bapu among Hindu spiritual leaders and Paul Dinakaran.
“The spiritual channels are still evolving and it is still too early to say which one will last. But those who broad base their programming will definitely last longer,” Rao said.
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