New Delhi: The first ever FM radio drama series from India, â€?Life Gulmohar Style’, will completes 100 episodes of its broadcast later this month.
Produced for All India Radio’s FM networks by BBC World Service Trust, the series addresses the aspirations and concerns of modern women in urban India. The 156-part show is also the longest-running radio drama on the Indian FM Networks.
The 100th episode will be aired on 26 May at 7:30 pm from the five stations of AIR FM Rainbow in Delhi, Mumbai, Jallandhar, Lucknow and Kanpur.
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Life Gulmohar Style is also aired on private FM Dhamaal 24 from its ten stations in Karnal, Hissar, Patiala, Shimla, Jabalpur, Ranchi, Muzaffarpur, Dhule, Ahmednagar and Jalgaon.
Directed by BBC’s Award Winning Producer Pervaiz Alam, Life Gulmohar Style is the story of five young people in search of their identity. The drama deals with a host of issues facing women today, including their sexual and reproductive health, violence, and their roles and responsibilities in a changing India. The 100th episode portrays how urban India is struggling to come to terms with the issues of gender inequality and dowry.
An online event is being organized to mark the 100th episode, in which the drama cast and production team will come together to interact with the fans of the show all over the country through various social networking sites.
Alam who is formerly from All India Radio and at one time produced programmes for Yuv Vani told radioandmusic.com that there is a perception in the FM radio sector that only music or light-chat oriented programmes do well in terms of attracting audiences. It’s heartening to see that our radio drama Life Gulmohar Style has not only created niche audiences for drama but also managed to tempt the so-called music listeners to tune into a programme of 15 minutes without a break….
Yvonne MacPherson, Country Director of the BBC World Service Trust, added: We have been very encouraged by the feedback we have received from dedicated listeners who say that the programme is thought provoking. Some have even shared examples of how the programme has changed their views about women in a more positive way….
Dhamaal 24 National Programming Head Anil Kapoor said Our listeners are exposed to a show that tackles sensitive issues in an entertaining manner. The drama has received an overwhelming response….
The drama serial is the outcome of extensive research conducted by the BBC World Service Trust that examined how the media can be used to address the rising rates of sex selective abortion in India.
The drama episodes are also available for free downloads and podcasts on our website: www.lifegulmoharstyle.org and BBC Hindi online.
