Bombs away

Terrorism has been addressed sporadically on Indian television over the years,but not much effort has been made to really explore it. Doordarshan’s Fauji,about the life of soldiers,dealt with the topic,as did Sony’s CID,in one special episode Doomsday. Zee TV’s critically acclaimed show Shapath,while mostly about the police,also touched on terrorism. The one show that took more than a cursory look at the issue was Time Bomb 9/11,by Ketan Mehta,on Zee TV. Starring Rajeev Khandelwal,the show showed 24 hours in the life of an army officer as he tries to prevent the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister.

The latest show to address the issue is UTV Bindass’s popular show Dadagiri. Channel head,Heather Gupta,says,“Ever since 26/11,when terrorism came to our very doorstep,people have been feeling that this is an issue that needs to be addressed. With Dadagiri’s new season,we hope to do our bit.” According to Gupta,terrorism forms the backdrop for the show,with 16 young citizens being trained in defence skills. “We can’t fight terror on our own,but we’re trying to create a more aware and well-prepared class of citizens.” But even here,the primary purpose is not to understand terrorism,but to encourage people to fight it.

Captain Albert Louis Singh,ex-commando,is one of the mentors on the show. He asserts,“We’re trying to show how difficult and dirty the job can get. The drills that we’re putting the contestants through are those used by anti-terror squads around the world.” Singh feels there is need for more such shows on television. “But it’s a sensitive topic so it needs to be handled well.”

Khandelwal agrees that sensitivity is the key to getting a show on terrorism right. Also required is research and meticulous attention to detail. “Most shows today are written and produced in no time. That won’t work with a show on terrorism.” The actor also feels that one of the reasons television producers and channels would be reluctant to pick up such a show is because of its short shelf-life. “Indian television specialises in stretching out stories and going off on other trajectories,because such stories are the money spinners. A terrorism story will need to be tight and short,and may not be profitable.” Time Bomb itself had wrapped up in 24 episodes.

BP Singh,producer of CID,says,“It’s too sensitive a topic to use to entertain people and so producers shy away from it. You have to package it as a thriller or whodunit for it to work like we did in Doomsday.” He points out that even American TV shows like 24 and The West Wing addressed the issue,but did not really explore the causes. “For them,unlike us,terrorism became a big issue only after 9/11. But even they package such shows as thrillers.”