FM radio station Uttarakhand

The popularity of Radio Khushi-Gungunate Raho, the region's first FM radio station, is growing by the day::

Ruchi Pradhan Datta

The world is zipping ahead with snazzy phones, I-pods, social networking sites like Face book, Twitter, etc. Yet all this techno-paraphernalia has not been able to usurp the magic of the good old radio as is evident with the soaring popularity of Radio Khushi-Gungunate Raho, the region's first FM radio station.

Broadcast on 90.4 MHz, what makes the station so special is not just the fact that it is the first FM station in the Garhwal Mandal region, but that the station has been established by Guru Nanak Fifth Centenary School, Vincent Hill, Mussoorie, and is operated by its students.

"The station was launched in April 2010 with a broadcast time of five hours, but on popular demand it has been extended to eight hours within a short span of time. Now it is on air daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.," informs Arjun Kainturia, Station Director.

Being a community radio station, along with the regular dose of entertainment and daily weather updates, the station raises socially relevant issues; presents programmes on current affairs; concerns related to young people as well as interviews with well-known personalities of the Dehradun-Mussoorie belt. The programmes are hosted mostly by the students who are trained and guided by professions radio jockeys, prominent among them being the Programming Head of the station, Nupur Karanwal. Even young talents in various fields like singing, playing various musical instruments are encouraged to showcase their talent.

The channel can be heard in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and parts of Western Uttar Pradesh and is especially popular in Dehradun, Mussoorie, Rishikesh and Haridwar. The school authorities believe that this initiative will inculcate self-confidence, enhance creativity and augment awareness about media-related professions among the students. In fact, so popular are some of the student RJs like Anuroop Sandhu, Nizan Ahmed, Shivani Sharma and Ritika Chaddha that they have already cultivated a steady fan-following and are contemplating taking anchoring/radio jockeying as a full time profession. Little Rehan Bhutani, a student of class I, has been immensely appreciated for his beautiful presentation of moral thoughts. Young engineer Nikita Kumari, a Radio Khushi loyalist from Dehradun, opines that the primary reason for the channel's success is the freshness brought in by the young school students. "We are not subjected to the constant yakking of the professional RJs and it is a pleasure to listen to bright, new voices, who are not governed by pre-determined notions of what a radio-jockey should be like," she reveals. While it is the chirpy voices that enchant Nikita, for student Aman Nautiyal, it is the content of the programmes that draws his attention. "Alongside the Hindi and English programmes, there are broadcasts in Garhwali, Kumaoni, Punjabi, Jaunpuri et al, making it truly multi-linguistic experience," he observes.

Owing to the popularity of the channel, the school plans to soon increase the broadcast time to round the clock as well as impart training to school students in the Dehradun-Mussoorie area.

"It is the amalgamation of youthful and innovative ideas of the young presenters along with the cultural and community-oriented content of the programmes, which break away from the mundane routines generally associated with radio channels. This happy mix is the USP of Radio Khushi, resulting in its phenomenal success," concludes Lecturer Madhu Parmar.