IT'S not just their voices that are a rage, but their blogs too! Gone are the days when fans were let to imagine how their favourite RJs looked like, but now they can interact, comment, criticise and even suggest their views to Radio Jockeys, through blogging. Apart from social network communities and e-mails, blogs remain a huge platform for a presenter to communicate with their devotees.
RJ Ophelia
She is known as Imsai Arasi among her fans. ''Your voice is so different from your appearance,'' is the comment she receives often on her blog. Presently hosting the show 'Jil Jil Neram' on Big 92.7 FM between 3 pm and 6 pm, Ophelia is a regular blogger. ''Some people request songs and some give me replies to the questions I ask on my live programme. I ask them to tell tongue twisters on my show but instead they write it on my blog,'' giggles the RJ. ''I also receive comments like, 'your voice is not nice', I reply saying, 'thanks for your feedback' and ask them for suggestions,'' says Ophelia. According to her, mails are something personal and blogs remain a discussion forum with her fans. ''I do receive comments from people staying abroad like, 'I miss your programme', and also comments like 'talk like a female', I reply saying 'I don't know to talk like a female. You can teach me,'' adds Ophelia. Known for her witty comments and trademark slang on her show, Ophelia feels it's a great platform to know what fans want from the RJs.
RJ Ajay
''It's always nice when people criticise you, and that's how we can think from the other angle,'' says Ajay, about the comments he receives from his listeners. Hosting the show, Hello Chennai on Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM, his show is power-packed.
''I take online comments. It’s like a two-way experience. If I take some topic on my show, I receive comments like, 'why discuss that way and why not like this? I spoke about lesbian helplines on my show and I received comments like, 'why should it be discussed in the morning?, smiles Ajay.
His blog is not just about his show. ''I just write whatever I feel. That‘s how I let out my frustration,'' says the RJ.
''Help line numbers don’t help when you really need help . Helpers are helpless,'' a comment posted by Ajay reads. ''I posted it when the whole of Chennai was flooded and I was trying to reach out to as many people as possible. None of the numbers were working and to top it all up, there was no power in most parts of the city . In times like these, the only thing that pacifies people is information, which never really comes. Anyway, Chennai battled another monsoon and still survives,'' says Ajay, repeating his blog.
RJ Anjana
When she posted, ''Ten things we forget to do everytime we go to a restaturant'', she received a lot of comments she never thought, she would get. The ten things go on like this, ''when the bill comes, take out a pen or worse a pencil and look into the menu and calculate the bill by yourself, walk in sit, look at the menu, drink a glass of water and..... walk out……''. It's not just through her show that listeners get to know, but through her blog as well. Hosting the show Joot on Radio Mirchi, Anjana started blogging last November and the blog is exclusively for her fans. Her first post was about the radio itself. ''It was quite a long one and I told everything about my experience in Mirchi for more than one-and-a-half years,'' says the RJ, who says her show is both informative as well as entertaining.
RJ Sumitha
Her soothing voice is more popular among men and her blog is flooded with comments from them. Well-known as 'Ragasiya Snegidhi' after her show Ragasiyamai, Sumitha is now presenting the show Love You Da on Big 92.7 FM between 9 pm and midnight.
''Callers confess to me and they ask me suggestions on various issues like love affair, family problems and so on. I always respond positively,'' says Sumitha. ''Go slowly while going home...always have someone from your home to accompany you…if I was there I will accompany you daily, but I can't...sorry dear.'' That was a comment from her ardent fan. ''Apart from commenting on my voice, people also request songs to be played and write about their love affairs too, and I try to reply for every comment made. Some fans send me gifts and propose to me. Sometimes it's hard to make them understand that just by hearing a voice you can't love someone. When I get suicide calls, I feel very bad. I get their personal numbers and call them. And I speak to them positively,'' says the RJ. Sumitha went for special classes on psychology to understand the subject better and how to talk to those who're dejected. ''In the initial stage, when I was presenting the shows after hearing all those problems, I had sleepless nights. But now it's okay,'' says the RJ, who gets 70 percent of comments on her blog from men.
umakannan@epmltd.com