This Sunday was significant for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat radio programme as it reached a crucial milestone of 100 episodes. For a monthly programme that began in 2014, sustaining listener interest would have been a challenge, though promoted by the government of the day. However, Modi managed to keep his audience eating out of his hand as he tried to promote awareness on global and local matters while celebrating unsung solution providers at the grassroots level, inspiring people to achieve their dreams and become change-makers.
According to a study, over 100 crore people have listened to Mann Ki Baat at least once since its inception, while nearly 23 crore hear it regularly. Such humongous numbers have naturally made the programme a money spinner for All India Radio that platforms it. It is interestingly consumed more online and on TV than through radio direct, indicating the country’s digitisation depth. His easy conversational style and the wide range of relatable people-centric topics have made the broadcast a vital pillar of the government’s citizen-connect initiative. Its apolitical content has also kept it out of the Election Commission of India’s cross-hairs despite the country being in poll mode frequently. In the latest episode, Modi lauded the initiative of a Haryana-based activist who pioneered the ‘selfie with daughter’ campaign, saying it inspired him to launch a scheme to educate and save the girl child, which has already improved the gender ratio in that state.
That Modi is a communications czar is indisputable. He has been weaponising mass media in all its myriad forms since he assumed office as prime minister in 2014. He keeps travelling around the country and perennially stays in the public gaze. Highly image-conscious, his public programmes, select media interviews and photo sessions are carefully choreographed. His Mann Ki Baats have added to his aura of a Teflon neta whose popularity never seems to wane. Yet, he continues to be the only prime minister of India who has never addressed a full press conference. He, however, happily does an annual photo op with the press corps in Delhi during the BJP’s Diwali Mangal Milan event. While monologues are no substitute for free media interactions in a democracy, Modi has not let that affect his party’s electoral outcomes. If ever he decides to field questions at an open press meet, it could yet turn out to be the biggest red-letter day in his prime ministerial tenure.
