Sunday morning saw an eclectic gathering of radio jockeys — transgenders, people living with HIV, auto drivers, the differently-abled, domestic help, waste pickers, and animal welfare activists — come together to celebrate a decade of Radio Active CR 90.4 Mhz, Bengaluru’s first community radio station.

For this diverse group of citizens, who are often marginalised, the community radio has given them a platform to air their views. Most significantly, it has given them the confidence to live with dignity and demand for equal rights.

Salma and Siddique Pasha, waste pickers from Nayandahalli, host two shows – the daily show, Kasa Shramika Parisara Rakshaka, and a weekly Dastaan-e-Nayandahalli, documenting the stories of recyclers in the area. “The shows have given us a platform to connect with others in the community. To reach out to listeners in various slums we do shows in multiple languages — Kannada, Urdu, Tamil, and Bengali,” said Mr. Pasha.

Senior solid waste management expert N.S. Ramakanth has begun a new show called Trash Talk in English and Kannada.

Shiv Kumar, an auto driver, was first interviewed by the radio station for being awarded by the city police for his honesty in 2010. But soon he became an RJ and has since hosted multiple shows for auto drivers. He also has a show where he interviews unknown achievers and unsung heroes.

Akshay, 11, the youngest jockey, also sees a big draw with his show Chinnara Chilipili where he has been documenting traditional games along with storytelling sessions by other children. When asked how he greets his listeners, Akshay went into the RJ mode and said, “Welcome to the city’s first community radio Radio Active 90.4. We will now play games that our grandparents and parents used to play.” He produces the show with the help of his aunt Manjula along with 40 other children in the slums of Dasarahalli.

The channel has a strong programming on transgender rights with five shows, all hosted by members of the community. One popular show is Jeeva Diary, hosted by Uma which is presented as a diary of her life and its travails. “We get a good response and have got several calls from listeners who are shocked to listen to the discrimination and humiliation we face as young people in schools and at work,” she said.

Radio Active has also turned out to be a platform for the northeast community in the city to organise and voice themselves. Urmila Chanam, from Mizoram, who now hosts the show North East ki Awaz, said that the 2012 exodus of northeast community from the city set them into legal aid activism in the community.

“But the attacks on the community members never came down. So we have now started the radio show to have our voice heard. While we started featuring northeast food, fashion shows, and festivals, the show has also helped us intervene on behalf of a few victims of sexual abuse from the community,” he said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Bengaluru / June 26th, 2017