July 1923 - Broadcasting in India began
in July 1923 with programmes by the Radio Club of Mumbai and
other radio clubs.
July 23, 1927 - The Bombay Station of
the Indian Broadcasting Company (now All India Radio
since 1936 and officially known as AAKASHVANI
since 1956), located in a building called the 'RADIO
HOUSE' was inaugurated by Lord Irwin, the
Viceroy of India.
August 26, 1927 - Calcutta Station of
the Indian Broadcasting Company (now All India Radio
since 1936 and officially known as AAKASHVANI
since 1956), was started on this day.
March 01, 1930 - The Indian
Broadcasting Company went into liquidation.
April 01, 1930 - Government of
India took over the existing private broadcasting
facilities, starting the Indian State Broadcasting
Service (ISBS) (It was on experimental basis
for two years, but continued even after 2 years)
June 08, 1936 – Renamed
India State Broadcasting Service as ‘All India Radio’.
October 01, 1939 - External Service
began on this day with a broadcast in Pushtu;
it was intended to counter radio propaganda from Germany
directed to Afghanistan, Iran and the Arab nations.
October 03, 1957 - Vividh Bharati
Service was launched, to compete with Radio Ceylon. It
presents a mix of film music, skits, short plays and
interactive programmes, Some of the old popular programmes
of Vividh Bharati are 'Sangeet Sarita', 'Bhule Bisre Geet',
Hawa Mahal, 'Jaimala', 'Inse Miliye', 'Chhaya Geet' etc.
April 01, 1976 - Television broadcasting began in Delhi in 1959 as part
of AIR, but was separated from radio as Doordarshan on
this day.
July 23, 1977 - FM broadcasting
commenced on this day
in Madras and was expanded in the 1990s.
July 05, 2017: Narendra Modi, while in
Israel, informed that the immortal Signature Tune of All
India Radio was composed by a Jewish.
But the moot question is "When, Why and by whom this
tune (most popular in India) was done away with?" Listen
to it:
Objective
The basic objectives of AIR are:
Uphold the
unity of the country and the democratic values
enshrined in the constitution.
Present a fair and balanced
flow of information of national,
regional, local and international interest, including
contrasting views, without advocating any opinion or ideology of
its own.
Promote the interest and concerns of the entire nation, being
mindful of the need for harmonyand understanding within the country and ensuring that
the programmes reflect the varied elements which make the
composite culture of India.
Produce and transmit varied programmes designed to
awaken,
inform, enlighten, educate, entertain and enrich all sections of
the people.
Produce and transmit programmes relating to developmental
activities in all their facetsincluding extension work in agriculture, education,
health and family welfare and science & technology.
Serve the rural, illiterate and under-privileged population,
keeping in the mind the special needs and interest of the young,
social and cultural minorities, the tribal population and those
residing in border regions, backward or remote areas.
Promote social justice and combat exploitation, inequality and
such evils as untouchability andnarrow parochial loyalties.
Serve the rural population, minority communities, women,
children, illiterate as well as other weaker and vulnerable
sections of the society.
Promote
national integration.
Description
AIR originates programmes in 23 languages
and 146 dialects Reaching over
92% of the country’s area and 99.2
% of the total population.
A Division of ‘PRASAR BHARATI’
When India became independent in 1947, the AIR
network had only six stations: Delhi,
Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Lucknow, and Tiruchi; the total
number of radio sets at that time was about 275,000.
Presently it is one of the largest broadcasting
organisations in the world in terms of the number
of languages of broadcast, the spectrum of socio-economic
and cultural diversity it serves.
AIR’s home service comprises 418 broadcasting
centres and 199 relay centres today located across
the country.
Bal Gangadhar Tilak (Birth
Name: Keshav Gangadhar Tilak)
Date of Birth
July 23, 1856 – Ratnagiri District,
Maharashtra, India
Date of
Death
August 01, 1920 – Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Profession / Traits / Activities
Indian nationalist, journalist, teacher, social
reformer, lawyer and an independence activist
Date-wise Events / Works
June 22, 1897 - Inspired by
publications of infammatory articles by him, two British officers were shot and killed by the
Chapekar brothers and their other associates. Tilak
was charged with incitement to murder and sentenced to 18
months imprisonment.
August 07, 1905 - Soon after
the partition of Bengal by the British authorities, he led
the movement boycotting the use of foreign goods.
July 22, 1908 - He
was sentenced to 6 years on charges of sedition.
June 16, 1914 - He was released from
jail after 6 years of imprisonment.
April 28, 1916 - On this day,
he founded The All India Home Rule League,
with a prime objective to lead the national demand
for self-government, termed Home Rule, and to
obtain the status of a Dominion within the
British Empire.
Special Achievements
/ Events
One of the first and strongest advocates of "Swaraj"
(self-rule).
The Britishers labelled him as “the father of
Indian unrest”.
He was conferred with the honorary title of "Lokmanya",
which literally means "Accepted and respected by the people
as their leader".
His famous quote, "Swaraj is my birthright, and
I shall have it!" is well-remembered in India even
today.
The handling of the plague epidemic
(from Bombay to Pune in late 1896, and early 1897) by he
British authorities involved tyranny and oppression of the
common public. As a result of this, Tilak took up this issue
by publishing inflammatory articles quoting the Bhagavad
Gita in criticism of the British authorities.
He opposed the moderate views of Gopal Krishna
Gokhale, and was supported by fellow Indian
nationalists Bipin Chandra Pal in Bengal
and Lala Lajpat Rai in Punjab. They were
referred to as the Lal-Bal-Pal triumvirate.
He also defended the two Bengali youths, Prafulla Chaki
and Khudiram Bose, who attempted to murder British
officials, as a consequence of which he was again sent to
jail.
He, in his paper Kesari, defended the
convicted revolutionaries and called for immediate Swaraj or
self-rule. The Government swiftly arrested him for sedition
and sent him to jail in Mandalay, Burma from 1908 to 1914.
While imprisoned, he continued to read and write, further
developing his ideas on the Indian nationalist movement.
While in the prison he wrote the most-famous Gita
Rahasya. Many copies of which were sold, and the
money was donated for the freedom fighting. He was
released from jail on June 16, 1914.
Commemorations
The Kesari is still published
as a daily newspaper in Marathi.
The Deccan Education Society that Tilak
founded with others in the 1880s still runs much respected
Institutions in Pune like the Fergusson College.
The Public Ganesh festival (Ganeshotsav)
has become a central part of the culture of Marathi Hindu
communities throughout the world.
Because of Tilak's efforts, Shivaji,
the founder of Maratha Empire is the only figure from that
era revered by contemporary Marathi masses and Hindu
nationalist parties like the Shivsena.
The Swadeshi movement started by Tilak
at the beginning of the 20th century became part of the
Independence movement until that goal was achieved in 1947.
Tilak Smarak Ranga Mandir, a theatre
auditorium in Pune was dedicated to him.
In 2007, the Government of India released a coin
to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Bal
Gangadhar Tilak.
CHANDRA SHEKHAR
AZAD (Birth Name: Chandra Shekhar Tiwari)
Date of
Birth
July 23, 1906
– Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh, India.
Date of
Death
February 27, 1931
– Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Identity
Revolutionary for
Indian Independence
Other Events &
Developments
He reorganised the Hindustan
Republican Association under the new
name of Hindustan Socialist
Republican Association
(HSRA) after the death of its
founder, Ram Prasad Bismil.
At the age of 15, he joined the
non-coopeation movement
launched by Mahatma Gandhi.
Soon thereafter he was
arrested and sentenced.
While appearing in the court,
when the magistrate asked him his
name, he replied AZAD.
When asked Father's name, he told
SWADHIN and when
asked Mother's Name, he answered
DHARTI MAA. That is
how his last name became Azad.
He is considered to be the
mentor of Bhagat Singh.
After the Indian Rebellion of
1857, he was the first among
many Indian revolutionaries to use
arms in their fight for
independence against the British
rulers.
On February 27th, 1931
he met two of his comrades at Alfred
Park, Allahabad. But the police
traced him and surrounded the park
and ordered him to surrender to
them. Azad fought alone and
killed three policemen but
was shot in the thigh. After nearly
exhausting his ammunition and
foreseeing no means of escape,
he shot himself in the head
with his last bullet.
Commemorations
The Alfred Park has since been
renamed as Chandra Shekhar
Azad Park.
The Colt pistol
of Chandra Shekhar Azad is displayed
at the Allahabad Museum within the
Alfred Park.
Manoj Kumar's 1965 film
Shaheed featured the
character of Azad.
Sunny Deol portrayed Azad in the
movie 23rd March 1931:
Shaheed.
In the movie The Legend
of Bhagat Singh, starring
Ajay Devgan, Azad was portrayed by
Akhilendra Mishra.
The lives of Azad, Bhagat Singh,
Rajguru, Bismil and Ashfaq were
depicted in the 2006 film
Rang De Basanti, with Aamir
Khan portraying Azad.
Indian music
director, singer, producer, lyricist, distributor and actor.
Other Events &
Developments
As a singer, he earned
fame for songs like "Aashiq
Banaya Aapne", "Tera Suroor", "Zara
Jhoom Jhoom", "Jhalak Dikhlaja",
"Shakalaka Boom Boom", "Hookah Bar",
"Chalao Na Naina Se", "Tandoori
Nights".
His music has a style of
composition based on a
fusion of Western and Indian
classical music accompanied
by techno beats.
He started his acting career
with his debut
film, Aap Kaa Surroor.
Awards
and Accolades
Filmfare Award for Best Male
Playback Singer in 2006 for Aashiq
Banaya Aapne. Also Star Screen
Award, IIFA Award, Zee Cine Award
for this song and became
first ever Bollywood singer to
receive Filmfare Award for his debut
song.
He also received several
nominations for his Music Direction.
He was presented the
Phalke Best Supporting Actor Award
for Khiladi 786.
Indian violinist,
composer and conductor skilled in Carnatic music of south India
and Western classical.
Date-wise Events / Works
October 24, 2012
- He performed as a Special Guest Artist with Stevie Wonder at
the latter's message of peace concert at the UN.
Other Events &
Developments
He is known to have done more
than 150 recordings.
He has worked with many
big names like Yehudi
Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli,
Ruggiero Ricci, etc.
He is famous for his music and
compositions in orchestral
fusion.
Awards and Accolades
Lifetime Achievement
Award, Limca Book of
Records (2012)
GiMA (Best Carnatic
Instrumental Album –
Innovations), Global Indian Music
Academy (2012) Padma Bhushan,
Government of India(2001) Lotus Festival Award,
City of Los Angeles (1998) Special Medal of Honour,
HH King Birendra of Nepal (1997) Best Composer Award/Commission,
NRK P2, Norway (1996) Creative Music Award,
Sangeet Natak Akademi (1990) Padma Shri,
Government of India (1988) Grammy Nomination
(for the album Indian Classical
Music) (1981) President's Award for Best
Violinist, All India Radio
(1963)
Indian actor,
director and producer best known for playing comic roles in
Hindi films.
Other Events &
Developments
During his career of more than
four decades, he worked in over
300 Hindi films.
His sister, Minoo Mumtaz,
was also a successful dancer and
character actress in Bollywood
movies.
His first break as both a
director and an actor was
Bhoot Bangla with actress
Tanuja. This movie paved the way for
Mehmood to succeed Johnny
Walker as the most
successful Bollywood comedian.
Amitabh Bachchan
was a tenant for 11 months at the
Mehmood Outhouse from 1967–1968 and
again from 1972-1973 (4 Months).
He died in his sleep
on 23 July 2004 in Pennsylvania, US,
where he had gone for treatment of
heart disease.
Mehmood's son Lucky Ali
is a singer and composer
who has also acted in films.
Some of his very famous
Bollywood songs are 'Ek
chatur naar' from film
Padosan, 'Aao Twist Karen'
from Bhoot Bangla, 'Yeh do
deewane dil ke' from Johar
Mehmood in Goa, 'Hum kaale
hai to kyaa huaa dilwaale hain'
from Gumnaam and so on.
Awards & Accolades
Filmfare Best Supporting
Actor Award for Dil Tera
Diwana.
Filmfare Best Comedian
Award twice for films
Pyar Kiye Jaa and
for Vardaan.
He was one of the
brightest students from
Santiniketan during Rabindranath
Tagore's era.
He was the first Indian to go
overseas to study printmaking as a form of
art and profession.
He travelled to different cities
across America and Japan to learn
printmaking from established artists
in the western world.
He returned to India and took up
drypoint-etching as
a profession.
He is considered to have
established this art form in India.
Commemorations
His works are found in the
collections of the
Victoria and Albert Museum, London,
the Indian Museum, Kolkata, the
National Gallery of Modern Art NGMA
in Mumbai, and the National Gallery
of Art, New Delhi.
The Mukul Dey Archives
are housed at his former home, named
Chitralekha, at Santiniketan.
He was also the illustrator for many book
projects, one of his earliest was a
scholarly book Shantiniketan Bolpur
School of Rabindranath Tagore.
