Fifteen years ago, it was a dream.
The Indian community, which boasted of successful entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders and thinkers of world-class reputation, did not have its own medium of communication. There were no newspapers, radio stations and television channels that were for, by and of Indian people. It was paradoxical that people from the world’s largest democracy with a thriving media industry did not have a presence in a country which subscribes to ferociously independent press.
It was to fill a void, give vent to people’s thoughts and opinions and entertain them that Radio Tarana was born.
Establishing the first enterprise in an unknown territory is a tough task, for such a venture will be shrouded by uncertainties and scarce human, financial and material resources. No one would know if the ship would float or sink in unchartered waters.
It is always easy for someone to imitate, plagiarise and replicate a successful enterprise. That has been the case with Radio Tarana and Indian Newslink, the first and foremost newspaper of the Indian community in New Zealand.
I have always believed in fair and healthy competition, because it sets the pitch for every player to score; but unfortunately, it is never so; there is always someone to queer the pitch and lower standards and income.
But the tough will always get going, no matter how tough the going gets. That has been the secret of our success – that of Radio Tarana and Indian Newslink.
I look back the 14 years of my journey with Radio Tarana with a sense of pride, satisfaction and fulfillment. Start up of a new venture is almost always wrought with the proverbial paucity of finance, with no one, least of all commercial banks, willing to help. The stakes are high and no one wants to underwrite the risk.
This radio station was built on teamwork and cooperative spirit. No one is conscious of the fact that it is a sole-proprietorship, owner-managed company. Each of us (that includes me) has a target to achieve with a focus on one most important factor: our customers.
We began as a ‘few-hours-only’ radio station to test the market and understand the needs of our people before progressively increasing broadcasting time. Six years ago (on June 1, 2004), Radio Tarana became broadcasting 24-hours throughout the year (Indian Newslink called it a ‘Sleepless Station’ in its May 15, 2004 issue). The round-the-clock operation enabled us to add variety, complement staff and improve our product and service delivery.
We began to make waves and be noticed.
The May 2000 coup in Fiji is a prime example.
We were the first to flash the news across the world. We pooled our resources, dispatched staff to be on the ground and report. We were the main source of news and information, for a while at least, to the New Zealand media, including Newstalk ZB, TV1 and TV3.
Since then, our news segment has expanded, with dedicated reporters and newsreaders for hourly updates.
Film stars and celebrities have a huge fan following in every society and the Indian community is no exception. Radio Tarana is arguably the only station in the South Pacific region to have the voices of almost every major film star – from Amitabh Bachchan to the newest actor – they greet and at times entertain our listeners.
Ameen Sayani, the doyen of the Indian entertainment industry, has been a Tarana star for the past six years. His programme, Sangeet kay sitaron ki mehfil is being aired between songs throughout the week, with repeats, culminating in a weekly time slot of longer duration.
Radio Tarana is a ‘We’ station – there is no scope for ‘I’ here; we work, debate, improve, improvise and deliver as a team. Each of us has areas of responsibilities, targets and tasks. We share credits as a team, while as the Managing Director, I accept the blame for lapses and shortcomings.
Professional and trade bodies and other organisations have, in recent years, found us worthy of awards, citations and accolades. We received the ‘Special Recognition Award for Community Broadcasting’ at the annual Radio New Zealand Awards 2008. During the same year, our Presenter Satend Sharma received the ‘Best Foreign Language Programme Award,’ the first ever by an Indian broadcaster.
Radio Tarana has retained its Number One position among Indian radio stations as the top language broadcaster in the Greater Auckland region in the latest Research International Australia and New Zealand Survey.
It found an increase in the listenership of the radio station during the April 2010.
According to the Survey, Radio Tarana had 3.3% of the commercial radio market share and achieved the No 1 Status for the highest time spent listening Auckland station (10 hours 26 minutes weekly).
With over 42,000 listeners weekly in Auckland, the station also retained its No 1 spot as the premier Language Broadcaster in the country.
The Radio Industry Research Committee manages the annual Survey for Research International Australia and New Zealand to determine the major players in the commercial radio broadcasting sector.
This is no mean achievement.
It shows that we are committed to adding value to whatever service we provide.
It also shows our penchant for progress and customer satisfaction.
As we step into our 15th year, I wish to express my gratitude to our advertisers, sponsors, well-wishers, my team at Radio Tarana and most important of all, our listeners for their support and patronage since the first words went on air 14 years ago.
Listener is a strange word.
In fact, we should be called the Listener, because we listen to you all the time, assimilate your views, desires and wants and honour them wherever possible.
Robert Khan is the Managing Director of Radio Tarana based in Auckland.
