Anand Gandhi: Poor show by most professional courses

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 In conversation with Anand Gandhi...

On Indian education system

Our education system is not built on a solid and understanding foundation. The system has not comprehended the original meaning of education. By that statement, I mean that almost all professional courses in India have failed immensely. The graduates who pass out of their colleges at the end of their undergraduate courses know shockingly little about their profession and the same is the case with some postgraduate courses as well.

However, the statement is not a sweeping remark on everything, seeing that there are postgraduate courses that run quite well, but most of the postgraduate institutes do not provide the kind of students that they are expected to. The colleges in our country neither encourage students to assess and enquire new ideas nor do they allow them to examine new ideas and data. These are the skills that an educational institution should provide to its students, which, unfortunately, none of the institutes encourage.

Tackling the issue

It is a monster of a problem which can be resolved through two ways. A short-term objective could be for students to do something in this regard. Thankfully, students are now benefitted with means to an end. They can choose many courses that are available online. If you want to educate yourself without paying a single penny, even that facility is available through online courses which you can download and start studying.

If you find that your colleges do not stimulate you or encourage creativity, you could always turn to online courses. But you would have to be quite disciplined about it. The second and the long-term objective is one in which all of us come together for the betterment of the system. It can happen over a period of time. We have to come together as a community and identify the problems, articulate the issue, break it deconstruct it and then troubleshoot the problem

On well-informed people

I have come across only three types of well-informed people. The first category is from villages, including the hands-on Indians, who try new ways to repair their tractors and invent new ways to repair and reinstall something. They may not have the perfect book education, but their practical knowledge on the world is quite awe-inspiring. The second category includes those who have done an undergraduate course in India and then gone abroad for their higher studies. The third category is those who have done their education here.

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Article first appeared in education Insider magazine

Neeta Lulla: Indian fashion industry set for big leap

 Neeta Lulla is one of the most popular and celebrated fashion designers in India. Neeta twirled into the fashion designing world about two decades ago. She started her career as the assistant choreographer of former choreographer Jeanne Naoraji n the late 1980s before starting her career in costume designing. She came into the limelight after bagging a National Film Award for designing ‘Roop Ki Rani’ Sridevi’s costume in the 1990 blockbuster movie Lamhe. Neeta won the National Film Award for Best Costume Design in 2009 and 2012 for Jodha Akbar and Balgandharava, respectively. Over the past 28 years, Neeta Lulla has worked for some of the finest Indian films and the biggest stars in Indian cinema. 

 

In conversation with Neeta Lulla...

As an expert in fashion industry, what is your opinion in taking fashion designing as a career?

I believe that fashion designing is a great career especially because of the growing awareness in fashion across all strata of income groups in our country. Fashion is segmented into various avenues that need fashion experts today to cater to the needs of the aware consumer and this profession is definitely going to grow multi-fold in the coming years.

What are the opportunities and hurdles before the youth in moulding a career in fashion industry?

I think there are two major hurdles that the youth face today. First, it is the technical expertise, which will help channelise them into the right segment of fashion. Second, it is the lack of corporate or financial backup.

When we consider the Indian fashion Industry, what are the opportunities here for a fashion designer?

Today, a fashion designer has tremendous opportunities as opposed to when I first started. The younger lot these days are really lucky as they are exposed to an environment that shows diversity in cultures and dressing sensibilities.

Could you mention the various branches that a youth can specialise in fashion industry?

Today, there are so many branches a student can choose to specialise in. Apart from designing, there are a number of other career options that students can explore – like pattern making, quality control, visual merchandising, marketing, illustration, styling, fashion photography, and fashion journalism.

What prevents the growth of the Indian fashion industry compared with the West?

Infrastructure backup is missing in India. Also, I feel we lack the right experts with experience in creative or backend support.

Could you define the role of fashion weeks in career development of a designer?

I believe a fashion week helps promote the business and gives an awareness of the creative sensibilities of the designer.

What is your opinion of the quality of fashion design education in India?

When I started out in the fashion industry, there were limited options available within fashion education in India, but today, the space is fast growing as more and more students are opting for this field. It also gives me great pride that my School of Fashion has begun and will train fashion aspirants to excel at the highest levels.

What are the qualities required for a good fashion designer?

I think that the biggest quality that is required to be a good fashion designer is dedication. One must be extremely dedicated to the profession, focused in life, have clear goals and keen observation skills.

How does an individual get started in the fashion industry?

Firstly, specialising in one’s skills, then working with the right platform in that expertise. If you are an entrepreneur, then it is working on a style identity from the first collection that is launched to create a brand.

What are your Top Ten tips for the aspiring fashion designers?

1.       Focus on education

2.       Read lots of books

3.       Observe the fashion happenings

4.       Research on fashion

5.       View shows

6.       Understand garment finishes

7.       Understand colour sensibilities

8.       Know your fabrics

9.       Create your own style statement

10.     Focus on your goals

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Article first appeared in the Education Insider magazine

Sashi Kumar: Cause and commitment should be your motto

 Sashi Kumar is a journalist, filmmaker and media thinker and initiator who launched Asianet TV channel and subsequently founded, and chairs, the not-for-profit public trust Media Development Foundation, which runs Asian College of Journalism. He started his career with Doordarshan as newsreader and producer. Later, he worked in PTI-TV as chief producer and general manager of PTI. Sashi Kumar has authored and presented independent programmes on economy, politics and culture on Indian television, like Money Matters, Tana Bana, and Jan Manch

In conversation with Sashi Kumar ...

In the age of new-media journalism, what do you think is the future of print media? Do you think the print media is declining?

Once the new media becomes full-fledged, print journalism will decline. In Western countries, a number of newspaper organisations have been shut down because of the growth of internet and new-media journalism. However, in India, this will happen only in a longer time. We have newspapers that are registering growth, as against the mature media market in the West. There has been a rise in the readers for regional-language newspapers. Literacy programmes are the reason for this phenomenon. I think it will take another 10-12 years for the new media to get domination in the country.

How is new media going to change the face of journalism?

Gone are the days when we had to wait for the morning newspapers. These days, we have the internet, and the information being provided in the internet is very vast. Media is categorised as print, visual, audio, etc. All these media culminate together in new media, where you can read, see, and listen, so the viewers or readers can experience everything. This is used to access information from anywhere and anytime. Interactive feature is another advantage that is worth mentioning about the new media, which allows people to exchange their ideas and views on a certain topic.

Newspaper organisations have to cut down trees to produce newsprint. Unlike newspaper, new media do not have any space restriction problems. Cyberspace is vast and infinite. The capsule format in which information is presented attracts the readers. New media is user-friendly and easily adaptable.

 

The big drawback of online journalism, according to many experts, is its financial viability. How can we integrate the digital media platform to make it financially viable?

When new media will become economically viable revenue model is a big question. So far, new media is not a revenue model; internationally there are few new media platforms like Financial Times, Huffington Post, ohmynews.com which can be taken as examples for revenue models. In the US, classified advertisements sites generate bigger revenues than news-related sites. News journalism sites as a revenue model is yet to be a fact.

What do you think the quality of present-day journalists?

I think there has been a bottoming out in the quality of present-day journalists. Another interesting fact is that the whole distinction between the profession called journalism and readers are blurring. The public itself has become the generators of news. Blogging, micro-blogging, social networking sites are the platforms for this. To evaluate the quality of journalists, it is not possible right now; we may be able to do it after 10- 15 years.

Does the mushrooming of journalism schools affect the quality of journalism?

Respectable journalism institutes have always helped in upgrading the quality of journalists. Until the late 1990s, we did not have a concept of journalism institutions; instead, we had mass communication courses. Universities in the country offered mass communication courses where different communication theories and public relations theories were taught. It was altogether a mishmash. It was in the late 1990s that the country saw the emergence of journalism institutes, whereas the Western countries had institutions which offered courses in journalism. I think that respectable journalism institutions produce better journalists.

On the one hand, the national dailies in English are losing ground. On the other, the vernacular Press is booming. What is your comment?

The national dailies are not losing ground, but the rate of growth is dipping. Their growth is marginal. About the booming of the vernacular Press, as said earlier, it is mainly because of the success of literacy programmes.

Do you think that journalism is a safe career? Or, does one choose the career as one’s commitment to society?

Journalism nowadays is a good career option. Earlier, people opted for journalism out of passion; money alone was not the sole intention. However, at present, this profession is a highly paid job. At the entry level itself, you are paid highly. Apart from this, it is an influential career.

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Article first published in Education Insider magazine

Vasundhara Das: Believe in yourself

 According to me, education has a lot more to do with learning from life than from the classroom. I have learned more outside the classroom

In conversation with Vasundhara Das...

On school life

School life has not contributed much to my musical life. In those times, when I was in school, the education system did not encourage arts. Academics were considered as the end of everything. People thought that music cannot be opted as a career. Most of the parents were prejudiced about music and had an attitude that it cannot be taken as a profession, but my parents were an exception. At the age of 5, I started learning Hindustani music. I got intensive music education because my parents were very keen on making me learn music.

On college life

College contributed a great deal to my musical career. I was clear about going to that particular college (Mount Carmel College, Bengaluru) because that college had a good music association. I knew that the college would nurture my musical career.

I still remember the day when my Mom took me to the Engineering counselling. I was standing in the queue. When it was just two turns for my interview, I seemed restless to my Mom. When she asked me the reason, I told her that I don’t want to be an engineer. What surprised me was my Mom’s reaction; she told me that I could have said it before and that there was no point in wasting our time. We left the spot. That is a distinct memory for me.

In the college, I was the member of a choral group. We had a Western Music Association. I got the exposure of performing at various inter-college competitions. I won in many of them, and that gave me a lot of confidence and helped prepare my future.  I was very clear about music; that was what I wanted to do as long as I was alive.

Memories

Too many. I really had a ball. I enjoyed college than school. My first stage performance ever in college was during my first-year PUC. About 4,000 girls in the auditorium are booing you, because you are a junior. I started singing the song I love You, by Whitney Houston. There was pin-drop silence, and, once I finished singing, there was a huge round of applause by the entire audience. That is a memorable moment for me.

Click : Lakshmi

Article first appeared in education Insider Magazine

Rajdeep Sardesai: Journalist by accident

 Rajdeep Sardesai has been working as the editor-in-Chief of IBN18 Network, which includes CNN-IBN, IBN 7 and IBN Lokmat. He comes with 22 years of journalistic experience during which he has covered some of the biggest stories in India and the world. Prior to setting up the IBN network, he was the Managing Editor of both NDTV 24X7 and NDTV India and was responsible for overseeing the news policy for both the channels. He also worked with The Times of India for six years and was the city editor of its Mumbai edition at the age of 26

In conversation with  Rajdeep Sardesai...

You graduated from St Xavier’s and then you did your masters in LLB from Oxford .Why so?

See, teenage is a time when you don’t have any idea of what to do with life and career.  So the option left with me was to study. Graduation is something you really have to do and I was really interested in doing Master’s in Law, thinking that it has large options for career. And, above that, I liked the idea of arguing and debating. But, destiny kept something else for me, and I became a journalist. However, the training I received as a lawyer has helped me a lot in my career as a journalist.

You were never went to a journalism institute and was not a journalism student at all. How did you get into this field?

Writing always remained to be one of my passions and I always loved to write. During my graduation days, which were in mid-1980s, Behram Contractor started the newspaper Afternoon. The newspaper office was close to my college and one day I approached Behram and asked him whether I could help him with his work. He showed interest in me and I joined Afternoon as a trainee reporter.

After my graduation, I went to Oxford to do Master’s in Law and after coming back from there, I joined Crawford Bailey, a leading law firm, as a lawyer. After working there for a while, I wanted to take a break. At that time, there existed a tradition in Times of India: they offered a post for those who come from Oxford – Assistant Editor.  So I joined Times and continued there for another 6 years. So journalism was purely an accident in my life.

What about your transition from print-media journalist to television journalist?

The transition was a difficult one, but with the course of time, I got adapted to it.  Though print don’t pay as much TV does, I will go back to print journalism if given a chance. Even after so many years, I still feel that I am more comfortable with print media than the visual media.

What is your opinion on the relevance of journalism education?

Once Journalism and Mass Communication course was neglected by all, but these courses have a lot of demand among students these days. I think the boom in the visual media sector is the main reason for this mass demand. Journalism has become one of the most sought after course in the country.

Does new media democratise journalism?

Yes, the new media is acceptable to everybody. New media has become cheaper and affordable to everybody. Gadgets of new media are more and more affordable to the common people. Mobile phones available in the market have cameras with high resolution and the photographs and video clippings of many historic incidents like the tsunami were captured by ordinary citizens and they were the ones who passed the clippings to different TV stations and news media. So, in short, what am trying to tell is that the thin line between journalists and public is disappearing.

There is a strong criticism that TV journalism is not taking up issues in depth but is running after sensationalism. What is your comment?

We, as visual journalists, have a lot of pressure on us. I partly agree with that, but the scenario will change in the course of time.

Five tips to broadcasting journalists

§  Always be confident

§  Be a good communicator

§  Be honest to yourself

§  Be honest to the story you are doing

§  Always have the capability to distinguish between what is right and what is wrong

Message to aspiring journalists      

Chase your dreams, be loyal to your profession, don’t get carried away by anything. Changes are inevitable, get adapted to it. There is always room for improvement.

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Article first appeared in the Education Insider magazine

Naresh Iyer: Down memory lane

 Celebrated Singer Naresh Iyer’s memoir on his student life

In conversation with Naresh Iyer...

Memories of school

School life played a huge role in my life. Sera Ma’am, my class teacher in Fifth Grade, was the one who identified the singer in me. I did my first stage performance during the same time. The most memorable moment in school life was my first stage performance at the school annual competition where I came first. The song I sang was Kaali Raam Ka Bajgaya Dhol from the movie Barsat Ki Ek Raat. The applause and appreciation received mattered a lot to the 12-year-old kid. Even after years, that moment stays etched in my heart. I have won many prizes and awards, including the National Award and the Filmfare Award, but nothing can replace the joy I experienced when I was 12 years old – when I was recognised as the best singer in my school.

Memories of college

During my college days, I participated in various inter-college festivals in Mumbai. I was eliminated in one of the college festivals during my first-year graduation. Though I was depressed at that time, it was that which helped me develop my God-given talent. Thereafter, I didn’t have to look back. I won in almost all the competitions in which I participated.

Apart from music, sports was another field of interest during my college days. I have participated in inter-college table tennis tournaments and various other tournaments and have won prizes.

One of the proudest moments in my graduation days was when I came topper in the foundation course in my second year.

While recalling the memories during the graduation days, one incident that rushes to my mind is the embarrassing moment which I have had during a musical show when I sang O Jane Jana totally out of pitch because my colleague had accidently played a wrong note.  Though at that time I really felt awkward, now it has become a reason for giggles and laughter.

As a student, I always made sure not to mix my academics with my extracurricular activities, and I scored more than distinction in all my examinations. I can proudly say that I was a good student. Life as a student was indeed a learning ground for me, which instilled in me courage, confidence and helped me live an optimistic life.

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Article first appeared in the Education Insider magazine

Rini Simon Khanna: Mere media degree doesn’t make a journalist

 Having worked with state-run Doordarshan as news anchor for 16 years, Rini Simon Khanna has become a household name in the country. In addition to presenting news, Rini is an experienced voice talent, rendering commentary and voiceovers for documentaries, advertisement films and feature films. She also anchors international and national conferences, cultural shows and seminars for prestigious organisations, UN agencies, corporate groups and government agencies

 In conversation with Rini Khanna...

Journalists then and now  

There are lot of differences between the journalists of yesteryears and journalists of today. I think technology has a big role in this. The truth is that people who are in the media are not definitely tech-savvy – a lot of us. Technologies change one’s ability. We have to be savvier with what we are doing and also savvy with the technologies that are available worldwide .There are lots of technologies which have changed the world. So people in the media have to be savvier with the technologies worldwide. One cannot say that ‘I was not aware of it.’ You have to be somebody who is connected all the time, you have to know the breaking news, best deals plus to be able to upload and send your reports. You can no longer say that you couldn’t file your story because you didn’t have a fax machine or connectivity. Definitely, technologies are the gamechanger today plus the input for information; you have twitter, face book, all the social media tools plus all kinds of information is coming from all kinds of media. Obviously, journalists of today are not just the ones who read some books and wrote stories some time. You have to be updated with everything happening around. You can’t afford to be out of the scene for any reason.

Quality of journalism students

The problem is not in the education part. The problem is that everything is ‘breaking news’ today. So, in the hurry to get that, you skip a lot of fact. You don’t have the time to go into anything in depth. How much attention do you give a particular story? If there is a ‘breaking story’ today, there might be five breaking stories at the same time. So, according to me, people who are doing reporting today don’t have the depth of knowledge that a senior journalist has. Their knowledge is very superficial and they don’t have the time for investigation, so they take any information they get. They are not ready to go back and check whether the information given is true or whether somebody is trying to mislead them with false information. The senior journalist has that many years of experience behind him; he also has that much of wisdom behind him. He has been able to analyse news, give it enough thought, was able to put it in the correct perspective, and was efficient enough to give other angles to the story.

Resolving the issue

The market will tackle it. It is like going to a bookshop – there are lots of books. There are books which are churned out in a minute, book by overnight authors, you have twitter authors. The audience knows what to pick up. They would pick up books which they take back home and sit in an armchair, give it a thought and read, or books that can be read in a flight journey when you can fling it out after reading. It depends on the audience. Right now, the audiences have 250 news channels to graze through. The same is the case with journals and other magazines. What do they choose out of this? Burning-out rate is on the rise – that is the reason why many channels and other media organisations are closing down. So unless your material is authentic and well-developed, you are not going to sustain.

Media institutes

In my days, there were no journalism institutes apart from Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), but things have changed now. We have different media institutes and universities offering media courses. The saddest part is that only few institutes are able to sustain. Again, the market decides which is better. Journalism is not like an essay written during your academics. In beat reporting, you should have an idea about crime, politics, law and many other things that are happening around. Each media institute caters to a particular audience. I don’t know about the quality of institutes because it is like comparing apples to oranges. Each institute has its own unique character.

Need for media institutes

Nobody has to be qualified to become a journalist. You can’t say that you are a surgeon after doing one operation; the same is with journalism. Your standard and quality is determined by how long you are able to sustain this. After all, this is an art. You can’t be just a writer and say that you are a journalist. There is so much to add to your skills. There is certain discipline that you need to follow in a media school. You are exposed to certain things which you may not be able to be exposed to. For instance, a common man will not be able to step into a studio and record or do a story or use a machine. You don’t necessarily have to be a part of a media institution to be able to become a journalist, but there is a certain sort of grounding that has to take place.

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Article first appeared in the 2013 December issue of Education Insider magazine