Radio in Pakistan might have grown exponentially in terms of the quantity of stations, but one predicament that continues to plague the medium is that of quality control.
The launch of several mainstream radio networks over the past decade, especially between 2004 and 2007, had instilled a sense of hope within the listeners that the medium could be experiencing a revival of sorts. But unfortunately, it was very short-lived as producers gradually decided to retreat into their shells and adopt a more formulaic approach to radio programming.
Montreal-born Pakistani Radio Jockey (RJ) Wes Malik, who hosts Rush Hour on FM 89, spoke about the reasons why there’s currently a lack of experimentation on the airwaves, “Unfortunately, radio is a very simple medium in Pakistan. A lot of innovation has happened on Pakistani radio of late, but it is taking time.”
On the other hand, the multitalented Azfar Ali who co-hosted an untitled show with Mani which became famous for coining the term ‘Karachi Scene on Hai’ believes that the chief reason why radio channels are treading towards mediocrity is due to the fact that producers have essentially taken away the RJ’s ability to drive the show.
“When we started out, talk time was permitted, but it isn’t allowed anymore,” exclaimed the RJ-actor-director.
“As RJs, Mani and I used to engage the audience in a jovial manner and there used to be a lot of back and forth with the listeners, something which is clearly missing today. Now you have RJs with fake happy tones playing songs one after the other,” exclaimed Ali.
For a medium solely driven by the oratory skills of the RJ, it is no surprise that many former RJs criticise the advertisers for decline in content quality on the radio.
Naveen Waqar, better known for her stint on television both as an actor and video jockey (VJ), had initially started out as an RJ with FM 89. She said RJs today lacked a “free hand”.
“Radio is a medium where content is king as your listeners can’t see you so you have to ensure that you connect with them through your words and that is not happening anymore,” asserts Waqar.
“I have literally hosted shows in every time slot and what I liked back then was that both the RJs and audiences were given a free hand. That is no longer the case as sponsors are eating into the RJs’ talk time,” exclaimed Waqar, who has hosted shows on FM 96 and FM 91.
She also lamented the lack of innovation in programming saying that, “My last show just saw me playing music and giving traffic updates.”
There are also examples of RJs who deliberately try to break away from the tried and tested approach being adopted by radio stations. One such example is that of Minhaj Ali Askari who took matters into his own hand after getting irritated by constantly playing Indian music and giving most of his time to advertisements.
“I had had enough of Indian music and decided to have a word with the producer. I told him that I would be doing a horror show during my late night show where I won’t play Bollywood music. He initially thought the approach won’t work but it eventually did,” said Askari.
However, Askari believes that despite its shortcomings, radio remains a successful business, at least commercially, as the cost of production is minimal compared to revenue generated.
“Producers hire people at low prices to do shows. These people have little or no experience and, more importantly, they are not well-versed so they are constantly trying to adopt the styles of other RJs, which eventually culminates in a final product that is below-par,” said Askari.
Radio Jockey turned actor Ali Safina summed it up brilliantly with his statement about the current radio scene that, “A frequency that could’ve been utilised so brilliantly has been underutilised.”
Despite all the facts and figures stating that radio has declined in recent years due to the rise of other music playing devices such as MP3 players and iPods, Wes comments that, “Radio still remains the number one medium for exploring new music. As the element of personality plays a huge role in music and radio. The listener needs a cue and radio always provides that cue.”
Published in The Express Tribune, December 14th, 2014.
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