54) Breaking another male bastion

Journalism has usually been the preserve of men. Any woman straying into the domain was told that “reporting is no job for a woman”. This was before the advent of electronic media and that opened the floodgates for women to enter the terrain.

I was called upon to deliver a lecture at the Indian Institute of Mass Communications and it came as no surprise that in a class of 43, 25 were women. So much for girl power!!! They seemed keen and doubly determined as I was flooded with questions.

One particular girl caught my attention. Deepa stood tall at 5’ 8” and groomed: manicured hands, lovely tresses that only comes from regular visits to the salon. Her jeans complimented the T-shirt and god; she looked gorgeous as a model. Her long nose, small mouth and taunt cheeks added up to a beauty that man would cross her path and not be affected. She kept arguing with me on media trends lambasting that mainline papers and television channels were increasingly getting dumber and sensational in pursuit of advertising revenue and TRPs. She felt that for Indian media to attain BBC standards would require at least a century if they were earnest enough to start reform today.

Yeah, she was bang on target but I couldn’t accept such wholesome criticism of a media of which I am a part for over two decades. And that too from a student!!!!

Later the students invited me to lunch and I had a good time interacting with them apart from a game of table tennis. I was soaking in the spirit of idealism of the campus and mentally recharging as the new colts came to the block.

I was interested in Deepa and she briefed me on her background, “Sir, I come from an army background and my father is a retired Lieutenant Colonel and both my brothers are in the army. I had a chance to be a model and even did a couple of campaigns before I realized that journalism was my calling”.

“I was inspired by Rage Omar and John Simpson, both of BBC and their reports gave me goose pimples as they covered the Iraq war. I was so impressed by Simpson that I volunteered to carry the camera for him as he covered all the troubled spots: Palestine, Afghanistan and Iraq. I wrote to him and it was on his suggestion that I am doing this course”.

I asked,” But don’t these night shifts and rigorous field work not bother you?”

She smiled, “Even my parents were concerned but they understood once they sensed my determination. I am not in this game for money or false glory but exploring the world and inform the world as to what is happening without intruding them either with my personal agenda or half baked opinions. I am here in this institute to learn to OBSERVE and LISTEN for WORDS have been the bugbear of this profession”.

It felt being in the presence of exalted soul as I asked with affection,” What about marriage?”

Deepa blushed, “I have a boyfriend and we are in the same wavelength. Both of us are not ambitious and money minded. We feel at least in our youth, we must be true to ourselves before the corrupt world would in any case begin to make its influence”.

I said, “It’s been a pleasure meeting you and here’s my calling card. I don’t think you will need my knowledge or insights but whenever you call, you will find a good friend”.

She shook my hands and disappeared for her next class. As for me, I carried her image in my mind for a long time.