About NRM

The National Radio Meet (NRM) is India’s first ever and only-on campus national meet that brought together stalwarts of the radio industry from across the top private radio stations in the country and stalwarts of the Indian radio on one platform. Conceptualized and organized by Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication, the day-long interactive seminar held at Symbiosis Vishwabhavan on Sep 21, 2008 provided a rare opportunity for students and media professionals to learn more about the nuances of FM Radio in India.

The panelists in the morning were:

• Ms. Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radio City
• Mr. Abraham Thomas, COO, Red FM
• Mr. M Sebastian, MD, World Space Satellite Radio
• Mr. Jayyant Bhokare, COO, Radio Indigo

The panelists in the afternoon

• Mr. Tapas Sen, National Programming Head, Radio Mirchi
• Ms. Nisha Narayanan, Project Head, S FM
• Mr. Vehrnon Ibrahim, National Programming Head, Radio One
• Mr. Nirupam Sonu, VP, Programming, Big 92.7 FM
• The Honorary Speaker
• Mr. Ameen Sayani, Veteran Radio Compere

The day began with a panel discussion on the business of the radio medium. The agenda for the session was “The Indian Radio Business- The future is local” .This saw the likes of Ms. Apurva Purohit (CEO, Radio City and President, Association of Radio Operators in India-AROI), Mr.Abraham Thomas (COO, Red FM), Mr. M. Sebastian (MD, World Space Satellite Radio) and Mr. Jayyant Bokhare (COO, Radio Indigo) discussing the growth and potential of FM radio business.

According to Ms. Purohit, “radio acts as the theatre of the mind which is why it makes such a huge impact.” She also said that there are several issues dogging the expansion of FM radio in India; the stringent laws and regulations cause a major hindrance in licensing.

Mr. Thomas, the man behind Red FM’s ‘Bajate Raho’ tagline said that changing technologies were resulting in a change in consumers and competition thus taking radio to a global level. He spoke about the change in paradigm by saying that, “today, FM radio in India is also facing competition from social networking websites like Orkut and Facebook and youth hangouts like Barista and Café Coffee Day.” Mr. Thomas seconded Ms. Purohit’s views on regulation issues in India. He said that if a radio channel were to branch out into different kinds of radio programme content, like news, for instance, “it would be difficult for the channel to gain multiple licenses.”

Mr. Sebastian of World Space Satellite Radio said that Indian FM radio has transcended boundaries to the extent that even in places like Kenya, Bahrain, Dubai or even New York, Indian radio stations are extremely popular. “Today satellite technology is being used for entertainment and telecommunication, thus resulting in globalisation and demystification of geographic boundaries,” he said.

Mr. Bhokare said that radio is the only medium that allows one to be both creative and passionate. He however said that inspite of “radio being more prevalent than TV in some areas, it is unable to garner as much revenues.”
The panel, when concluded at lunch, left the audience asking for more, especially on the radio content front. The National Radio Meet promised to answer this and more, especially with radio veterans like Ameen Sayani, in the afternoon session of the meet. Apart from Mr. Sayani, the other speakers for the post-lunch session were Ms. Nisha Narayanan, Project Head, S FM, Mr. Vehrnon Ibrahim, National Programming Head, Radio One and Mr. Nirupam Sonu, VP, Programming, BIG 92.7 FM.

According to the legendary Mr. Sayani, radio has come a long way from being just a broadcasting medium during Independence era. “Change is perpetual; I had to face many storms of change,” he added. His journey from mastering multilingualism to being one of the most popular faces of India was essayed through his narration. He encouraged the younger generations to make a mark on their own and not be another clone. Ms. Narayanan spoke on the government policies that bring about change in this field, the markets and the human resources required in this field of communication. Issues ranging from attrition to radio jockeying was discussed by her. Mr. Vehrnon and Mr. Sonu along with RJ Sangram from Radio One added their inputs on this constantly evolving industry.

Taking a step further, SIMC has announced the launch of community radio at the new Symbiosis Knowledge Village campus in Lavale. The next chapter of NRM will be conducted in 2009 in association with AROI. It was a 360 degree experience for the audience who got to see the first stream of communicating medium through the eyes of the radio moguls who are bringing about all the changes. The event has generated great response from the industry and the students in its first year on inception itself and is slated to be an annual premier event of the Institute.