DANCE WITH BHAICHUNG

FROM THE WEEK


By Rekha Dixit


Dance with me: Bhutia displayed adept footwork and won the dance show
The northeast has done it again. It is Baichung Bhutia, this time. The popular footballer from Sikkim has won a reality dance show, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, on Sony, becoming the latest in a long and ever increasing line of contestants from the eastern Himalayas to win a big prize on reality television, with no small thanks to SMS voting.

Only some months earlier, Sourabhee Debbarma, a young singer from Tripura, bagged the Indian Idol trophy. In the previous season, it was Prashant Tamang, a Gorkha constable in the West Bengal Police, who repeatedly broke records with the number of votes he garnered. Then there was Anamika Choudhary, a Zee Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs winner from Mariani in Assam. And of course, Debojit Saha from Silchar, Assam, who started the trend when he emerged victor of the Zee Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge show in 2005.

These are just the winners. Tamang was pitted against Amit Paul from the neighbouring hills of Meghalaya in the finals. Another close competitor was Meiyang Chang, the Chinese origin dentist from Bihar. The Indian Orient has come to the fore, at least on satellite television.

Talent, of course, hasn’t suddenly sprung up in the northeast. There is a larger socio-politics at play here, which, when combined with the forces of commercialism, has led to the mushrooming of national youth icons from these remote realms of the country.

Shilajit Guha, assistant professor in the department of mass communication at Assam University, near Silchar, terms the phenomenon a case of identity politics propelled by a capitalist market. “The urban viewer market is saturated, television channels are seeking newer ones, thus penetrating into small-town India as well as the previously forgotten northeast,” he says. “These communities, on the other hand, once given the opportunity to be on the national centrestage, then strive to establish their regional and ethnic identities. It’s very important for them to be considered as part of the mainstream.”

Harking back to the time when Saha contested, Guha recalls, “He was able to unite so many diverse groups in this ethnically troubled state. Saha is of Bengali origin, and would, therefore, be the ideal target of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), which is anti non-Assamese people. But AASU leaders themselves urged people to vote for him.”

In fact, with all of Assam SMS-ing their support for Saha, the contestant was able to do what the government and NGOs had failed-unite the Brahmaputra and Barak valleys. People stood for over 15 hours, waiting for a glimpse of him when he returned after the victory. Old-timers say the last time they saw such a turnout was when Jawaharlal Nehru visited the district!

If Saha awakened the Assamese identity, Tamang brought to the fore the Gorkha identity. As competition narrowed down during the final weeks, Nepalis from places as far off as Brunei and Dubai sent money back home to fund the SMS voting. Viewers from Nepal would come in jeeploads to the Indian border to vote for him and one local politician even sponsored sim cards for voting.

There are many dimensions to the trend, believes Abhijit Roy of the department of film studies at ?Jadavpur University, Kolkata. “Tamang gave shape to a Gorkha identity that was different from the stereotypical one of the security guard,” he says. “So when a radio jockey made a derisive comment about the Gorkhas, the community found the voice to protest and elicit apology.” Roy says that, seen from the broader spectrum of the popular consumerist culture, the northeast makes for an interesting study. “Satellite television is mimicking the framework of democracy, replicating values of the erstwhile welfare state for the consumer citizen,” he says.

Kelly Dorji, model-turned actor from Bhutan, who spent many formative years in Darjeeling, says that with the economy having found a market in the eastern Himalayas, there is the need to create and identify icons who can sell back to the target audience. “When I wanted to get into modelling, I opted for fashion as my oriental looks were not commercially viable; they wouldn’t sell any product. I don’t regard it as discrimination, it is just commerce,” says Dorji. “Today, however, the scene is different. There is a consumer market being opened up in the northeast, and thus the need to identify faces who can be the ambassadors of the market’s identity.”

Bhutia’s victory, of course, has the dimension of his already established celebrity status and immense popularity that owes much to his down-to-earth nature, friendliness and great sense of humour. But he, too, believes that the northeast has earned him a major chunk of votes. “I know that in Sikkim, almost every person was glued to the TV on the nights the show was aired. There’s definitely that pride that one among us is here on national mainstream. There’s this great desire in the northeast, which is cut off from the rest of the country, to be considered part of that mainstream. I am glad that television shows are providing this bridge,” says Bhutia.

Bhutia recalls the days when, before he became such a star, he always felt “different” from other compatriots and found the “outside world so strange”. He, however, believes that homogenisation is a two-way process. “While the country awakens to our presence, we, too, have to be more open-minded,” says Bhutia.

This, according to Danish Khan, associate vice-president, marketing, Sony Entertainment Television, is already happening. “When Tamang won, there were definitely more votes from the Gorkha dominated areas,” says Khan. “But in the case of Sourabhee Debbarma, her appeal wasn’t regional; she got votes from across the country. Chang, meanwhile, has already established himself as a mainstream anchor on Sony.”

Khan admits that foraying into the northeast was part of a deliberate expansion plan and while they had expected a certain amount of enthusiasm, the response was beyond imagination. “Television is inspirational across India. It feels good to know that we have a hand in realising people’s dreams,” says Khan, pointing out that while channels provide the platform and while ethnic votes may aid victory, it is ultimately personal talent that will ensure that the chance given is well utilised.

SINGING SENSATIONS

Sourabhee Debbarma: Winner of Indian Idol 4. Released her first album, Meherban. Does live shows

Debojit Saha: Winner of Zee Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 was a participant in Bigg Boss. Did a bit of playback singing including the Hindi film 88 Antop Hill. Hosts shows on Zee Bangla

Meiyang Chang: Participant in Indian Idol 3. Co-hosted Indian Idol 4 as well as the IPL on Sony. Does live shows

Prashant Tamang: Winner of Indian Idol 3. Cut some music albums including the bilingual Nepali-Hindi Dhanyabad, which was released by Sikkim Chief Minister P. Chamling and the Nepali album, Namaste. Is to be seen in a Nepali film soon, which he has scripted and sung in, too.


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