VidYouth

“I swear this is the coolest channel on this damned idiot box, this simply rocks,” is what Anup Raj, an engineering student has to say about the MTV channel, which is probably the only channel which the youth of today watch on a very regular basis. “It’s an absolute time pass and truly entertaining,” says Rohit, a 3rd year student, vouching for his favorite TV channel. It’s not just MTV, but also channels like channel [V], VH1 top the favorites list of most students.

Basically, it’s the VJs and the hosts of the channels that really matter, as most of the viewers say that they only watch a particular show/channel, if and only if the person hosting it is good and knows his/her job. MTV tops the list of the favorite channels of the youth. Shows like ‘ROADIES’, ’SPLITSVILLA’, ’ROCK ON’ are probably the most followed and loved reality shows currently being aired on television. “We discuss Roadies and Splitsvilla during our class hours. Who cares about the class?” say Vinay Ausekar and his friend Shabbir, who follow even the repeat telecasts of the programs with keen interest. Now…what’s keeping these youngsters hooked to such channels? “Well, the first thing is, the whole atmosphere and the mood of these channels is so young and realistic that I can easily connect myself with them,” says Susheel Kumar, a 3rd year B.Tech student. Then, the whole presence of the super cool VJs, hosts who are all in their prime makes it relatively easy for the students/audience to connect themselves with these channels. Hosts like Rannvijay, Ayushman, Bani, Raghu, Anushka, and Nikhil Chinnappa are the most sought after VJs of MTV.

Rock on @ MTV. Credits: Insanity Personified

“Raghu sucks dude. He’s conceited and is full of attitude,” opines Shiva, a 1st year B.Tech student who makes it clear that Raghu is probably the most hated host in the channel for his outspokenness and his behavior, which many agree, is quite arrogant. Also, the fun quotient of the channel is at an all time high almost throughout the day. The Tickr is quite a big hit on MTV. What’s a TICKR?- It’s the small *multi-colored* strip crawling at the bottom of your TV screen. It has info, news, stupidity and a whole lotta mad quotient. One liners like, Q) When not to say “Oh My God…!” A.) When you get to know that Metallica and Pankaj Udhas have collaborated together for a new Rock Band. The above one liner was an excerpt from the Tickr which ran a few days ago and was widely appreciated for its jokes and witty one liners. “I just love the Tickr, wonder from where the people who make up such jokes get the ideas from?” says Harshini, a 4th year student, elaborating on its significance owing to the spectacular success of the Tickr, which has never repeated any of its jokes till date.

“My favorite channel is VH1. It has a great collection of international songs and the live concerts aired on it are out of the world,” are the words of Rohit Negi, a 3rd year student of Ace Engineering College. This is another channel which has garnered quite a lot of popularity within a very short span of time. The channel has cashed in on the growing popularity of the western music in India in the recent times. The popularity of bands like Linkin Park, Green Day, Creed, Coldplay in India is unquestionable. This channel has quite a hold on the pulse of the youngsters, and airs exactly the songs which are the current rage. “Every time I fell like watching a favorite video of mine, I put on this channel… and Hey Presto, that very song gets aired in a few minutes,” says Tejasvi, a 3rd year E.C.E student who says he is hooked to this channel from the moment he goes home. The recent concert of Enrique Iglesias had everyone stuck to their T.V screens and many students feel that they would have probably spent hours and hours searching for that concert on ‘YouTube’ had it not been for VH1. The VJs and hosts are also quite fine, and many snippets and facts about Hollywood stars and rock stars are also aired on the channel from time to time. The latest releases of popular artistes, bands are played on the channel almost immediately after its launch making it a must watch channel for music maniacs and music lovers alike.

The ultimate Roadie - Nauman with his twin, Salman. Credits: Roadies file picture

Probably, the reason why these channels connected such a chord with the youngsters is because none of them are staged or are created in a ‘make-belief kind of atmosphere. The participants of reality shows like Roadies, Rock on, Teen diva, etc are people from the crowd one can hang out with. One can actually feel the hardships, humiliation, jubilation the participants of a reality show experience, first hand. Many people literally wanted to change the task, the participants of Roadies-6 had to face, where they had to drink 3-4 glasses of extremely foul tasting milkshakes and had to climb on a ride of a merry go round after which they ultimately threw up. The participant who managed to climb the most number of rides without throwing up was declared the winner. This was a particularly nasty experience both for the viewers and the participants and it was quite amusing to note that many people imagine themselves in the shoes of the participants and really sympathize with them for what lies ahead. This is what channels like MTV, Channel [V], Colors, etc have done to capture the imagination of the audience. Zeroing in on the teens and youth, and making the channels click is a commendable feat to have achieved, as the teens and the youth won’t give a channel/program a second glance if they don’t find it up to their liking when they come across it for the first time. It therefore, requires a lot of creativity, patience, innovative ideas to ensure that the channel holds the attention of the viewer for a minimum span of time.”The main reason why I like the channels MTV, Channel [V], are because they are totally devoid of aunties and uncles. The whole cast, crew and the team of the channels is people in their 20s or 30s, making it easier for us to feel at home with their lingo,” says Sidharth, a student of Ace Engineering College. Also, the usage of the words youth, young, etc has become a major USP of these popular channels with MTV starting a show called “Wassup Youngistan?” striking a rapport with almost everyone in their youth.
The advertisements, movie promos, Vjs, hosts and everyone associated with the channel are such that they magnetically attract the major chunk of the target audience i.e. the audience of the younger generation towards it. Thanks to such kinds of channels and shows, the teenagers and youth are no longer shy to admit that they watch television programs which were a bit of a taboo a few years earlier, where television programs were meant only for the housewives and the middle aged people. The generation of today proudly watches and also discusses about the latest developments in their favorite shows on the telly without casting furtive glances over their shoulders to make sure they aren’t being heard, thus making it absolutely clear that youngsters are ready to watch television channels if and only if the content of the channel is good enough to hold their attention and won’t bore them.