Insensitive Indian Oprah
Insensitive
Indian Oprah
If there
has been abuse already to the victims presented, the insensitive handling in
this programme is nothing short of abuse twice over.
B Jayashree
Even a good idea can rub people the wrong way.
There is always a drawback to emulating someone
else¿s success. People will compare. So it was when Vijay TV launched a desi
version of Oprah Winfrey¿s show, with film star Lakshmi donning Oprah¿s role,
the programme, from the start was in for a tough challenge.
First the plus points. "Kadai alla Nijam"
(not fiction but truth) is probably the first such attempt of its kind to raise
issues that have not been raised,
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and to talk about sexual exploitation, medical
negligence and eunuchs by directly interacting with those at the receiving
end of some abuse. As in the Oprah show, the anchor is the key to this show
too. |
The first part of the programme talks to victims of
those allegedly exploited; for example while addressing the issue of medical
negligence, (one of the more watchable episodes) those affected by medical
negligence speak out their scary / poignant stories; in the second part doctors
are at the center stage, to enable them to defend themselves. During the
programme, viewers can call in with their views. The attempt seems to be to
bring out reality in its harshest and most brutal form.
As a programme, it takes on subjects of interest, has
a very relevant variety of persons sharing experiences and seems to be making
an attempt to be bold. However, now we come to why it jars. Insensitivity, an
attempt to sensationalise and a prejudiced view on any issue, is visible so
blatantly, that the programme would sometimes have quite the opposite effect.
Not result in empathy, but dissent.
The show¿s selling point Lakshmi is probably its
sorest point too. While she claims she is following a given script, the anchor
has to ad-lib most of the time, and this for most part is agonizing. The
tendency to moralise, jump to conclusions and be insensitive demeans the very
purpose of the programme. Within ten days of its launch, Kadai Alla Nijam,
has already been pulled up by the juvenile welfare board for insensitive
handling of a sexually abused kid. (they did not try to mask the face of the
child) Later Lakshmi held a press conference in which the child was publicly
handed over to a relative, and said that this was done to prove the veracity of
the subjects taken up.
However, in every episode, there are more bloomers and irritants than can be warranted, even if you make allowances for spontaneity. Here are some examples: In one episode that dealt with infertility and women bearing the brunt of blame, Lakshmi, who has a tendency to talk for her guest or put words into their mouth, would repeatedly ask the guest, how cruel her mother-in-law was to her. And most of her guests¿ replies are annotated with moral stands that she herself tries to pronounce. These comments in fact take the interest and the pace out of the bulk of the programming.
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