Sage Narada, often stereotyped as a chaotic figure, has regained prominence in the Indian film industry with consecutive Narad Jayanthi celebrations organized by Hindu organizations across the country.
Revered as the first and most effective communicator for the welfare and betterment of the universe, Sage Narada is an icon to be revered by media professionals.
This year’s Narad Jayanthi was celebrated by Vishwa Samvaad Kendra, Tamil Nadu, by honoring illustrious journalists in the state.
Vishwa Samvaad Kendra has been celebrating this event for several years, and this year’s event was presided over by Shobana Ravi, former news presenter at Doordarshan, with a special address delivered by Prof. (Dr) KG Suresh, Vice Chancellor of Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism and Communication, Bhopal.
The awardees were carefully selected from various fields of journalism, with Doordarshan’s newsreader and host of the show ‘Mangayar Cholai,’ S Vijay Krishnan, being recognized in the category “Reporting on Women/Children Issues” for unearthing women achievers across Tamil Nadu. In the media writer category, Kodhai Jothilakshmi, who has consistently written about women and children in print media, received the award. In the social media category, historian and author TS Krishnan was awarded for contributing to the awareness of Tamil history in social media circles.
Speaking to the audience, Shobana Ravi emphasized how the media needs to act righteously. She highlighted the various qualities of Sage Narada that ideally should be imbibed by media professionals and that they must listen to the call of conscience. She urged the media to help citizens retain democracy, freedom, and a mature culture. She highlighted how the fourth pillar of democracy (media) is somewhat shaky now due to the termite of falsity. She said, “In print, untruth is cleverly peddled as truth, and the haters are labelled as the persecuted.” She added that the award in Sage Narada’s name reminds the media to work for the common good.
Following her speech, Dr. Suresh spoke on how Narad Jayanti is being popularized across the country and how important days like Guru Purnima are regaining significance due to the efforts of several organizations. He emphasized how Sage Narada was demonized and portrayed as a gossip-monger, creating chaos and instigating fights in Indian cinema. Such events aim to re-establish Sage Narada’s credibility, as his communication aimed at the welfare of people and the universe. The purpose of his actions should be considered before placing blame, he said
He stated that Sage Narada should be the icon of journalism, being the first communicator (Adi Sancharak). Narada had access to all beings and could travel effortlessly across time and space. He had such high credibility that even demon kings listened to him. He was an authority on many subjects, and Lord Krishna identified himself with Narada in the Bhagavad Gita, saying, “Of all trees, I am the holy fig tree, and amongst sages and demigods, I am Narada….“, this appears in Chapter 10, Shloka 26 of the Bhagavad Gita.
He emphasized the importance for Indians to learn their knowledge systems and celebrate their own icons more than the world does. He added that teaching Marxism to communication students is unnecessary when excellent examples exist in Indian history and culture, like Arjuna-Krishna and Nachiketa-Yama. He stressed studying our own communication models.
Unfortunately, journalism has deteriorated and become biased in the country, he added. He narrated how the Kulbhushan Jadhav case at the ICJ faced setbacks due to articles in India portraying him as an Indian spy, against the country’s interests, in the name of free speech. He lamented organizations’ pleasure in acting against the nation’s interests. While the constitution guarantees free speech, it does not license spreading lies, as freedom comes with responsibilities.
He compared how other countries’ global channels like the BBC, CCTV, or CNN talk only about their national interests, not otherwise. He questioned why India cannot have such a channel promoting national interests instead of spreading fake news like many newsrooms today. Press freedom needs to be balanced with national interests. He pointed out how reports from Gilgit/Baltistan/PoK come under foreign pages, despite Parliament thrice stating J&K’s entirety, including PoK and Aksai Chin, as integral Indian territories. The media should reassert this claim, as DD News has started showing weather reports from the region. The media should convey the country’s sentiments globally, he added.
Suresh emphasized many positive developments in our country that go unreported, with the media prioritizing incidents of murder and robbery while failing to report follow-ups on court sentences. India needs media platforms to tell our story to the world from our perspective, he said.
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