I dont know how many remember but the Radio City group was India's first private FM radio station and was started on July 3, 2001.I still remember the starting days as I had just started my first job and radio was a completely new medium of entertainment for me. Born and bred on the idiot box,listenening to popular and my favourite hindi songs available 24 hours round the clock soon caught up.I used to wonder how the cassette companies would survive if everyone was going to tune into this new station.I couldnt care less as after some days I got my dose of entertainment by just switching on the radio button.Mornings used to be more fun especially while getting ready for work while listening to the cool talk of the RJ's at that time.
I still think the first two RJ's of those days -Rohit Barker and Vera were the best and no one has matched their professionalism till date.Though the RJ's were mostly english or hindi speaking they set the tone or style for today's multiple regional language RJ's.I dont believe language is a big deal here as you have a variety of people in this city who need to be catered to.
Almost six months after this radio station launched in the city,I was taken aback by its success as everwhere I went.People were listening to it at home,at restaurants,at shops,in cars,autos,walkmans etc.I know radio has been around for almost a century around the world now but its new revival in the form of FM stations was a revolution in itself as music was the new term for time-pass in the city.Today,a bunch of other stations have mushroomed in Blore and you got atleast 6-7 stations to choose from!!! I really think thats a lot of choice and they are all multi-lingual.
Personally,I felt Radio city lost its charm in the past two years with extensive advertising and not so sophisticated RJ's.I do understand to get a wider audience you need to have programs of different languages especially the regional language of the city but it was not suiting my taste .Plus it seems the audience they seemed to be targetting was for non-thinking people.Luckily,the government opened up the airwaves and sold more licenses to all kinds of people who set shop immediately.Most of them I still feel are amateurs but we got some classy players like Radio Indigo and Fever 104.This year however,I feel Radio City has turned itself around and improved its programming and songs to a certain extent.They have outplayed all the new entrants and still are the pioneers of all kinds of radio programmes the other stations are trying to copy,
I am also proud that Blore has another feather in its radio headed cap.The country's first and only international hit station - Radio Indigo was launched in Blore in Sep 2006.It now has a station even in Goa.Though english songs were being played by Radio city years before and even the AIR FM channels,this station is soley dedicated to international music which is quite a treat to a big chunk of people in the city.
The picture featured above is an old one when it was just 91FM with no decimals like many other channels are forced to use today.It's also a tribute to the pioneer of all FM channels introduced in this Blore city!!
