Almost every Indian seems to be victim to a plethora of frauds at a time when technology is at its highest peak. With the maximised use of technology for most consumer operations, especially through the use of mobile phones, the cry for concern, primarily for the Next Half Billion (NHB) grows even louder due to the mounting perils to privacy. To address the issue and introduce privacy as a fundamental right, Omidyar Network India has partnered with BIG FM and radio story-teller Neelesh Misra, launching a radio show called ‘Zindagi Mobile’.
The inception of the show comes from the idea of informing, sensitising and equipping people to deal with the rising vulnerability. “Fear of technology today stands redundant and we want to talk about its benefits, harms and how to take recourse, as well as the criticality of privacy, and introducing the idea as a fundamental right,” says Rohan Vyavaharkar, Director, Marketing and Communication, Omidyar Network India.
Bringing on board one of India’s favourite story-tellers, Neelesh Misra, the content on the show takes an anecdotal form while correlating everyday concerns in a story format, relatable to every Indian who has been or could be a potential victim of the privacy menace. “The stories are all fictional but people will understand these nuanced issues that are now being spoken about,” says Neelesh Misra.
WHY IT IS ON RADIO
Attention deficit seems to be one of the muddles of long format content. However, the reason behind choosing Radio as a medium to deliver the message conveyed through the talk show is clear to Vyavaharkar, who believes that the target audience is inherently on Radio. “A large part of listening happens on the mobile phone, with about 90% of android users using radio apps. Not discounting the fact that radio is actually the one medium which includes zero
data cost.”
In a segment with sufficient players to pick and choose from, the choice of partnering with Big FM comes from its well-entrenched demographic. “Organically, we tend to work with partners who are philosophically like-minded and Neelesh and his team certainly fit the bill,” says Vyavaharkar.
Misra, who already has an existing relationship with BIG FM, is of the opinion that the station can straddle both the urban and rural universes. “BIG FM was doing a show with me and so ‘Zindagi Mobile’ would kick off with an already large audience,” he adds.
“For the first time, we have a partner in Omidyar, who is not trying to sell anything, but just promote a good idea,” adds Misra.
Misra holds a strong presume in delivering socially relevant messages in India in the right way, irrespective of them being political or business-led.
To authenticate the experiment through scientifically-backed data, Omidyar has appointed Nielsen to conduct a study to monitor behavioural changes, alongside ratings and social media monitoring. “We can’t just claim we made people aware, but can talk about it only when we have got scientific data. This study is as important as the programming in itself because ultimately if you have the numbers, it all stands concrete,” Vyavaharkar explains.
The start of anything could be uncertain and rightly so. Nevertheless, Vyavaharkar remains positive about being able to create accumulative impact and spread massive learning, which would be a win-win for the industry, especially for the next half billion.
In order to reach maximum audiences, the show will be aired on all 58 stations of BIG FM in five languages, including Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and English. The show’s primary language will be Hindi in the voice of Neelesh Misra, with similar content being translated for other markets.
