Doordarshan launches 'Swaraj' depicting India's freedom struggle

By A Draft Correspondent

As part of the ongoing Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, on 14 August 2022 Swaraj - Bharat Ke Swatantrata Sangram Ki Samagra Gatha, a historical docu-drama series will be launched in Hindi on DD National. Actor Manoj Joshi who plays the role of the narrator (sutradhar) and Additional Director General (Western Region), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Smita Vats Sharma addressed the media ahead of the launch of this special programme of Doordarshan.

Swaraj - Bharat Ke Swatantrata Sangram Ki Samagra Gatha is a 75-episode mega show illustrating the glorious history of India’s freedom struggle from the 15th century onwards, when Vasco da Gama landed in India. The serial showcases several aspects of Indian history featuring the lives and sacrifices of lesser known heroes of the freedom struggle.

Addressing the media persons in Mumbai, Manoj Joshi said Swaraj shows the new picture of Doordarshan in New India. He said, "The production team has invested more than an year to achieve high production quality. By making us aware of our history, Swaraj which recognises the valour and sacrifice of unsung heroes of our freedom struggle will enable future generations to know history and march forward. The freedom we enjoy today is the gift bequeathed to us by the numerous people who laid down their lives to stop the foreign rulers from looting India and expanding their empire."

The broadcast of the serial will begin on 14 August 2022 in Hindi on DD National and subsequently in nine regional languages (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Odia, Assamese) for telecast on Doordarshan's regional networks. It is also being dubbed in English. 

Each fresh episode of Swaraj will be aired from 9 PM to 10 PM on Sunday on DD National and it will be repeated on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The audio version will be broadcast on All India Radio network from 11 AM on Saturdays.

The serial was launched on 5 August, 2022 at a function at Akashwani Bhavan by the Union Minister for Home & Cooperation Amit Shah in the presence of Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Anurag Thakur and Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan.

The idea behind the serial is to reproduce an audio-visual history of India’s search for ‘Swaraj’. The repertoire of photographs, films, oral histories, personal memoirs, autobiographies, biographies, multi-lingual regional literature remain mostly unexplored and largely absent from public consciousness. Audio-visual representations of such issues, icons, events, organisations will be produced in this larger comprehensive framework of search for 'Swaraj’ and presented to the public in the form of a 75-episode serial of top notch quality production.

Onscreen historical narrative framed in the larger discourse of search and establishment of ‘Swaraj' in India will help the national and international audiences to understand the spirit of the country with a new, fresh perspective and give due recognition to the lesser known heroes. ‘Swaraj’ is envisioned as the iconic serial of Doordarshan which will turn into a national movement, inspiring the public especially the youth about India's rich history and fill every Indian's heart with pride!

Along with Swaraj, Doordarshan is launching four other serials including Jai Bharati, Corporate Sarpanch and Yeh Dil Mannge More. These serials have messages of patriotism and women empowerment and will be telecast at prime time on DD National, Monday to Friday, starting from 15 August 2022. 

Another new show called Suron Ka Eklavya is a reality music show that pays tribute to India's music legend Bappi Lahiri. It will be telecast on Saturday and Sunday at prime time 8 PM to 9 PM starting 14 August 2022.

A show focusing on startups is also coming up on DD News and DD National. Startup Champions 2.0 showcases the journey and success of 46 national award-winning startups. It will telecast on DD News on Saturdays at 9 PM and on Sundays on DD National at 12 Noon. The show is an interesting depiction of how the entrepreneurial culture is growing in the country. The English version of this show will be shown on DD India every Saturday at 10 PM.

These new serials will go a long way in revamping DD National, the lead channel of Doordarshan. In the follow-up, Doordarshan is planning to revamp its regional channels by introducing new programmes and news shows with meaningful discussions on current topics.

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