Munsif TV: Urdu News channel from Deccan

Almost a decade after ETV Urdu was launched, another TV channel in Urdu has been launched from Hyderabad, which is one of the most important centres of Urdu.

After ETV Urdu, which is a complete infotainment channel, other channels were also launched. Among them, DD Urdu has achieved some success despite cable operators’ lack of enthusiasm towards the channel.

Zee group’s Zee Salaam and Aalami Sahara have been launched recently. Salaam is more about religion and Islamic devotional programmes and poetry while Aalami Sahara focuses on news.

With the the launch of Munsif TV, the fifth Urdu channel in India, there will be healthy competition and the audience will also get to see better coverage as the Urdu market grows despite negative predictions in the past.

Siasat and Munsif are established newspapers in Hyderabad. Though belated, it has been a laudable step. The channel can be seen also at the website http://www.munsif.tv though the reception is not too good.

There is need to improve the standard of language used in the channel and so is the presentation that is not as professional initially. An example is ‘Aap zikr kiye’ rather than ‘Aapne zikr kiya‘.

Just a couple of brief training sessions can iron out the hitches. Of course, Dakhani has a distinct style and everything can’t be viewed from the perception of a North Indian Urdu speaker.

For the moment it’s good news for Urdu speaking populace that has come once again from South India. The owners claim it is available in 80 countries through satellite.

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