This was my submission for the CIA 2 of the JPO course. I had to analyse Bachi Karkaria's articles over a span of 5 weeks w.r.t. to Public Opinion. I got 19/20 for this.
(Disclaimer: Each person’s opinions are shaped by different
triggers and motivations and stereotypes and interests. I do not intend to
offend anyone with the content in this project.)
Bachi Karkaria
Bachi
Karkaria is an Indian journalist and columnist who is best known for her
satirical column called ‘Erratica’ in the Times of India newspaper, in which
she has also served as editor.
Bachi
Karkaria has a writing style filled with humour and words of English that may
not appeal to the average reader who may be content to just quit labouring
through the article. However none of the words appear forced or out of place and
look as though the columnist is attempting to flaunt her outstanding
vocabulary.
Karkaria was
the first Indian on the board of the World Editor Forum and is a recipient of
the US based Mary Morgan-HEWITT Award for the Lifetime Achievement, and a
Jefferson fellow of the East West Centre, Honolulu.
At a
promotional event for the launch of her new book ‘In Hot Blood’ Bachi Karkaria
said, “When you write,
you aren’t looking at who your writing is going to antagonise. Your audience is
the truth.”
Public
Opinion is views prevalent among the public. The column in some places
reinforces it and in other places it attempts to present another point of view
so as to take advantage of the volatile nature of Public opinion.
I asked a
few journalists as to what does Public Opinion mean in the industry? They told
me it’s actually the Editor’s opinion that influences the media aspect of
Public Opinion. When I spoke to Bachi Karkaria, she said she meticulously edits
her columns to adhere to the word limit so that there are no changes made by
the editor.
Derrida
argues that public opinion is both cultivated and developed at the same time as
being neither totally manufactured nor contrived (it shares the same structure
as artifactuality and actuvirtuality) (1)
I see this at
multiple places in the columns, where these words of Derrida come true.
1993 and all that (3)
The headline of the column and the subheading is what
grabbed my attention as just a few days back, news came that Mustafa Dossa, Abu
Salem and 3 others had been convicted for their roles in the 1993 Bombay
blasts. “FINALLY” is what would be the general reaction. The media reported
this as a victory to all the victims of that sad day in March.
They wanted the public to be of the opinion that justice has
been delivered and kin of all those affected have some sense of closure.
Through her column Erratica, Bachi Karkaria subtly drops the names of the
absconding Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon (these names were missing from media
reports everywhere, possibly because it doesn’t need space as the audience
knows about it or they don’t want some flaws to overshadow something good) to
re shape our opinion about the sentencing.
Public Opinion would be that it is finally closure.
“It’s not yet closure”, this line prompts us to think about
Dawood and Tiger and re shape the opinion the rest of those who weren’t
directly affected. Is it really closure? What closure? Not yet. Maybe only for
the courts that finally after almost a quarter of a century Closed the cases of
a few of the chief perpetrators.
While a journalist does his or her job they cannot lose
sight of objectivity (unless of course they are drunk with nationalistic power,
then they are exempt from this). Like every other Bombayite, Bachi Karkaria
shares her story as to where she was, that fateful afternoon.
The opinion here is that Bombay is not a place but an
emotion that all of us experience in some way and we blend into the city. The
readers feel a connect to what is written here. Those who experienced that day,
as well as others who have witnessed Bombay burn to the ashes and rise like a
phoenix. Those who have experienced the Spirit of Bombay (the floods of 29/8
saw that spirit come back to the fore and many others yesterday after reading
this will relate with converting to Bombay)
Damned Celebrity Again (4)
My attention
was grabbed by the words celebrity and the sub heading which saw had the word
Indrani positioned right beneath the word celebrity.
Bachi
Karkaria in this week’s column commences with an attack against the media and
its coverage of events. It shapes the Public Opinion against the media. The
opening line of the column raises the question as to whether the media would
have bothered about the custodial killing on Manjula Shetye (who is that?) had
Indrani Mukherjea (we know who this is) not played a stellar role in the
ensuing riot.
Public
opinion is that media will only be drawn to news if there is a celebrity
involved. This article reinforces that stereotyped opinion. There is no
satirical element in this column as readers have grown accustomed to seeing in
this space every Thursday morning. Would anyone have given two hoots about the
killing of an inmate? Yes, maybe for a while, as that’s how modern day media
is.
Next attack,
prison riots do make for appealing, eyeball grabbing news (very important in
today’s era of TRP) not for sympathy, but for the reason of a catfight. The Public
is of the opinion that they need media for entertainment and not information.
(Republic TV has the highest viewership). This shapes the opinion of the media
and they broadcast more eyeball grabbing stuff.
It would be
covered just long enough (2 days) for to the noises to emerge about mean
jailors and demands for reform. Then it would stop exciting us (that’s the
opinion of media houses). We would form the opinion that ‘ aisa tho chalta
rehta hai.’ It’s the media that shaped it like this. But this riot had a big
name involved. INDRANI. Despite being a criminal, she is a big deal, hence the
riot is a big deal. It’s the name Indrani that has the media maintaining a
sustained interest in this past its expiry date. That’s our opinion of
celebrities nowadays. Had any other prisoner stood up for the deceased inmate
and incited a riot, we wonder what would have happened, no really. Would the
media have known that said inmate is being threatened?
While
researching for this project even I didn’t know about the deceased inmate and
actually googled the words ‘Indrani Prison riot.’
In the last
paragraph one final pot shot is taken at the media and the system. The issue
that the columnist wants us to contemplate on is why change can only arrive on
the back of a celebrity. Why can’t a common inmate deaths be the sole factor
behind meaningful change being brought about? Along with the media, it is the
fault of the audience as well, we consume what they put out and hence encourage
them and their opinion is that we are interested in celebrities. What does it
say about us? Indeed, what does it? Do we need the celebrity to bring about
change? That stereotype of celebrity is so great that it shapes public opinion
in such a way that if a celebrity does something, it must be important, but if
a common man does something no one’s going to look at it.
This piece
aims to sway Public Opinion that celebrities belong on a pedestal.
WHAT’S IN A RENAME? (5)
What’s in a
name? Is what is stuck in our heads. That quote, by playwright William
Shakespeare has seen a prefix added to its last word. Would Dadar feel less
congested were it to be re-named Chaityabhumi?
Yeh Sarkar
acha station nahi banayega par naam badalne mein sab paisa karch karega. That’s
the general Public Opinion at the moment.
In a column
in Mumbai, when we talk about rename one would immediately think about the
Renaming spree proposed in the city. Evocative names were replaced, yet it is
the evocative names that are still used in conversation. VT was given a sex
change 2 decades ago and yet even now we say VT, and not CST, but that was not
enough, we added Maharaj to it. It’s not just CS(M)T though, imagine that your
train has left Matunga road and you hear, “ next station Chaityabhumi” , or you leave Churchgate and the next 2 stations
are Gamdevi and Girgaon. You would wonder what it is, but whilst booking your
tickets you would just by force of habit say Charni road (not Giragaon) right?
And the chances are that the guy at the counter would actually get that.
This column
reinforces the public opinion that namicide squanders public funds. New sign,
new stationery and a new name in our train announcements every morning that
snaps us from our reverie. Is that needed?
The column
lists out the Shivaji statue in the sea as well. On ‘The Debate’ last night a
panellist yelled out that they can’t build roads and want to build a staue in
the sea. Wouldn’t that have gone a long way in influencing the opinion of a
large number of people?
The citizens of Mumbai hope that the new
coastal road to be named after we-know-who and hope they will remember all the
titles they wish to include or else come 2037 we may have to call the coastal
road something else. That’s fine, as we’ll always know it by is evocative name,
but we will be saddled by yet another cess for suffixes. True Bach Karkaria
sarcasm here.
Public
Opinion is that the party in power changing will result in such things
stopping. The column says that no problem, the new party will appropriate this
icon, keep all their supporters and win over the old supporters as well (public
opinion is volatile)
In the next
sentence it is hinted that the taxpayer would rather their money was spent on
changing the battered state of roads rather than just renaming roads. She makes
a connect with the disgruntled average citizen by sharing and re inforcing the
opinion that one is insane if they think logic or citizens dictate civic
decisions.
TEARY OF RELATIVITY (6)
It has
always been told to us that our headline must be catchy so as to grab the
reader’s attention and make them want to know more. We are playing with
Kangaroo words here in ThEORY (TEARY) of
Relativity.
On an
episode of Koffee with Karan, Kangana Ranaut labelled Karan Johar as the “flagbearer
of nepotism.” What Kangana speaks of isn’t unheard of or unseen. Public Opinion
is that star’s kids seem to just whizz into Bollywood and get cast in a film,
deliver a box office dud, get cast in another film, another dud, you get the
cycle right? This continues until they deliver a hit (they are bound to deliver
one eventually) Question- why do they get cast. Public Opinion on the basis of
media and stereotypes- Nepotism. Bachi Karkaria calls Kangana the ‘elected
queen.’(Sentiment shared by many) In Game of Thrones we see how people rally
behind someone they consider ‘their choice.’ Public Opinion would be that
Kangana is right, as she is one rare case that has found a foothold in the
industry, without Nepotism.
The second
half of the column is intricately constructed around words that contain the
syllables of the new ‘N’ word, N-E-P-O-T-I-S-M. In this paragraph, despite the
columnist taking a visible effort to construct words from the syllables forming
nepotism, none of the words seem out of place. The N-E-P-O-T-I-S-M paragraph
paints a picture of Kangana as someone who isn’t going to toe the line, someone
who didn’t take lame shots at the opponent and as someone, who has a spine.
After an
actor with no sugar daddy who is not from the Bollywood KHANdaan makes it big,
we get to hear of their struggles and then we see the beneficiaries of Nepotism
(ek flop? Koi nahi, dusra mauka). Who would the public (that struggles)
empathise with? After all we support the ones we relate to and Public Opinion
would be in favour of Kangana and anti-Nepotists.
At the IIFA
Awards 2017, Karan Johar, Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan made a joke on Kangana
with a snide reference to a song from a Karan Johar film which has the name
Kangana in it. They wanted to sway the Public Opinion as though they were
admitting to nepotism.
Now the
people who didn’t watch that episode of Koffee with Karan were now aware that
Kangana branded Karan as “flagbearer of Nepotism.” More people watch the IIFA
Awards, and the ‘joke’ over there is what inspired this column.
The song by
the legendary Bee Gees goes like this,.
“ I started a joke, which
started the whole world crying But I didn't
see that the joke was on me, oh no.”
The joke was
on them and Kangana took a 2-0 lead in what started out as a reply to a
question. Oh no indeed. In the aftermath, the trio did apologise, but the
damage was done. Public Opinion in support of Kangana increased and Bachi’s
Column further solidified the ‘Kangana has a spine view’.
Morning Cuppa (7)
A majority
of the country would not give a damn about the activities in Darjeeling. Why
should we care? I am in a journalism class and I don’t care (even though I am
forced to) Bachi Karkaria makes me care about this though. This column showed
me that there are methods to sway public opinion. Attendance and marks aren’t
really powerful to sway opinion.
Yet still
this is the column that will connect with the readers the most as it deals with
the most electrifying legal stimulant i.e. tea.(we have a selfish reason to
care about what happens all the way in the east) Now we do need to give a damn
about what is happening there right? You may say no, as you don’t consume tea.
Wrong! You live in India and you need to understand one thing. Tea is the fuel
of the body, opinion about the beverage is so powerful that without it people
don’t fully shake of the drowsiness (nope not even a cold shower would help
them here) This piece works for me as now as if people around me don't get their morning cup of tea, they will be mindfucked. I actually want to know more about
what is happening in Darjeeling as here I’m not bogged down by details, but I
have an interest so as to want to get bogged down by the details.
This column
gives readers the bare minimum of information (the strike by Gorkha Janmukti
Morcha and cessation of sale of Darjeeling tea due to shortage) needed to have
context with the real world and the column. The last 2 lines are a sarcastic
dig at all the pretenders that will emerge to substitute chai, but no
“atrocious concoction” will be able to replace the original(Public Opinion is
that nothing can replace our chai) The columnist makes another connection to
her readers with the subtlety of a sledgehammer with the words ,” of all legal
stimulants, tea takes the cake, and I will go any lengths for my Darjeeling.”
Won’t we all go any lengths for that morning cup of freshly brewn tea? Won’t
we? I know people who would.
Bachi
Karkaria is a columnist not of a specific genre, she writes on anything and
everything. Her columns generally provide us with some background on the issue
and the she seemingly takes the side of the Janta and reinforces their Public
Opinion.
This column deals
with a multitude of events, events that I never bothered about. Some of the
events dealt with were within my experience. I chose the columnist as I heard
that she’s the curator of the Times Litfest, I started reading the column for
this project, I started following news apart from sports and entertainment.
Safe to say as I have experienced the ‘Spirit of Bombay’ on 29/8 when social
media was flooded with posts of people opening up their homes. I have seen the
struggle of Nawazuddin Siddique to make it big in the industry whereas trash
like Tiger Shroff goes on getting cast in films.
I am sick
and tired of the media just covering issues for 2 days and then losing interest.
All news channels pounded the BMC with questions on 29/8 and then not a thing
was said the next day after the usual noises was made. The BMC knew they just
had to weather the storm that was Arnab’s yells. There is no follow up, but, if
Sachin Tendulkar had gotten stuck, minsters Goswami and Shivshankar would have
been screeching their lungs out.
The
conclusion of the rename article is relatable as honestly, when has citizen’s
inconvenience ever mattered?
Darjeeling now will be an area of interest
because of how people from this city are conditioned to the beverage. If tea
stops it indirectly affects… me.
Lippman in
his book Public Opinion, says a newspaper by the handling of particular events
a newspaper decides if one is to like or dislike it, to trust it or refuse
it.(2)
I like the
column and I trust the column. It entertains and informs.
2. http://www.collier.sts.vt.edu/5314/lippmannpublicop.pdf
3. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/1993-and-all-that-the-death-and-life-of-those-first-bombay-blasts/
4.https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/damned-celebrity-again-we-need-an-indrani-to-take-note-of-poor-manjulas-jail-killing/
5. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/whats-in-a-rename-might-as-well-take-this-mania-to-its-looniest-lengths-f0-9f-98-9c/
6. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/teary-of-relativity-how-many-words-and-worlds-can-you-find-in-nepotism-f0-9f-98-9c/
7. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/mourning-cuppa-if-its-tea-goes-downhill-can-bracing-darjeeling-be-far-behind-f0-9f-98-9c/
3. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/1993-and-all-that-the-death-and-life-of-those-first-bombay-blasts/
4.https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/damned-celebrity-again-we-need-an-indrani-to-take-note-of-poor-manjulas-jail-killing/
5. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/whats-in-a-rename-might-as-well-take-this-mania-to-its-looniest-lengths-f0-9f-98-9c/
6. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/teary-of-relativity-how-many-words-and-worlds-can-you-find-in-nepotism-f0-9f-98-9c/
7. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/mourning-cuppa-if-its-tea-goes-downhill-can-bracing-darjeeling-be-far-behind-f0-9f-98-9c/
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