Yeh hain Youngistan!

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No, this is neither a Pepsi advertisement, nor a PR campaign plugged by the multinational. This is a show on CNN-IBN recorded in the peak of Summer in Lutyens's Delhi. So that makes it a promotional piece for the show, right? Clearly not. The show has already run before this piece sees the light of day. And chances are that it will probably not repeat again.

The reason why this show finds mention is that like many of you, I am also tired of seeing the same old political faces on news television slugging it out in studios, saying the same old things, even wearing the same expression. I consider the Ravi Shankar Prasads and Abhishek Manu Singhvis almost colleagues given that they appear almost every day on our channel, whether it is in the studio or on outdoor broadcast locations. Manish Tiwari and Siddharth Nath Singh are the other two relatively new recruits who have reduced the pressure on both Mr. Prasad & Mr. Singhvi from multiple appearances on a single day given the number of news channels that exist. Even Prakash Javdekar is now seen about two or three times a week rather than the daily appearances he used to make a few months ago. Why do news channels bring the same old faces over and over again? The reasons are not difficult to find. One, these people are spokespersons deputed by their parties to talk to the media. Two, what's the option? There are some others who choose to remain elusive though they are chased by the media. It is in this context that the concept of a TV show with fresh faces got me interested. Let me confess that I had not till the day of the recording seen three of the four panelists who appeared on the show. Such things don't often happen to you when you work in news television, any TV professional can vouch for that.

Once the decision to record the show was made, a location had to be chosen. I was quite clear that we should only use our studio as a last option. The nature of this show required a fresh backdrop, relatively unseen on news channels. Lutyens Delhi is not short of locations, however there was one huge practical problem. Recording a show outdoor in Delhi in the hottest period of the year was never going to be easy. We didn't want the panel or audience to sweat or sit in discomfort. We had to choose a place which was lukewarm (since cold was clearly not a possibility outdoor). We were also confronted with a distinct possibility of our recording machines packing up in the heat. These electronic equipment require a certain temperature to work and are therefore stored in air-conditioned zones. It was an uphill task to get this going at temperatures above 40 degrees centigrade.

We decided to start the moment the young parliamentarians arrived. Sanjay Singhal, our technical head had already warned me that the machines were heating up and even the large fans used to cool them were struggling given the outside temperature. There was no scope for last minute fine-tuning or mistakes during the show. It had to be a one-take recording. We rolled for 25 minutes without stop and I have to say what a pleasure it was to be involved in the production. The young parliamentarians exceeded my expectations from them (partly because the expectations were low). Here were a bunch of four bright, articulate first-timers who had just entered the hallowed corridors of Parliament and seemed quite excited at the opportunity on hand. Whether their excitement will turn into proactive leadership and action will be tested over the next few months. We sincerely hope that these young turks are able to rise above party politics and considerations and are able to be the change we want to see.

Yes, they happen to be family members of established politicians but as one of them pointed out during the show that "his surname should neither include nor preclude him from joining politics" As long as their priorities are correct and the intent to pursue them are unshaken, their family background should not be held against them. The lone lady in the panel reminded the audience that their family association put a lot of pressure on them in terms of expectations from the public. The people expect them to be as proficient as their illustrious seniors in the family who are already settled in politics. True, but this is a small price to pay for getting easy access to political opportunity. As one member of the audience rightly pointed out that the party workers don't get as much opportunity as they should because it is cornered by the family members. For example, what chance does a ordinary party worker have of being offered a ticket from a constituency which he may have nursed diligently over the years, if a scion of a famous political family is waiting in the wings to take over.

Dynasty politics is a reality and it cannot be wished away. What we can hope, however, is that the descendants of political families who are handed over the baton pursue the path of development with utmost seriousness and are able to bring fresh thinking to the table. Is that asking for too much?