Rabindra Narayan
Managing Director & President
PTC Network | New Delhi (INDIA)
Birth & Residence:
New Delhi (INDIA)
Breaking Barriers to Achieve Impossible
One name that dominates the Punjabi television worldwide is Rabindra Narayan. As a colossus figure of electronic media, he has been single-handedly championing the cause of Punjab, Punjabi and Punjabiyat.
After a brief and distinguished career in conventional print media, I moved to electronic media in the late 1990s. Since then, I have always insisted that the strength of a language is based on its full and global following than the region of its origin. If today, Punjabi is recognised as a universal language, it gives me happiness as I also have contributed my part to it.
Since Punjabis have settled across the world since time immemorial, I often wondered whether this forum could be used to make Punjab famous across the globe. I took the challenge and did it. It is, indeed, a privilege to see the PTC empire grow from a single channel that had Gurbani as its USP into a multi-channel global news, entertainment, spiritual and sports network. Now, I am active not only in Punjabi cultural circles but also in Sikh religious institutions besides the regional, national and international media organisations.
One opportunity that changed my life
Perhaps the single most defining moment in my life was the day we decided to beam Gurbani live from the Golden Temple. It was just a simple idea; call it a dream if you will. But there you are! If you pursue your goals with passion, even the most impossible dreams can become a beautiful reality. Who would have thought that at the flick of a switch, Punjabis in the remotest corners of the world could experience live the grace and beauty of the Gurbani live from the Golden temple in real-time? I wonder why no one had ever thought about such things before. We didn’t even stop to think. We just went ahead and did it. And ever since, our successes have taken us beyond the stars.
People believe that even with the right kind of training, you cannot find success and it is destiny. But that’s not true. I remember my English Professor in university, Dr CD Sidhu, with the sobriquet of Punjabi Shakespeare, had offered me a role in a Punjabi play. I immediately declined, saying I didn’t know a single word of Punjabi. Unfazed and with perfect composure, he replied, “With enough practice, I can transform a donkey into a winning racehorse.” Those words have always stayed in my head since then. It marked my entry into the world of Punjabi theatre. But this was just the beginning of an exciting journey of self-discovery that still continues. I seem to have become a kind of an all-in-one person with a never say die attitude to life, always ready to try my hand at anything and everything.
Today, I head the company which runs the biggest Punjabi language television network in the world and produces more than 80 per cent of the original television content in Punjabi language in the world.
Perseverance and patience pays
In my professional life, I look for people who have the fire to do something and a mind that loves challenges. And then I give them the tools and training to make them racehorses. The way my professor did with me! I made a mantra for me very early – master A to Z of whatever you do. And take up every little, menial task that nobody would want to do. Perseverance and patience became the cornerstones of my personality.
In 1998, when Punjab was emerging from terrorism and trying to stand on its feet, there were no films, songs or serials being made. Then, I realised that a channel in Punjabi should be started. So I gave up a cushy editorial job and started to create a Punjabi TV channel with no bank of software available in that language. People thought I was mad. With this madness was born the ‘Punjabi World’, the world’s first-ever Punjabi satellite channel. Within no time we hired producers, directors and started creating shows, serials, shooting songs and telecast of Gurbani kirtan from the Golden Temple. It was the first time that a daily telecast had started happening from a religious place. I dreamt a dream that people anywhere on earth should be able to view Gurbani from the Golden Temple at the flick of a switch of their TV sets, and it become a reality.
Remember, if you think you have the skills and talent and you are clear on what you want to do, then don’t bother who says what. Stick to it. I stuck to it for 20 years and from day one, the Punjabi channels I have had the privilege of heading, have been number one in Punjab, gradually winning the world over. Our company, a regional language television company, is perhaps the only Indian company which has full-fledged studios in Canada, the USA and the UK, and we on an expansion spree. We did shows, events and made so much noise that every Punjabi across the world knew that there’s a setup called PTC Punjabi. No big mainline television channel has any production setup of their own in those countries. When the history of Facebook will be written, it will be written in bold letters that PTC Network was the first organisation to start a full-fledged 24×7 live streaming channel on Facebook – PTC Dhol TV.
Regional is the new global for PTC
I feel proud about the fact that we have become the first company in the world to be doing daily live telecast in 360-degree virtual reality (VR) of the Golden Temple as you listen to the Gurbani too. In fact, we have been doing VR telecasts since 2016 of all our main shows. Not just television, we have expanded our operations to create a full-fledged Punjabi digital app – PTC Play. We can now proudly claim that PTC Network owns and produces more than 80 per cent of the world’s original Punjabi television content. Regional is the new global for us.
Some of my other achievements along the way are launch of an audio label last year that has so far produced 150 original songs. We are the only company in the world, perhaps, which produces an original one-hour Punjabi movie every week.
I have contributed to the cause of Punjabi theatre and worked as an actor, director, designer since 1983 with Dr CD Sidhu, Gyan Shivpuri and others; was also the General Secretary of Collegiate Drama Society which has staged over 2,000 shows during the past three decades. I’ve had the opportunity to direct several documentaries including the ‘Blooms of the Lotus’ for Doordarshan. I continue to serve the cause of Punjab, Punjabi and Punjabiyat through Punjabi channels. For my services, I have been honoured with many awards; Delhi State Punjabi Media Award in 2003 by the Delhi Government was the earliest and closest to my heart.
Philosophy
Anything I do, I do with passion.
I love…
Creating content. Today, I may be heading one of the most successful Punjabi television network, but I still opt to enhance my skills whenever I get a chance.
I’d suggest the youth…
Dream big. They should pursue their dreams with all their heart. They need to keep at it, day-after-day, if they believe they have the skills and talent.
Success Mantra
Passion, practice, persevere and mastering A to Z of whatever you do.
The world doesn’t know that…
I still write scripts, make TV ads and promos myself.
AKA
Father of Punjabi Satellite Television | Founder of the Punjabi satellite channel in the world
Gallery
ISBN : 9788193397695