Category: World Service
Date: 16.09.2005
Printable version
Singing superstars, India's Shubha Mudgal and Pakistan's Abida Parveen, are to take part in a landmark 91Èȱ¬ programme debating how much power art and music have to bridge the two nations - the relationship between culture and power, and the role of art in defying borders, prejudice and hostility.
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On Tuesday 27 September, the 91Èȱ¬ Hindi and 91Èȱ¬ Urdu services will stage a live linkup between Mumbai and Karachi with invited panellists and a studio audience.
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In India, the panel will be represented by actress Kiron Kher, film director Govind Nihalani and writer and poet Javed Akhtar.
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The panellists in Pakistan include writers Anwer Maqsood and Noorul Huda Shah, and TV playwright and columnist Shoaib Hashmi.
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The debate will be broadcast on 91Èȱ¬ Hindi and 91Èȱ¬ Urdu radio.
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Audiences in India, Pakistan and around the world will also have the opportunity to voice their views and follow the proceedings via webcasts on bbchindi.com and bbcurdu.com.
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This multi-media broadcast will be anchored by Head of 91Èȱ¬ Hindi, Achala Sharma, in Mumbai and 91Èȱ¬ Urdu service's veteran reporter, Zaffar Abbas, in Karachi.
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91Èȱ¬ Hindi's Vineeta Dwivedi, who produces the Mumbai part of the event, said: "The two countries love each other's music, theatre and films and enjoy similar poetry. What is this power?
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"Our programme will discuss the strength of this genuine admiration and appreciation, debate whether artistes bring people together and if music connects."
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91Èȱ¬ Urdu's Mazhar Zaidi, who will be producing the Karachi link, added: "It will also be a celebration of the two nations' common heritage and culture, and we hope that the millions of people listening to the 91Èȱ¬ radio in India and Pakistan, and wherever they are via online, will be uplifted - and a little bit more hopeful."
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The joint 91Èȱ¬ Hindi and 91Èȱ¬ Urdu event is part of the Who Runs Your World? season - the biggest ever single-themed tri-media season of programmes from the 91Èȱ¬'s international news division, exploring different aspects of global power.
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The live broadcast takes place from 8.00 to 10.00pm IST and 7.30 to 9.30pm Pakistan Time.
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It will be also broadcast live on Aaj satellite TV and Mast FM in four cities in Pakistan, and on GO FM in Mumbai.
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Notes to Editors
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91Èȱ¬ Hindi programmes are produced from studios in London and New Delhi and are set in a rolling format, with news, current affairs and features.
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The interactive morning and evening programmes, Aaj Ke Din and Aaj Kal, bring the 91Èȱ¬ Hindi listeners news, analysis and interviews on a range of issues - from current affairs and careers to showbiz and sports.
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91Èȱ¬ Hindi is available on shortwave and medium wave radio transmitters and via cable television.
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Hindi speakers across the world can access 91Èȱ¬ Hindi programmes in text and in audio at the 24/7 site bbchindi.com.
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91Èȱ¬ Urdu broadcasts three times a day. Its flagship programme, Sairbeen, aired seven days a week at 8.00pm Pakistan Standard Time, provides 60 minutes of news and current affairs.
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Jahanuma, which starts at 6.30am, is a 30-minute daily breakfast programme which sets the day's news agenda.
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At the end of the day there is Shabnama, a 30-minute round-up of the main events starting at 10.30pm.
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In addition, 91Èȱ¬ Urdu brings listeners weekly magazine features on sports, science and economy that can also be accessed through its popular online site bbcurdu.com.
