On Tuesday (April 25), Indian public service broadcaster Doordarshan completed 41 years of its first test run of the colour telecast.
As per reports, it was primarily driven by the need to showcase the Asian Games, which were held between Noevember-December in New Delhi in 1982. It must be mentioned that Doordarshan was founded in 1959.
सत्यम् शिवम् सुन्दरम्
— Doordarshan National दूरदर्शन नेशनल (@DDNational) April 25, 2023
This day that year !!
25 APRIL 1982 :#Doordarshan started the test run of #India's first colour Telecast.#OnThisDay pic.twitter.com/BaO1LDtkUZ
“Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram…This day of the year 1982 is important in the history of India. On this day, DD National began its colour telecast and ushered into a new era,” wrote Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur.
“Hearty congratulations not only to the people associated with DD but to every Indian on this special day. Today this channel is making an important contribution to nation-building through its authentic telecast,” he further added.
सत्यम, शिवम् , सुंदरम्
— Anurag Thakur (@ianuragthakur) April 25, 2023
भारत के इतिहास में वर्ष 1982 का आज का यह दिन ऐतिहासिक है, आज के दिन ही @DDNational श्वेत श्याम से रंगीन हुआ था, एक नये अध्याय, एक नये दौर की शुरुआत हुई थी।
न केवल #DD से जुड़े लोगों बल्कि हर भारतीय के लिए इस विशेष दिन की हार्दिक बधाई।
अपने सटीक प्रसारण… pic.twitter.com/oJvoTumePN
“This decision was taken due to the Asian Games being held in the country. Colour broadcasting skyrocketed the popularity of TV,” tweeted journalist Durga Sharma.
15 Sep 1959 को दूरदर्शन के रूप में एक अकल्पनीय यात्रा शुरू हुई। इस यात्रा में आज 25 अप्रैल 1982 का अहम दिन जुड़ा, जब #doordarshan ब्लैक एंड व्हाइट से रंगीन हुआ। यह निर्णय देश में हो रहे एशियंस गेम्स के चलते लिया गया। रंगीन प्रसारण ने टीवी की लोकप्रियता को आसमान सी ऊंचाइयां दीं। pic.twitter.com/QY79YseAnP
— दुर्गा शर्मा (@Durga__Sharma) April 25, 2023
Bureaucrat Abhinav Saxena informed that Hindi films such as ‘Shatranj Ke Khiladi’ and ‘Sadgati’, which were directed by Satyajit Ray, were shown in colour on Doordarshan.
“This was #Doordarshan‘s first telecast in colour in regular transmission, following the Government decision to introduce Colour TV,” he added.
#OnThisDay in 1982, legendary filmmaker #SatyajitRay's Hindi films 'Shatranj Ke Khiladi' and 'Sadgati' were shown in colour on Delhi Doordarshan.
— Abhinav Saxena (@abhinavsaxena25) April 25, 2023
This was #Doordarshan's first telecast in colour in regular transmission, following the Government decision to introduce Colour TV. pic.twitter.com/SlXgpPIYKv
Some netizens were lost in nostalgia.
“My father bought a color television in 1985. It was a Sony Trinitron. We were the only house in a colony of 4,000 flats that had a television. On Sundays our hall used to get filled with children from neighbourhood who came to watch the weekend Doordarshan film,” recounted Alpesh Patel.
My father bought a color television in 1985. It was a Sony Trinitron.
— Alpesh Patel (@alpeshtwitting) April 25, 2023
We were the only house in a colony of 4,000 flats that had a television. On Sundays our hall used to get filled with children from neighborhood who came to watch the weekend Doordarshan film.
As per reports, Doordarshan began its experimental broadcast in 1959 only with a makeshift studio and a small transmitter. It was only in 1965 that the first five-minute-long news bulletin was read.
