He remains the quintessential radio jockey, India’s first and India’s most memorable. When Ameen Sayani came on air, millions listened. Today, at age 90, he’s no longer heard, but for those of my generation and after, his golden voice lives on.  

He started out with All India Radio (AIR), which was conservative and stingy with film songs, although they were most popular. Between AIR (since 1951), AIR’s Commercial Service (since 1970) and various foreign stations (since 1976), says the Limca Book of World Records, Sayani has produced or compered over 54,000 radio programmes and 19,000 advertising jingles. These included a six-part Music for the Millions for BBC World Service. He also compered stage shows, musical evenings, trade presentations and beauty contests. He is best remembered for his Binaca Geetmala, a regular film music programme, mainly over Radio Ceylon (now the Sri Lankan Broadcasting Corporation). Thus Radio Ceylon stole the thunder from AIR. Sponsors Binaca was a toothpaste brand, which later became Cibaca. After an over four-decades run, it was wound up.

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“I’d sit alone and watch your light
My only friend through teenage nights
And everything I had to know
I heard it on my radio.
You gave them all those old-time stars
Through wars of worlds invaded by Mars
You made ‘em laugh, you made ‘em cry
You made us feel like we could fly… Radio!”
(Lyrics of Radio Ga Ga by Queen)

Way back in the 60’s, when I was a kid, radio was king!

My generation had no TV and the whole family looked forward to being informed (the news) and entertained (music/entertainment programmes) on the “magic box” called ‘radio’.

On rainy days you would find us gathered around the radio to listen to Saturday Date and the Bournivita Quiz Contest and Hawa Mahal on AM radio.

All of us listen to the radio and take it for granted, but when did radio first start and who invented it?

It all started with Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937) who is generally considered the Grandfather of Radio Communication.

As with anything new, radio was initially perceived in a very negative way, with many people saying it was just a passing trend and would die a quick death.

“The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular,” said David Sarnoff in 1920.

“The radio craze will die out with time,” predicted famous inventor Thomas Edison in 1922. But as we can see, most of these people had to eat their words.

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