All that Jazz

For the man on the street, entertainment is all about having some fun & frolic with spice added, provided one has sufficient spare time. But, for the people involved in this business, entertainment means long working hours coupled with creative sense and a strong will to make ‘enjoyment’ a reality.
Clearly, entertainment has developed into a big industry creating employment for lakhs of people.Over the years, entertainment has come to encompass varied areas in its fold, with further additions to its list as time passes by.
Education Times provides an insight into some of the ‘hottest’ choices available in the entertainment business today. Needless to say that these choices could turn out to be a dream career for those aspiring to get a foothold in this industry.
Probably, one of the oldest mediums of entertainment, radio has come a long way. It can well be described as the poor man’s entertainment because of the low cost associated with it. Buy that small transistor set and you can tune into any number of channels you like. Old timers remember songs played in the ‘Vividh Bharti’, ‘Binaca Geetmala’ and the Urdu service of ‘Aakashvani’ among other programmes. Today songs come to listeners with state-of-the art technology of FM channels.
One can observe easily that FM radio has created a buzz in the country and this can be observed from the number of private FM Channels that have come up. From the time when it was first launched by the All India Radio (AIR) in 1995, FM radio has grown in stature and popularity. In fact, the AIR has been the pioneer in FM radio sector. A senior AIR official said: ‘‘FM radio has emerged as one of the biggest source of entertainment. The FM programmes offer a lot of variety
According to the managing director and chief executive officer, Entertainment Network India Ltd, A P Parigi, ‘‘Radio has provided clean and round-the-clock entertainment to listeners. It’s a non-intrusive and an invasive medium.’’ Presently, there are 13 private radio stations on air across nine cities. ‘Radio Mirchi’ is on air across four cities, and has been launched in Delhi recently.
If you think you have great looks, proficiency in singing, dancing and acting skills, then you can straightaway go for acting in films. According to the well-known actress Manisha Koirala, ‘‘Apart from acting skills one needs to have a good system of networking, one can employ a ‘secretary’ or a ‘promotional manager’ who can approach the right kind of producers and directors for roles.’’
A career in documentary film-making can count among the most unconventional career choices one can make. A young film director and screenwriter Trisha Das said: ‘‘As a documentary film maker, you can work for a production house or be a freelancer. Production houses always ensures work while feelancing gives one more creative freedom.’’
Choreography is an integral part of the entertainment industry today. According to the well-known choreographer Shiamak Davar, ‘‘Choreography is the totality of the story, visual appeal, choreographing movement, style of dance, understanding music, costumes and camera placement to achieve the required visual.’’
Davar remarked, ‘‘The future of choreography in India is very bright, although I feel it is important for upcoming choreographers to learn, absorb and train themselves in dance and movement styles. They must work hard and not repeat the same old formula.’’
Event managers are those backstage people who are responsible for the smooth progress of any entertainment show. According to event counsellor and founder president, the International Centre for Event Marketing and Management (ICEM), Prince Singhal said: ‘‘The entertainment industry needs organised presentation in many areas ranging from product launches to getting performers and even celebrities for various shows, for which professional managers are required.’’
Theatre as a form of entertainment has drawn people for centuries. Speaking about the current theatre scenario in India, director, National School of Drama, Devender Raj Ankur remarked, ‘‘Theatre presently is in a good position. Films, television and other forms of media have opened opportunities for theatre professionals. Moreover, the incorporation of theatre and plays in the curriculum of university programmes and stagnation of media has led to a renewed interest in theatre.’’ Ankur said it was easy to find a job as a teacher of theatre at various universities for a livelihood.
If one is interested in television production one need not look far away for the right course. The School of Convergence is India’s leading institution which combines the curricula of a journalism school, film school and a management school. The director, School of Convergence, Paranjoy Guha-Thakurta said: ‘‘Information, communication and entertainment known as ICE is one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy. Being a successful media professional requires good communication skills, a sense of aesthetics, techno-savviness and good managerial capabilities.’’
The senior producer, news programming, Star News, Anju Juneja elaborated, ‘‘A good production house trains an individual in all aspects of production right from handling equipment, camera to post-production activities.’’
The age of production houses developing programmes and software that are lapped up by television channels and films has been ushered in, in India. The chief executive of a production house, Ventures Direct Television, Rajan Guha said: ‘‘Production houses are split into largely three categories, namely news, fiction and non-fiction.’’ He added,
‘‘Programming companies are the single-most important link TV channel business.’’
Juneja remarked, ‘‘Production of talk shows requires good researchers, guests and audience coordinators in addition to studio layout.’’
There is a rising need for professional disc jockeys (DJs), radio jockey (RJ)s and video jockeys (VJs). However, the profession requires no specific academic background or qualification.
A senior radio (FM) jockey, TV anchor and director Elan Communications, Raman Bhanot, said: ‘‘One should be able to gauge the likes and dislikes of the target audience.’’
VJs can opt for PG diploma courses in mass communication. It helps to have training in acoustics and sound recording. DJs should have a good screen presence and preferably a diploma/ degree in acting or mass communication. RJs should have good voices and a training in voice modulation.
•Multimedia
Multimedia, today offers wide career choices in advertising, films, television, education, video games, fashion designing, architecture and product designing. Notably, the entertainment industry expenditure on animation and visual effects is growing. A professional in this field can draw between a minimum of Rs 5,000 per month to Re 1 lakh and above per month.
•Music industry
Music may be called the life blood of the entertainment industry. To keep in tune with the times, music has undergone a huge transition. Playback singing in films, concerts and music albums are the common avenues for singers of all categories, besides classical music and Indipop, being the other avenues.
According to singer Shantanu Mukherjee or ‘Shaan’, of the ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ fame, ‘‘It is the individual style, movie theme and banner of the production house which together contributes to success in playback singing.’’
For the would-be classical musicians ‘‘tomorrow never dies’’, as they seem to be in the right place at the right time. ‘‘People in the West are now looking forward to classical Indian music,’’ said Aman Ali Bangash, son of legendary sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan. With the ever increasing sales figures of classical music CDs and cassettes there is money in it too.
In the past few years, Indipop music has been a rage on the Indian music scene. Euphoria singer Palash Sen said: ‘‘Presently, there are too many bands. Making a music album is a very expensive affair. It needs to be sponsored by a good music company.’’
Western music too has its share of the market in India. Always popular among an elite segment, since the age of the ‘Beatles’ and ‘Elvis Presley’, Western music has always enthralled listeners, especially the youngsters. Today, bands like Backstreet Boys, Savage Garden, Westlife and Dixie Chicks to name a few, and pop singers such as Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez and Shakira are quite popular among Indians.