Dhenkanal: On February 6, 2022, the Indian Institute of Mass Communication in Dhenkanal hosted a virtual webinar on the theme ‘Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose as a Great Communicator’ to memorialize the staunch leader. The event was co-hosted by ‘Communication Today,’ a bilingual media publication that has been publishing for 25 years. Prof. Kripa Shankar Chaubey, Head, Department of Mass Communication, Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University, Wardha, and Prof. Mrinal Chatterjee, Regional Director, IIMC, Dhenkanal, were among the speakers at the event, who collectively remembered Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose to commemorate his 125th birthday.
“Bose was always able to persuade Indians to unite and strengthen his campaign, whether it was the liberation movement or the military battle. He used to write and speak with such conviction and command that hearing his lectures would inspire young men to join the army. Netaji accomplished this by using his outfit, symbolic language, and emotions in a wonderful way. Netaji’s work was so wide, dramatic, and mysterious during his lifetime that he was dubbed a ‘folk hero’ by the people of India,” said Prof. Mrinal Chatterjee, Regional Director, IIMC, Dhenkanal.
Professor Chatterjee went into great depth on Netaji’s communication style throughout the webinar. He observed, “Gandhi and Netaji had a lot of parallels. Both of them were referring to actionable change. “Do or die,” Gandhi chanted, while Netaji yelled, “Give me blood, and I will give you freedom.” Both mentioned sacrifice. The shape and outline of the sacrifice, however, was a point of contention between the two.”
“Netaji succeeded in creating awareness about the movement for independence and the extension of the British Empire through newspapers and radio to a wide spectrum of Indians. Netaji knew exactly what to say to the audience and how to say it,” Prof. Chatterjee added.
Prof. Kripa Shankar Chaubey, Head of the Department of Mass Communication at Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University in Wardha, spoke on Netaji’s journalism. “Through the ‘Forward Bloc’ newspaper, Netaji had his say on the plight of the country’s peasants, the hardship of the workers, the spread of leftist ideology and socialist philosophy, along with his remarks on various activities of the then Congress, and so on,” said Prof. Chaubey. “It is indeed true that ideals are still relevant in today’s world, and that he has left a legacy to be followed,” Prof. Chaubey concluded.
Prof. Sanjeev Bhanawat, Editor of ‘Communications Today,’ moderated the discussion. Initially, a tribute was paid to Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar, the empress of melody, who left for her heavenly abode on the 6th of February. Paying tribute to Lata didi, Prof. Bhanawat remarked, “Such magnificent voices are born only once in many centuries.” Bhavana Acharya, Assistant Professor, delivered the vote of thanks. Students, faculty and staff of IIMC Aizawl, Kottayam, Dhenkanal attended the webinar.
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