Nostalgia Alert: Doordarshan’s Iconic Milestones as It Turns 60

Posted by Himani on September 23rd, 2019

It all started way back in 1959 with a small transmitter and a make shift studio as a division of Prasaar Bharti in Delhi. The popular and the only entertainment channel aired some of the most iconic Hindi TV shows like Chitrahaar, Mahabharat, Fauji, Dekh Bhai Dekh, Malgudi Days, and more.

Coming back to the era of Hindi TV shows download and free live TV streaming, audiences’ love for Doordarshan, as it turns 60, hasn’t really faded away. Its image as one of the best and first entertainment platforms that brought the entire nation together is etched in people’s memories forever.

Doordarshan’s Humble Beginnings

Doordarshan channel dates back to the era that marked many humble beginnings. Here’s a run-down of the iconic landmarks that the channel possessed during its tenure of 60 glorious years.

1959: DD was launched by President of India Rajendra Prasad at AIR studio in Delhi as a pilot project. The journey started with a 1-hour programme every week on social education.

1965: DD’s daily transmissions grew up with shows airing every morning and evening including a 5-minute news bulletin.

1975: DD’s broadcasting tapped into seven more cities including Mumbai and Amritsar.

1976: DD achieves standalone status, separating from AIR.

1984: DD added 2 more channels with DD2, now known as DD Metro.

1991: A decline observed in the viewership of DD channels with the emergence of private channels and Cable TV.

2004: DD came up with DD Free Dish that is India’s first and only free DTH service.

Doordarshan’s Landmark Shows

Prior to the era of Hindi TV shows download or free live TV streaming, DD had its own envious line up of some of the most amazing Hindi TV shows that made our childhood super awesome. Here are some of the firsts:

1967: DD’s journey into Hindi TV shows started with Krishi Darshan, a programme made for rural viewers and farmers, eventually became the longest-running TV programme in India.

1976: DD’s first TV serial, Ladoo Singh Taxiwala, aired in 1976.

1982: The first Hindi movie musical show, Chirahaar aired on DD channel.

1984: The first Hindi soap opera, Hum Log, tapped its presence on DD channel with a 154-episode run.

1987-1990: Start of 1987 was all about Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan and BR Chopra’s Mahabharat that drove insane viewership and ad revenues for DD channel. Following closely was RK Narayan’s Malgudi Days.

1994: Sunday mornings for the entire family got special with Chandrakanta on DD national.

1997: India’s very own superhero series, Shaktimaan started airing on DD National.

First on Doordarshan

Much before the advent of OTT platforms for Hindi TV shows download and free live TV streaming, there were several firsts on Doordarshan that went on to achieving the iconic status.

Pratima Puri: Pratima Puri became DD’s first-ever newsreader with 5-minute news bulletins on DD.

Shahrukh Khan: Shahrukh Khan’s television career started on Doordarshan with TV series Fauji in 1989.

What Doordarshan stands at today are 34 satellite channels, 66 studios, 104 Free-to-Air (FTA) channels on DD Free Dish, and 3-5% Indian households with DD still being the primary connetion.