Silence in the newsroom

Siddharth Tiwari

Silence in the newsroom

Covid-19 claimed people's lives across the globe, and the world lost eminent personalities in every field to this horrible disease. In the long list of names of people that we lost, is also the name of Rohit Sardana, one of India's most prominent journalist and television personality.

Sardana last show was called Dangal: Image Source: Opindia

He had a unique ability to go out on the ground and detect electoral fervour before broadcasting it to the public. His recent program on Aaj Tak was called Dangal and was a debate themed show. The quality of Rohit Sardana's anchoring was believed to be in his pointed and straightforward questions that often left even the ruling party leaders and the opposition speechless.

Anti-national shouts at JNU, Pakistan's money link with Hurriyat leaders in Kashmir, Sectarian violence in Malda and Dhulagarh in West Bengal were just a few of Rohit's stories that dominated the headlines in the country. He created a landmark program called Kurukshetra before the Lok Sabha elections in 2014, in which he gave report cards of MPs. He was a brilliant reporter in addition to being a daring anchor. However, his journalistic ethic was in question in the past few years. His show was criticised for demonising Muslims, inciting jingoism, and increasing the Hindu-Muslim divide to sensationalise the news.

The news of his death came as a shock to everyone. Rohit had a covid infection, but he showed signs of recovery and was active again right before his death. He continued to work and encourage the institute and his colleagues until his last day. However, he was taken to Metro Hospital in Noida at night when his conditions started deteriorating. He died of a heart attack, leaving behind his wife and two daughters.

Many people from all walks of life voiced their sorrow at his demise. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences in a tweet on his death. He talked about how Rohit was "full of energy and a kind-hearted."

Rohit Sardana was one of the most popular and enthusiastic anchors in India News. In a one-and-a-half-decade career, he became a popular name in every household. He began as an announcer for All India Radio, then moved on to the world of tv news reporting. He became known for his particularly energetic anchoring in ETV, Sahara Samay, Zee News, and Aaj Tak.

He was regarded as one of Hindi television's most lively anchors with superior command in the Hindi language. Rohit earned a position in TV anchoring that only a few individuals have achieved.

Rohit was a native of Kurukshetra, Haryana, and has won the NT Award for Best Anchor, the ENBA Award for Best Anchor, and the coveted Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Award for Hindi Journalism. Rahu Kanwal, his fellow journalist in Aaj Tak, talked about Rohit's "command on Hindi" and how he was "loved by the masses" while expressing his grief over Rohit's death.

The world of Hindi journalism suffered an unredeemable loss this year, and the newsroom of Aaj Tak' Dangal fell silent. A death that came as a shock to everyone, and people from all walks of life, from the Prime Minister of our country to eminent cricketers, expressed their condolences. Rohit Sardana touched many lives during his career, and his memory has been immortalised in the minds of thousands of people who watched his show daily.