Was searching something but got to see a very old article dated 15-Feb-1996 by India today talking about political bases shows on TV in their early stages into TV.
Highlights:
Politics seems to be vying for the prime slot in the small screen in Tamil Nadu. This was more than evident when during a popular interview on Sun TV's "Nerukku Ner" (Face to Face) - conducted by Rabi Bernard - in December, Indira Congress leader Vazhapadi Ramamurthy urged DMK to prove its innocence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
Besides Bernard, noted political commentator and journalist Cho Ramaswamy's "Chovin Kelvi Neram" (Cho's Question Time) on Raj TV and a panchayat-style discussion on Sun TVs "Cho's Panchayat" are popular for their in-your-face approach.
The programme really took off after a feisty joust with maverick politician and Janata Party President Subramanian Swamy That prompted Bernard to go in for live interviews. Immediately after his ouster as TNCC president, Ramamurthy was flown to Singapore - SUN TV's uplink centre - and in a live interview on January 15 flayed Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao and his political team. To add more spice Bernard organised phone-in questions.
Some lines about Initial version of Vijay TV in the name of GEC
But it has not been all smooth sailing. Golden Eagle Communications (GEC), launched just a year ago, made waves with Cho as programme coordinator for a string of political programmes. But GEC - originally promoted by liquor baron Udayar - reportedly buckled under government pressure and scrapped Cho's programmes.
However, GEC's new owner, the other liquor baron Vijay Mallaya, who has renamed the channel Vijay TV, has urged Cho to rejoin, promising "unbridled freedom".
New satellite channels exploit public fixation in Tamil Nadu
Those days and TV watching moments were come in front of my eyes for some time. Raj TV was popular then as like Sun TV with great entertainment shows.