The state broadcaster wants to connect better with India’s youth

The iconic Doordarshan logo, said to symbolise the human eye, may soon be a thing of past as the broadcaster seeks to connect aggressively with the youth while preserving the “nostalgia” associated with the DD brand.

The state-owned broadcaster has begun the process of replacing the current logo which it has been using since 1959.

Doordarshan, which runs 23 channels across the country, has floated a logo design contest, the winner of which will get a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh.

“The Doordarshan brand and the logo evokes nostalgia in certain generation of the country. Today, the county’s population largely comprises people below 30 years of age and they don’t share the same memory that the earlier generation has of Doordarshan,” said Shashi S Vempati, Chief Executive Officer, Prasar Bharati, which runs the Doordarshan and All India Radio.

About 65 per cent of India’s population is below the age of 35.

“The young generation was born in the post-liberalisation era when there were multiple channels and it [the new generation] doesn’t connect to the DD brand the same way the earlier generation,” Vempati told PTI.

This is an attempt to have a conversation with the younger generation and make the DD brand “relevant” to them, he added.

According to the invitation seeking the new design, “The new logo while recalling the strong nostalgia associated with the DD brand, should reflect the aspirations of a new India.”

The last date for submitting logo designs is August 13.

The move is seen as a part of the broadcaster’s bid to modernise and revamp its network.

Details of the contest can be found in the Government of India website.