SOCIAL MEDIA: A BOON FOR DOGRI

_{Kumerjit Chajgotra
PhD Research Scholar
Central University of Jammu
Kchajgotra@gmail.com}

Dogri is one of the 22 scheduled languages listed in 8th schedule of the Indian constitution. There is 2.6 Million Dogri speaking population in India according to census of 2011, mostly concentrating in Jammu Division of Jammu & Kashmir, Western parts of Himachal Pradesh and northern Parts of Punjab.

Now Dogri along with Kashmiri and Hindi are added as three new official languages of Jammu & Kashmir UT, taking the total number of officiallanguages to five, including the already existing English and Urdu since 2020.

Mass Media is a powerful tool for empowering any issue, demand, ideas or Thoughts of masses. Mass Media are various communication technologies such as Films, Radio, Television, Internet, Newspapers, Magazines, Journals, which takes Local Issue to a wider audience and even reaches to global Audience, which gives recognition to the issue, culture, lifestyle, trend etc. If one looks into Mass Media in Dogri language, it is not very well developed as far as Dogri language is concerned comparatively .The Lack of commercialization, dearth of Investments with meagre Returns in regional language, along with that the Popularity of Non Dogri Media industries like Punjabi, Hindi & English, which filled the vacuum created by Lack of Dogri Content as Films, Serials, Songs & Newspapers is impacting language, lifestyle, culture among population.

Leading to perpetuity of Inaccessibility of Dogri Media Content for masses. The inaccessibility of the literary text among the masses hamper the growth of a Dogri language. There are no newspapers or periodicals in Dogri except a couple of literary journals. There were some attempts to make it accessible like Dogri Sanstha & quarterly magazine, Nami Chetna, Jot for children and Parchol and a magazine Duaatthan from Bombay a weekly, and Some Column in Hindi Newspapers.

Before closing down Kashmir Times Jammu Parbhat was the Sole Full Fledge Dogri Newspaper, Rekha and Ambar were published on private initiative. J&K Academy publishes Sheeraza, a bi-monthly in Dogri, but the accessibility or and visibility among masses is inadequate. For the population of 2.6 million Dogra Community ‘Kitab Ghar’, is one such store, or directly from few organization or visiting individual authors is the only way to get Dogri books. films in Dogri are rarely broadcasted on media platforms.

RAY OF HOPE

Amidst all this access to internet has shifted the landscape. In past some years 4G Internet got Boom due to Cheaper Rate Internet plans, opening vast chaste of Internet to General Masses. Internet explosion has increased the platforms for learning, listening, reading and reaching out the source of Dogri content. Material is available as never before.

Cheaper Internet gave impetus to drastic shift to Smartphones. With Smartphone came Social media which brought democratization in Content. Now both Creator and Consumer also a contribute in Content. Now one can contribute and can also get access to Dogri content. One can share his/her own creation as poems, Short stories, sketches, Wide Spectrum of lifestyle content as Vlogs, comedy, Films Live reporting and much more.

Social Media

Social medias as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram gave a platform for sharing, reviewing. These platforms gave a fresh air to the Dogri language, where people shares new lyrics, songs, poems, photographs, couplets, stories to get likes and reviews. Most importantly now content is not imprisoned in bookshelf and museums, rather reached to Friends, Followers, Subscribers,

Viewers and Listeners

To Name few Initiatives on Social Media, Jammu diary started initiative to make Digital Radio programs Collecting, Organising, Creating and sharing content in Dogri through social media platforms. Dogra Akhhar another Page giving Lessons on Dogra Akkhar (Takri Script) to general masses giving breath to unused Script. The international dogra society page on Facebook and Instagram is sharing posts relating to Dogra culture, Language, Cuisines, Festivals with the masses. Ambal Youtube channel is contributing with digital content of Dogri language and Dogra culture since a long time.

Electronic news portals have also made attempts to bring Dogri reporters and Dogri bulletins to connect with masses through digital presence, which becoming popular. Digital platform gave New Dogra Social Media Stars Ranging from Comedians, Singers, to Vloggers, like Sibling Ruhi Singh and Juhi Singh who became sensational with their Dogri Singing, Jyotis Dogra Kitchen , Sam Pandoh with his team & Dogri Dubbed Team, through their sketches they have givenrelatable content for people to connect, watch and laugh together. Theircomedy connected Dogra people with our local festivals, colleges, markets,transport as matador, and regional political situations. New Generation Authors Are Publishing and promoting their works on Social Media like Yashpal Nirmal. Artists like Ramalo Ram & Subhash Brahmanu are now using Social Media to showcase their work. Many More Organization like Dogri Sanstha & Kunwar Vyogi Trust are promoting Dogri literature among the Masses. With their social media presence. This democratization will have a cocooning effect which shall bring citizenry into this fold of this new lingual paradigm. people should be encouraged to use local languages.

WAY AHEAD

It is only a beginning of a long journey. It is needed that established Dogri Organization must come on Social Media Platforms to reach wider audience. This will give great impetus to the full fledge growth and use of Dogri language. Doordarshan Jammu & AIR Jammu, can Digitalis the gem of content and preferably put out in the open domain for wider public reach and utilization.

For vernacular languages like Dogri, to shine and rise among masses, then it must be & democratized With ever increasing globalization of content and with constant exposure to different languages, cultures, lifestyles through various media forms, words, trends, lifestyle from different languages become part of our language. with constant exposure to beautiful pictures, stories videos different global stories are reaching us through media but the absence of local Dogri content will affect the local languages. as language is an aspect of culture which is not exceptional to media influence, As Gandhi ji once said “I do not want my house to be walled in one all my sides and windows to be stuffed. I want the culture of all lands blown about my house as freely as possible. But I refuse to blown off my feet by any”. A language if not spoken then it will not be heard and if not heard then it will not be remembered, eventually will not be passed on to next generation.

“_{Language should be spoken, heard, sung, danced, laughed, joked, fought, express, write, read, filmed to sustain and move from one generation to other generation. Social media is the platform to express, share, like, debate together and gave due place to Dogri language}“

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