A binding anthem

Patriotism is the new play on television, viewership numbers indicate

Patriotism is defined as an emotional attachment to a nation which an individual recognises as his/her homeland. When do these individual, emotional waves turn into a tsunami of pride? What are the events that bind a country, across demographics and geographies?

This intrigued me for a long time. And then when I heard about this cricket crazy Indian family (sounds familiar?) spread across four continents, seven countries and obviously different time zones that had formed a WhatsApp group just to discuss one India-Pakistan match, I knew it was time for some number crunching.

We at BARC set out to see what drove the eyeballs. What do people watch and what does it tell us about them? Here is what we found binds people together - cinema, cricket and national events like the Republic Day Parade. They want a story that makes them shed a tear. They are patriotic, people at home rise up as the Indian tricolor is unfurled atop the Red Fort. And when an India-Pakistan cricket match reaches its last over that will decide victory or defeat, impressions and pulses shoot up simultaneously and rapidly.

This year, the sixty-seventh Republic Day parade was a huge hit. Aired across over 40 channels, it garnered an average of 15,500 thousand impressions! This, despite telecasting in a non-prime time (9-12 a.m.) band. It is even more unusual given that this was a national holiday and people usually sleep in or skip town for short breaks. The numbers are massive; comparable, if not better, than many blockbuster movies airing on TV. So definitely this is an event which unifies the country.

Now, take a look at Bollywood. Patriotism in movies can be tricky to pin down though we have taken a few samples that are cross-border storylines which have been commercial hits as well. One is Bajrangi Bhaijaan, with Salman Khan, which saw a record breaking rating of 26,581,000 impressions at an all India level. Another, Gadar-Ek Prem Katha, with Sunny Deol, saw the highest rating of 5,236,000 impressions, superb performance for a movie released 15 years ago.

We all know that when it comes to sports, especially India vs Pakistan matches, the nation's involvement is impossible to measure. It is not just cricket we are talking about; the fanaticism extends to hockey as well. The Sultan Azlan Shah Cup this year, which was the 25th edition of the tournament, the match between India and Pakistan saw a rating of 426,000 impressions, becoming the highest rated hockey match in 2016 so far. Compare this to the India vs Malaysia match (272,000 impressions) or India vs Canada (172,000 impressions). Even the final match between India and Australia saw 180,000 impressions.

Cricket, of course is a no-brainer. And when the schedule says, India vs Pakistan, we get a wholly different flavour in the mix. Take the India vs Pakistan match during the Asia Cup on February 27, which garnered 61,241,000 impressions, a record at that time. Just a month down, the T20 World Cup India vs Pakistan match, garnered 83,410,000 impressions - a new record!

Apart from these, there are scores of events, which cause the same swell in pride. An Olympic medal won by an Indian or a UNESCO world heritage tag conferred on one of our architectural wonders. But all else pales when compared to cricket and patriotism. This is the new anthem that binds India together the most. Data does not lie after all.

Partho Dasgupta
CEO, Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC)