Excerpts from an
interview with the media startup's founder:
1. Please describe your professional journey so far.
A: My father worked in para-military forces so we travelled a
lot. I hail from Belgaum but was born in Hyderabad and grew up in northern
parts of India. When I was in Jharkhand and Bihar, I saw hardships that masses
faced there. Driven to bring about a change, I aspired to become a civil
servant but couldn't clear the exam. Later, I contested panchayat election in
Kardigudi (Belgaum) and failed here too. Then I started an NGO, which did not
go well either. After this, I joined para-military forces but my heart didn't
lie there. This way, I spent four years trying to figure my career out.
Finally, a stint with a local news channel in Belgaum helped me
realise my passion for journalism. Within two months of joining
In-Belgaum, I was sold about the potential of this profession. After working
here for a couple of years, I went to Bangalore to study tricks of the trade.
After studying at Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media, I got a job
with The New Indian Express, Chennai. There, I learnt how to use the Right To Information
(RTI) Act to dig up information and unearth corruption. Because of my good
work, I got placed in DNA, Mumbai, and after working for 2 ½ years, I joined
Economic Times in Delhi. We were always taught to focus on big cities for big
stories but my thought process was different. I always felt that small towns
had more potential than we think as reporters in these places do field
reporting. Hence I wanted to create a platform for all such reporters and
that’s how 101Reporters happened.
2. How many states and districts does your organisation cover?
A: We have reporters in all the states and in 350 districts so
far. We need to have a presencen another 350 districts. Every day, at least
two-three reporters sign up on our platform.
3. What skills do you look for in a reporter?
A: We look at how interested and passionate the reporters are to
work on a story idea. This is what is essential for a reporter. Other skills
can be taught.
4. What do you think is the most important job of a journalist
and the press in general?
They must report only the facts and nothing else. There is no
need to mend or manipulate the news. Facts and stories in their actual form
itself are so powerful that they don’t need any manipulation. As a journalist,
we must work towards providing unbiased and unexaggerated stories to the
public.
5. What is your opinion on journalists promoting fake news and
paid news, which has affected credibility of the profession?
These days, journalists refrain from doing field reporting; they
prefer to gather information from their desk. This can never substitute
grassroots reporting. Also, reporters face a lot of pressure from their
employer to break stories. So for the sake of commercial purpose, they lose
their authenticity.
6. Share some examples of 101Reporters’ stories that had an
impact.
I spent eight days in a Naxal-affected area in Maharashtra. It
was an eye-opening experience for me as I realised that the facts that we know
are so different than the ground reality. While I couldn’t do any story
on it, it had a huge impact on me.
The story that stands out the most to me is about the old man in
Fatehabad who saved a railway station. In 1996, Indian Railway decided to
discontinue railway service in his village Gajuwala. As a railway station needs
to sell at least 30 tickets a day to remain operative, he’s been buying all the
unsold tickets every day since 1996 with his hard-earned money.
7. What are some common myths of journalism?
> Stories only from big cities are important and read widely.
> We underestimate the power and knowledge of grassroots
reporters.
> All the big stories are broken by national media
houses.
8. How is 101Reporters’ election coverage different from
mainstream media’s?
The mainstream media shows the ideal, big picture of the
election whereas we focus on grassroot-level stories from small towns, which
are unheard of and powerful.
9. If not a journalist, what would you be?
I am very much interested in investigation so I think I would
have made my career in the field of investigation.
10. What do you do in your leisure time to de-stress yourself?
Firstly, I switch off my phone and disengage from all the
technology. I like to spend my free time time playing tennis, cooking and
jogging.
11. How do you manage to strike that balance between two
challenging roles, that of a journalist and an entrepreneur?
I realised initially that one cannot build everything and do
everything by themselves. And I was able to get right people at the right time.
As soon as a new challenge comes up, I take it, fix it and delegate it so that
I am ready to face new challenges.
12. How many in-house team members do you have?
In house, 15 employees, of which five are from the technology
department and rest in the the editorial section.
13. What are your professional goals?
I want 101Reporters to be the biggest media company working at
the grassroot level. I want it to be an independent company.
14. To what do you attribute your success?
My family has always been supportive. They have never interfered
or discouraged me. I attribute my success to not only my family but also to all
those from whom I learnt life lessons. I think quick learning from observing
people is very important.
15. If you had one piece of advice for someone just starting
out, what would it be?
Just begin and jump into it. Don’t spend too much time in
planning and be very keen on learning from past mistakes and mistakes of
others. Love the problem and not the solution. Don’t stick to the solution that
you come up with or try to make it work just because you are the one who
suggested it. And you should not be scared of failing, it is through failure
that one learns to succeed.