What I read, listen to and watch

In the first of three features on media consumption habits, Campaign India asks professionals under 30 to tell us what they read, watch and listen to — and why.  And yes, some of them do read Reader’s Digest.

Bayiravi Mani, senior manager, Interactive Avenues

Age: 26

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: On an average, I spend about one and a half hours in a day watching STAR World, Zee Café, Discovery Travel & Living and NDTV Good Times, 8 pm onwards.

Print: I spend about 20 - 25 minutes on print everyday, reading the headlines in The Times of India and the puzzles at about 6.30 am

Digital: I spend about 5 hours daily on Google, Gmail, Facebook and Twitter.

Radio: I tune into the radio for 1.5 hours  a day on an average, but on no particular channel as such. 

Favourite TV channels and why?

I enjoy watching soaps and travel shows. Hence, I catch up on STAR World, Zee Café, DiscoveryTravel & Living and NDTV Good Times 

Your favourite newspapers and why?

I love reading The Hindu because the quality of its articles and journalists is far better than the newspapers I have read.

Must read magazines and why?

None

Must visit websites and why?

Google, needed for everything throughout the day. I also use Facebook and Twitter to connect with friends.

Favourite blogs and why?

I don’t blog myself, but I do read friends’ blogs.

Any preferred radio station?

I like this one nonsense segment on Radio Mirchi  called Sud’s jokes, although don’t follow it regularly.

Jayanarayanan K, associate creative director, Happy

Age: 29

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I spend three hours a day on an average on channels like ESPN, STAR Sports, Ten Sports, World Movies, NDTV Imagine, NDTV 24x7 and CNN IBN for one hour in the morning and two hours in the night.

Print: I read The Times of India  for 45 minutes every morning.

Digital: I spend most of my time on digital. I’m online for almost 24 hours on Gmail, Gtalk, Facebook, espnstar.com and Manutd.com

Radio: I rarely tune into the radio nowadays since I don’t have FM on my phone. But if at all I do get the time to listen, I listen to Radio One because I like RJ Prithvi. 

Favourite TV channels and why?

My favorite channels are ESPN, STAR Sports, Ten Sports, World Movies, NDTV Imagine because I am a football freak and I love to watch movies.

Your favourite newspapers and why?

Has to be The Times Of India because I’m so used to it. I can’t read anything other than that.

Must read magazines and why?

I read whatever magazines I get because I’m very curious to know what the world does in every industry or field

Must visit websites and why?

I visit www.campaignindia.in to get all the news from the ad industry.

Favourite blogs and why?

There are quite a few. Some of them are: http://happycreative.wordpress.com/, http://donraja.wordpress.com/, http://assortedcookies.blogspot.com/, http://www.wishicudrite.blogspot.com. These blogs are very well written and I wish I could write like that!! 

Any preferred radio station?

I love Radio One because it’s a really fun station. 

Aditi Guha, Manager-Research, MTV and Vh1

Age: 29

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I spend around one or two hours on TV; about ½ hr in the morning on flipping between news channels and music channels and about 1.5 hours on varied programmes / movies post 9:30 pm. On weekends the time spend is more, as and when there is something interesting to watch.

Print: The morning is newspaper time. I spend about a half hour reading the newspaper while having breakfast. Magazines are more bedtime companions; I read an article or two before sleeping.

Digital: As soon as I get to work in the mornings its time for exchange4media.com/ indiantelevision.com. I spend about five to ten minutes in the afternoons on Facebook, Gmail and other sites as and when required.

Radio: I tune in while driving to work mainly between 8:30-10:00 am and while driving back at about  7:00 pm onwards – about an hour both ways.

Favourite TV channels and why?

I’d say MTV and VH1 – I work with them! Also, the rest would be more in terms of shows than channels: Li’l Champs on Zee TV, 10 ka Dum and Entertainment ke liye on Sony, Balika Vadhu and India’s Got Talent on Colors, Friends and also any good movie / awards function being telecast. With sports, I watch more of tennis and football.

Favourite newspapers and why?

The Times of India and Mint are my favourites. The Times of India is like a staple, have grown up reading it, so it’s more by habit than design. As far as Mint is concerned, its simplified understanding Economics for me. Especially love their ‘Mint Lounge’ on Saturday.

Must read magazines and why?

Campaign India and Pitch because they’re work related and to keep in touch with what’s happening in the entertainment and media industry. For personal reading, I read People, Reader’s Digest and Vogue magazine for trends

Must visit websites and why?

Exchange4media.com, indiantelevision.com, India-Forums.com, Youth-trends.com when it’s work-related. For personal stuff, it’s Facebook, Gmail, Yahoo! to keep in touch with friends

Favourite blogs and why?

I read Youth-marketing-blog.com, youthcurry.blogspot.com for work-related information. I read a blog by Joe Pinto, one of my professors sangatizuzay.blogspot.com because it’s an interesting read. 

Any preferred radio station?

Radio One in the mornings – unfortunately Jaggu & Tarana are no longer on the show. In the evenings it’s Mantra – just because of his more bearable jocktalk than the others. For late nights, it’s Malini- for international tracks and Anmol for Purani Jeans.

Tharaq Andrews, associate director, Nirvana Films

Age: 29

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I spend around two hours watching channels like BBC World, STAR Sports and HBO, mostly 
after 9 pm.

Print: I read The Hindu every morning. I also read Stuff and Time magazines during various parts of the day, for around two hours approximately.

Digital: I use the Internet every day from about 11am to 6pm. I mostly surf advertising film sites. Research and concept building.

Radio: I tune into Radio 91.9 FM for an hour everyday, from 10 pm to 11 pm. 

Favourite TV channels and why?

My favourite TV channels would be BBC World and STAR Sports since world news and sports are of foremost importance to me. The rest really don’t matter.

Favourite newspapers and why?

The Hindu would be my favourite newspaper, as its content and writing quality are better than most of the others.

Must read magazines and why?

Time magazine would have to be my favourite magazine since it deals with global content, coupled with its very articulate writing style.

Must visit websites and why?

For me, these would have to be the sites specific to my interest: itv-f1.com,creativity online, shots.net. They correlate to my career. I also surf some advertising and sports websites. 

Favourite blogs and and why?

I’m not much of a blogger myself as I really don’t have get the time because of incessant travel and busy work schedule.

Any preferred radio station?

This would be 91.9 FM as I purely enjoy the English channels.

Devaki Marks, RJ, Radio One FM 94.3

Age: 27

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: On an average, I spend 30 minutes on news channels such as Times Now and NDTV 24X7 and music channels such MTV and 9X

Print: I spend around five hours from 6 am to 11 am on print, reading MiD DAY, Hindustan Times, DNA, Mumbai Mirror, Economic Times, The Times of India and The Indian Express.

Digital: I don’t spend much time on the digital medium as such. I change my caller tune once a month, otherwise my cell phone for me is simply a device to call, SMS and e-mail. I’m not very much into gaming, etc.

Radio: I use the radio from 7 pm onwards in the evening. Channels I listen to are  Radio One, Red FM, Radio Mirchi, Big FM, Fever, FM Rainbow and Radio City 

Favourite TV channels and why?

Times Now is my most preferred channel, because  of their broadcast ethics. They do not hype issues for pure sensational reasons. Their journalists seem genuinely angry against the wrong in the system.

Favourite newspapers and why?

None. I do read newspapers to update myself but I think their priority is in competing with each other instead of spreading awareness.

Favourite magazines and why?

I catch up on Outlook because their articles are great.

Must visit websites and why?

I have to visit Wikipedia twice a day, because I think it helps keep ignorance away.

Favourite blogs and why?

I make it a point to catch up on Amitabh Bachchan’s blog. I salute the man for taking out the time to do this regularly.

Any preferred radio station? 

I like Radio One, because it has the maximum music, stories about music, a chance to win cash and uninterrupted music with less talk.
 

Sonia Huria, manager – communications, Colors

Age: 28

Average time spent in a day on:

TV:  I spend an average of three hours in the late evenings starting from 9 pm and lasting till 12 am.

Print: I wake up with my morning dose of print newspapers, spending an average of two hours daily browsing through English general interest newspapers and business dailies.

Digital: I use the Internet in the mornings and evenings 9:30 am and 7 pm to surf trade and industry sites for an average time of about half an hour. For international publication sites, I spend an average would be half an hour or so. I use Facebook and Twitter for an average time of around 15 minutes twice in the day at 11 am and 5 pm.

Radio: I listen to radio only during driving, for an average time of 15 - 20 minutes daily. 

Favourite TV channels and why?

I watch Colors for its differentiated and meaningful entertainment. I also watch HBO for its blockbuster movie library and CNBC because no one covers business like them.

Your favourite newspapers?

I read the Mumbai Mirror because I think it has the best coverage for city specific news, Hindustan Times for its great columnists and DNA After Hours for entertainment and quality reporting on lifestyle sections 

Must read magazines and why?

I pick up Vogue, Marie Claire and Femina. They’re the best for fashion advice and helps me be updated on the ‘it’ thing of the season

Must visit websites and why?

I have to visit news channel websites and general websites for India specific news, international news channel websites like news.bbc.co.uk for international happenings and media and trade websites like campaignindia.in, Indiantelevision.com, exchange4media.com and afaqs.com to keep abreast of all the latest happenings in the media and trade industries. Lastly, I surf Facebook and Twitter.com for networking and connecting with lost old pals  

Favourite blogs and why?

I visit the popular media blog Watblog.com, Perezhilton.com which is a great international paparazzi blog and Amitabh Bachchan’s blog on Biggadda.com since he is my favourite actor.

Any preferred radio station?

Fever 104 FM plays the best English and Hindi music

Vishal Sampat, research executive, Millward Brown

Age: 26

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I don’t have a cable connection. My family has made a choice to live with only the free-to-air channels. It has pre-poned bed-time by an hour. To be specific, it is only NDTV Imagine on weeknights and some movie channels on weekends. I surf through news channels – Times Now,  and IBN7 now and then.

Print: DNA After Hrs in the loo. Sometimes, I take DNA Money for the commute. I browse through Mumbai Mirror and The Times of India in office. Pick up a business magazine once in a while. Tried the new magazine Open and liked it very much.

Digital: Gmail – I check it at least three to five times a day (whether from work or phone); Facebook – thrice a day (each visit not more than five to ten minutes, depending on how busy I am); Orkut – once in two days to check scraps; Tagg.in – five to six times a day; Campaign India and afaqs! (time spent depends on what’s there to read); YouTube – twice a week (roughly half an hour on each visit); Rediff.com and Ibnlive – when I want to look-up for news (at least 10-15 minutes, if I visit either)

Radio: No radio on my phone, hence, it’s not a daily habit.

Favourite TV channels and why?

Movie channels – WB, HBO, UTV World Movies; News – CNN IBN, IBN Lokmat, Aaj Tak; Others – Discovery, NGC, Discovery Travel & Living, Zee Café (but I don’t watch them as often as I’d like to). 

Favourite newspapers and why?

Sunday Times of India – for the page ‘All The Matters’ (Swaminomics is a must-read!); Sunday MiD-DAY – for variety in content

Must read magazines and why?

Open – really good content and stories; MAD – but they don’t get them in India anymore! Campaign India – to know what’s happening in the industry; The Brand Reporter – they have some really detailed cover stories sometimes; The Economist – for the stand it takes and simplicity and brilliance of language.

Must visit websites and why?

Gmail – to check email?; Facebook – to know what’s up with people and to reconnect with lost contacts [frankly, I don’t know why!]; Millward Brown and WPP intranet websites – for gyaan on advertising and research; Campaign India – for perspectives and key pointers on industry that matter; afaqs – for archives, detailed developments on industry; Flickr – to realize how much more photography I need to practice; LinkedIn – it got me my current job, so I know it works; The Economist.com. 

Favourite blogs and why?

http://undergroundwriters.blogspot.com/ 

Any preferred radio station?

I liked ‘Go 92.5’ (now Radio One) back then. Don’t have any preferences now.

Natasha Amir, senior manager, LINOpinion

Age: 26 

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I watch about one or two  hours of TV normally. I watch Zee Café, STAR World and Discovery Travel and Living

Print: I spend about one hour reading The Times Of India / Hindustan Times  / DNA / MiD DAY everyday

Digital: On a average, I spend about half an hour per day on Facebook and Gmail.

Radio: None 

Favourite TV channels and why?

Zee Café, STAR World and Discovery Travel and Living are my favourites since they have the best shows. I find Discovery Travel and Living especially more informative than any others.

Favourite newspapers and why?

The Times of India , DNA and Hindustan Times, since they are the top three publications in town

Must read magazines and why?

I catch up on Vogue, People and Rolling Stone. They keep me up to date on everything I need to know!

Must visit websites and why?

Facebook – it’s fun and keeps you in touch with all your friends

Favourite blogs and why?

None

Any preferred radio station?

Fever 104 FM, because they play good English music.

Amaresh Godbole, group brand director- account management, Bates141

Age: 26

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I watch VH1 in the morning for 15-20 minutes before leaving for work and for about 30 – 45 minutes at night before sleeping. Apart from that, I watch any major sporting event live, like cricket, F1, tennis etc. on whatever channel it is telecast on. Sometimes over the weekend, I spend two to three hours watching TV if a good movie is playing on HBO or STAR Movies, or one hour if Nat Geo, Discovery are covering something interesting.

Print: I spend about 30 minutes every morning on The Times of India and The Economic Times

Digital: I’m logged into Facebook and Gmail throughout the day, however, my activity on these sites is subject to the day’s schedule. On an average, I spend about one hour a day on them. Besides that, I tend to quickly browse through advertising sites such as Campaign India and afaqs for about 10 minutes. There’s always Google for all search requirements and YouTube when people share interesting links. I also use some sites for research, such as Scribd, Slideshare, brandchannel etc.

Radio: I do not listen to radio at all since I don’t like the programming. I used to listen to Go 92.5 for half an hour on the way to work before they turned into Radio One.

Favourite TV channels and why?

I love VH1 purely for the music and not their reality shows, STAR World for its Sitcoms and English movie channels like HBO and STAR Movies, completely subject to the movie that’s airing. Lastly, it’s Discovery, Nat Geo and Fox History for tech and historical documentaries.

Favourite newspapers and why?

I read The Times of India for its good packaging and also since it has become a habit over the years. I also read the Economic Times for its content. I work on a financial category and hence need to be up to speed on the latest developments in the world of finance.

Must read magazines and why?

I read Outlook and India Today when I feel out of touch with current affairs and Maxim for a quick overview of guy stuff, such as movies, games, gizmos, books, alcohol, humour and of course the hot cover girls. Besides that I also pick up auto magazines such as Autocar India, Overdrive and Auto India, if they are covering a launch I am excited about.

Must visit websites and why?

I access Facebook to keep in touch with friends who are not around and Gmail for all personal email activity and exchanging large file sizes. In addition, I access StumbleUpon, for random sites of personal interest, LinkedIn for professional networking and YouTube for entertaining videos and music.

Favourite blogs and why?

I don’t follow any blogs.

Any preferred radio station?

I don’t listen to local radio. Some of the internet stations are interesting, but I prefer to just run my own playlists.

Karthik Narayan, account executive, Saints & Warriors

Age: 22

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I watch TV for about two to three hours a day, mostly in the night after I get back from work. So I switch it on at about 9ish till 12ish in the night. The channels that I watch are Vh1, STAR world, Zee Café, Nat Geo, Channel V and sometimes I sneak a peak at MTV. I also regularly surf the sport channels.

Print: I don’t spend much time on print; only whatever comes in the newspaper. So I spend about half an hour a day on print in the morning.

Digital: I spend a lot of time on the Internet. So digital is easily the medium I’m most exposed to. Pretty much throughout working hours, I’m on the Internet.

Radio: I don’t listen to the radio at all. The only time I do listen to the radio is if it’s on in a taxi or a friends car. Even then, I’m just barely paying attention.

Favourite TV channels and why?

My favourite TV channels are Vh1, Channel V, STAR World, Zee Café, HBO, STAR Movies, WB, Nat Geo, Fox History, World Movies , STAR Sports, ESPN and STAR Cricket. I like these channels because they air stuff that I like watching.

Favourite newspapers and why?

My favourite newspapers are The Times of India, Mumbai Mirror and everything that comes along with it, simply because it’s widely circulated  I don’t have to try too much to get my hands on it.

Must read magazines and why?

Magazines that I make sure to catch up on are Rave and Rolling Stone.

Must visit websites and why?

Must visit sites are NME.com, Answers.com, Worldnewstracker, Pitchforkmedia, Bleachexile for their Manga Archives, Blender, Sputnikmusic and pretty much anything that I happen to stumble upon.

Favourite blogs and why?

My favourite blogs are all blogs maintained by bands and artists that I listen to. My blogging goes to the extent of keeping up with what my favourite bands are doing, where they are touring and when they are releasing new material.

Any preferred radio station?

Like I said earlier, I don’t really listen to the radio much, but if I did, I’d quite like Worldspace, again only because of the music.

Karan Amin, creative partner, Rediffuson Y&R

Age: 28

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: I hardly watch any TV through the day. It’s mostly at night and late in the evening. The channels I primarily watch are sports channels. On weekends if I have nothing to do then maybe I’ll watch a movie on TV. I don’t watch sitcoms and my average time on TV would be less than two hours a day.

Print: I only read the newspaper when I’m in the loo or when I wish to find a movie listing. However, as a habit, my Sunday is rather incomplete without the Sunday MiD DAY.

Digital: I’m online throughout my day. I spend close to half my day online. I continuously shift tabs on my browser. A few websites that I’m continuously on are Facebook, YouTube, StumbleUpon and Del.icio.us, and I’ve just started using Twitter.

Radio: If I listen to radio it’s only online radio. Or if I’m in a taxi.

Favourite TV channels and why?

Like I mentioned above, sport channels are what can keep me glued to a TV screen. My favourite ones would be all of them, STAR Cricket, STAR Sports, ESPN, Ten Sports and off late, I have been watching a lot of Zee Sports as they telecast the World Poker Tour!

Favourite newspapers and why?

My favourite newspaper would be the Sunday MiD DAY. I read it back to front. It’s the only day I wake up late on and the Sunday MiD DAY kind of has like a summation of things that happened in the week as well as a quick brief of what to expect in the week ahead. It’s also the only paper in which I read Movie reviews of just released flicks.

Must read magazines and why?

As music has always been an inspiration for my thinking, I read the Rolling Stone. A few other magazines that I read are: Esquire and Wired. 

Must visit websites and why?

I visit StumbleUpon and Del.icio.us. Get a Twitter account – Follow the world and watch the world follow you. Blip.fm and Theinspirationroom.com are the other sites I access most regularly.

Favourite blogs and why?

NA 

Any preferred radio station? Why?

Don’t listen to Indian radio. Too much Hindi music.

Imran Khatri, senior executive media, Lodestar Universal

Age: 27

Average time spent in a day on:

TV: Most of my time is spent at work and  thankfully, we are equipped with TV in our office. During day time we have news or sports playing on TV (India matches particularly) and that catches my eye. At home, at late night or on weekends I indulge in watching English movies, news and music channels. On an average it would sum up to two or three hours a day.

Print: The only time that I spend on newspapers is in the morning, which is more of a traditional habit. For years now I have been receiving The Times of India and in addition to that, lately Hindustan Times at home. However on weekdays, it is not more than an hour that I can spend on reading newspapers / magazines

Digital: 95% of my work time is at the computer and I am online during this time. I log on the net driven by official or personal reasons. Most frequently I visit search engines (my key to global knowledge) or community sites (my key to be connected) and industry news sites. All in all, my contribution to the digital frame is close to two hours in a day.

Radio: Radio is to bring pleasantness when on roads either to work or otherwise. It helps me ease up a bit while I am struggling for my space on the city roads. I tune in in the morning while going to work and in the evening while returning from work; an hour and half maximum per day. My preference is determined by the music that the stations play.

Favourite TV channels and why?

I love watching movies and I don’t miss even one, to purely to entertain myself. The best part is you get eight to 10 movies channels today and I am sure at any point of time you can get a good movie to watch. I also make it a point to update myself with the latest news (Sometimes just to find what new branding innovations are being done on news channels). I watch sports channels when its cricket, tennis or soccer and its fun when you watch in groups.

Favourite newspapers and why?

Our office gets all of the magazines and newspapers. Hence I have an access to nearly every newspaper and magazine. No particular preference. Front page drives me to indulge in any particular newspaper / magazine.

Must read magazines and why?

I love cars, bikes and gadgets and thus, any magazine catering to these automatically draws my attention. 

Must visit websites and why?

I generally visit search engines as they are a demand work. Others would include community sites to stay connected with people and bank sites to access my account.

Any preferred radio station?

Like I mentioned earlier, there is no particular preference when it comes to radio; it is the music that drives me to a station. I keep switching channels so I do not have any preferred station