MUMBAI: World Television Day is here and actors talk about the importance of TV in their lives.

Vijayendra Kumeria: It's true that there has been an impact on the television viewership in the last few years as a lot of people have shifted to the digital medium for entertainment on demand. But still, there is a big household viewership which is relying on their television for entertainment. The numbers, of course, will change further in the coming years but television will not be a forgotten medium of entertainment anytime soon. I have been fortunate enough that my family had a television set even before I was born but I still remember that it had a very few channels and used to work on an antenna and dish mechanism. When we got a new TV, it had around 100 channel option and we all used to say that it's such a waste as there max 15 channels that were broadcasting. But now, look at the scenario, we don’t even know how many channels exist. 

Delnaaz Irani: Television was and is and will be the most precious thing for people. Yes, the Internet is here and you can watch stuff on your mobile and laptop. So obviously technology is there and you add free to use technology as and when you need to. But, trust me, there are still many people who are still hooked on to television, the older generation is who I am talking about. If you ask my mom, we have kind of pestered her to have Netflix and other OTT platforms. She says I am very happy with television. There are a lot of people like my mother who are still hooked on to TV shows. If you give good content on TV, they are going to hook on to TV more. I think TV is a part and parcel of people’s lives and that's not going anywhere. I respect television as it’s my bread and butter and it’s not going to go anywhere. I can proudly say that I am a TV actor and it has given me everything. I can’t recall the day when the television set came home but I obviously remember that we were very small and it was a black and white dabba and we were very excited.

Saanand Verma: Television will never go away because, for family viewing, television is a must. Thanks to television, many people come together to watch it together. In today’s world, a family cannot sit together and watch web content but TV targets family audience and has stuff which we can see with the whole family. Our country is family-driven and so television is going to exist for many years to come. Now smart TVs have come into existence where people can watch content as per their choice. Television content will run forever because television is the strongest medium as compared to others. Our population is huge and the reach of the internet is still very less as compared to other countries and spreading internet in the whole country is next to impossible. We are not economically that strong. Television has its different place which no one can replace or break. My all-time favourite television show is Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain. I remember being very small when my father bought a television set. At that time Ye Jo Hai Zindagi, Humlog and then Ramayan used to get telecast. 

Aniruddh Dave: Till the time our country is stree pradhaan, till then Indian television will be seen in every house. The web has made its different place no doubt, entertainment is now in every hand. But the Indian television is there and its remote will always be in the hand of the women. I feel that. Jab tak suraj chand rahega, Indian television toh rahega. Graphs and units might change but people won’t stop watching TV. Television is also changing now and good content is coming with better and realistic stories. People should understand this change. Entertainment is a very fluctuating industry it all depends on the time. 

Manit Jorua: Firstly, I want to wish a very happy World Television Day to all the viewers around the globe. Secondly, I think, in my opinion, TV will never go out because I have seen instances where the commercial shop who sell televisions sets in any metro cities have many people from the villages standing outside and watching TV through the glass. This is the power of TV. I think the rural areas are far denser than any other urban or metro cities and, in villages, people still can’t afford TV sets. Television is a source of joy for them. The internet has taken over a majority of audiences but still many people are hooked on to TV. When it comes to TV, I think gradually makers are also realising that the internet is taking over especially in urban cities or metro cities and they are also improving their content. I am very happy that TV is also upping their game. When I was born, TV was already there at my home. I remember, when I was 5 years old, we used to watch Mahabharat and Aladdin once in a while and we used to see films. I come from a joint family and we all used to watch Kyuki Saas bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki and other shows. We were hooked on to TV. Lately, once I came to Bombay, TV was never a priority and so I never bought a TV with my hard-earned money. I bought a TV in 2010 and I realised that buying a TV brought me so much happiness. 

Subuhii Joshii: TV is TV, I know nowadays people use more of mobile and laptops but every night, I sleep with my television on. If I don’t watch my favourite serials then I connect to the internet and watch something else. But still, I watch everything on the TV. My all-time favourite TV show would be F.R.I.E.N.D.S. I think, not only for me but for a lot of other people, this would be it. I have seen this show about 8 times and still, whenever I am free, I watch this show, it’s a fun show. I was very young when a TV set came to my place. It was a surprise for me. When the TV came at home, I was so excited and still, I am excited to watch TV. 

Yesha Rughani: Technology has come and many things have changed but I think the charm and beauty of seeing something on television gives me peace. So, I think, for me, it still holds a lot of importance I have always been that girl who was too keen to watch television since childhood. I was a big TV fan during childhood. In my schedule, there used to be one special slot time for watching TV even during exams. I used to watch at least one hour of TV every day. I remember there was a TV in our living room. I remember there was a Navratri competition in which a small TV was the price, I won that and I was at the top of the world. My favourite childhood television memories are watching a lot of cartoons and games. I used to watch cartoons on Nickelodeon channel, art show Mad, I used to watch Circus, Sonpari, Shakalaka Boom Boom and Shararat. 

Rajit Dev: Very frankly, since the time I started living alone, I don’t have a television at home. It’s been 2 years. Everything happens on my iPad and my phone. This is also because there’s full access and information on the net. Oh! those were the days when very few people had the privilege of buying a television set at home. I still remember all my friends from the chawl dancing through the streets when my dad got a TV set at home. Then going to the roof to adjust the antenna was another favourite thing. I think I miss watching television especially sports, cartoon and good music channels. 

Nishant Singh Malkhani: It takes some amount of technical training to understand how to download an app and buy some subscription, search for the content you like and play it. A very very small percentage of people know how to do this. In our country, in every household, there is a television and there will be a television. I think television plays is an extremely important part of society. I think television is not going anywhere for a long period of time. I was six-years-old when we got a television set with very few channels. I remember watching Mahabharat on Sundays and Ramayan. Then came those Vikram Betal and Shaktiman.

Rohit Choudhary: The internet has its own advantages and disadvantages. We can easily go through the internet and carry a laptop and mobile easily, so it’s good. But yes, television is still the best because sitting and watching TV has a different kind of enjoyment associated with it. Now times have changed because earlier there was a lot more excitement for TV as the availability was less and now people are not excited anymore because there is plenty of options that they have. When TV was not there, we used to go to the neighbour’s house to watch movies and finally when the TV came to our place it was black and white. We were so happy. We used to take good care of our TV set. After the black and white era, colour TVs came into existence and people used to watch Mahabharat and Ramayan. Television is a medium to keep the family united and I don’t think the importance of television will ever go.