Barkha Dutt is an Indian
television journalist
Broadcast journalism is the field of news and journals which are broadcast by electronic methods instead of the older methods, such as printed newspapers and posters. It works on radio (via air, cable, and Internet), television (via air, cable, ...
and author. She has been a reporter and news anchor at
NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
and
Tiranga TV. She currently runs her own digital news channel called 'MoJo Story'.
She is also an opinion columnist with ''
The Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyal ...
'' and ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''.
Dutt was part of
NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
's team for 21 years, until she left the channel in January 2017. She emerged as a prominent figure after her frontline war reporting on the
Kargil Conflict
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referred ...
between India and Pakistan in 1999.
Dutt has won many national and international awards, including the
Padma Shri
Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
, India's fourth highest civilian honour.
Dutt was one of the journalists taped in the
Radia tapes controversy
The Radia tapes controversy relates to the telephonic conversations between Niira Radia, a political lobbyist in India, the (then) Indian telecom minister A. Raja, and senior journalists, politicians, and corporate houses, taped by the Indian In ...
.
At NDTV, Dutt was the host of the weekly, award-winning talk-show ''We The People'' as well as the daily prime-time show ''The Buck Stops Here.''
Personal life
She was born in New Delhi to S. P. Dutt, an
Air India
Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...
official, and
Prabha Dutt, who was a well-known journalist with the ''
Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Ly ...
''. Dutt credits her journalistic skills to her mother, a pioneer among women journalists in India.
Her younger sister,
Bahar Dutt
Bahar Dutt (born 20 June 1975) is an Indian television journalist and environmental editor and columnist for CNN-IBN.
Early life
Bahar Dutt is the daughter of SP Dutt and Prabha Dutt, who was among India's first female journalists and influen ...
, is also a television journalist working for
CNN IBN.
She describes herself as
agnostic who rejects religion. She supports the concept of a
Uniform Civil Code
The Uniform Civil Code (Hindi: समान नागरिक संहिता, IAST: Samāna Nāgarika Saṃhitā) is a proposal in India to formulate and implement personal laws of citizens which apply on all citizens equally regardless ...
. Barkha Dutt has expressed her opinion against Triple Talaq and Muslim patriarchy. Her father died of coronavirus in April 2021.
Career
Dutt graduated from
St. Stephen's College, Delhi with a degree in
English literature. She received a Master's in
Mass Communications
Mass communication is the process of imparting and exchanging information through mass media to large segments of the population. It is usually understood for relating to various forms of media, as its technologies are used for the dissemination o ...
from
Jamia Millia Islamia Mass Communication Research Center, New Delhi. She started her journalism career with
NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
and later rose to head the English news wing of the organisation. She also obtained a master's degree in journalism from
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
's
Graduate School of Journalism, New York assisted by an Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation scholarship. Her reporting of the
Kargil conflict
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referred ...
in 1999, including an interview with Captain
Vikram Batra, brought her to prominence in India.
[Independence Day Thoughts](_blank)
RaghuKrishnan, ''The Economic Times
''The Economic Times'' is an Indian English-language business-focused daily newspaper. It is owned by The Times Group. ''The Economic Times'' began publication in 1961. As of 2012, it is the world's second-most widely read English-language bu ...
'', 24 August 2003. Retrieved 22 January 2012 She has since covered conflicts in
Kashmir,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
.
While covering the events of
2002 Gujarat violence
The 2002 Gujarat riots, also known as the 2002 Gujarat violence, was a three-day period of inter-communal violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The burning of a train in Godhra on 27 February 2002, which caused the deaths of 58 Hin ...
, Dutt identified attackers and victims of a riot as "Hindus" and "Muslims" on television, flouting the guidelines of the
Press Council of India
The Press Council of India is a statutory, adjudicating organisation in India formed in 1966 by its parliament. It is the self-regulatory watchdog of the press, for the press and by the press, that operates under the Press Council Act of 1978., ...
.
She has received negative reception for some of her work. For
2008 Mumbai attacks, she was blamed for sensationalising the events, putting lives at risk and causing deaths by identifying on live television where the hotel guests might be located.
Britta Ohm wrote in 2011 that Dutt is criticised for "secular shrillness", betraying the cause of
Kashmiri Pandit
The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are a group of Kashmiri Hindus and a part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community of India. They belong to the Pancha Gauda Brahmin group from the Kashmir Valley, a mountainous region l ...
s, over-the-top nationalism in the reporting of
Kargil conflict
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referred ...
, and for soft-pedalling
Hindutva
Hindutva () is the predominant form of Hindu nationalism in India. The term was formulated as a political ideology by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1923. It is used by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the ...
.
Dutt, who was group editor of NDTV, moved to the role of consulting editor in February 2015 and after 21 years, left in January 2017. She has also written columns for international newspapers, such as ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''.
During the
COVID-19 Migration Crisis, her extensive on-road coverage documented the difficulties faced by migrant workers all over North India.
Controversies
2010 Radia tapes controversy
In November 2010, the magazines
OPEN
Open or OPEN may refer to:
Music
* Open (band), Australian pop/rock band
* The Open (band), English indie rock band
* ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969
* ''Open'' (Gotthard album), 1999
* ''Open'' (Cowboy Junkies album), 2001
* ''Open'' ( ...
and
Outlook
Outlook or The Outlook may refer to:
Computing
* Microsoft Outlook, an e-mail and personal information management software product from Microsoft
* Outlook.com, a web mail service from Microsoft
* Outlook on the web, a suite of web applications ...
published transcripts of some telephone conversations between
Nira Radia
Niira Radia is a former corporate lobbyist whose taped telephone conversations implicated her influence in the allocation of key ministries in the Government of India in 2009. Discussion of the tapes resulted in the "Radia tapes controversy", wh ...
with some senior journalists, politicians, and corporates.
The Central Bureau of Investigation announced that they had 5,851 recordings of phone conversations by Radia, some of which outline Radia's attempts to broker deals in relation to the 2G spectrum sale. Dutt's conversations with Radia were reported and Dutt became the face of the tapes scandal.
On 30 November 2010, Dutt defended herself before a jury of her peers in a televised program on NDTV.
Dutt apologised over the issue saying it was "an error of judgement" on her part, but said that she had not indulged in any wrongdoing.
Magazine editor
Hartosh Singh Bal said that "proximity of NDTV and Tehelka are concerned, their closeness to the Congress is no secret. Dutt’s role in the Radia Tapes did not seem to point to an individual act but an institutional malaise."
Tiranga TV controversy
Barkha Dutt served as an anchor and consulting editor at
Tiranga TV from 26 January to 13 July 2019. Her show was titled ''Democracy Live''. In July 2019, reports emerged that she was sacked by the Tiranga TV owners
Kapil Sibal
Kapil Sibal (born 8 August 1948) is an Indian lawyer and politician. Sibal has represented several high-profile cases in the Supreme Court of India and is widely regarded as one of the famous lawyers of India. He is a Member of Parliament, in Ra ...
and his wife Promila Sibal on 'disciplinary grounds'.
Dutt disputed this version of events by Sibals, claimed she was sacked for speaking out in internal emails against the treatment of other staffers, and vowed to sue the channel owners in court.
Awards and honours
Dutt's Sunday talk show has won the most awards out of any show on Indian television, winning the Indian Television Academy award for Best Talk Show five years in a row. In 2012, the
Association for International Broadcasting The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) is a not-for-profit, non-governmental trade association that represents international television and radio broadcasters and online broadcasters, founded in 1993. It is governed by an Executive Com ...
awarded Dutt the title of "TV Personality of the year" with the following citation: "a reporter of considerable stretch and depth, still passionate and fearless in bringing the issues closer to her viewers." Dutt was the recipient of the C H Mohammed Koya National Journalism Award in 2009. In 2008, Dutt received the Indian News Broadcasting Award for the Most Intelligent News Show Host. Dutt received the
Commonwealth Broadcasting Association
The Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA) is a representative body for public service broadcasters throughout the Commonwealth, founded in 1945. A not-for-profit non-government organisation, the CBA is funded by subscriptions from 102 me ...
award for Journalist of the Year, 2007. She was awarded "Best TV News Anchor (English) for her programme "We the people" at the first Indian News Television Awards in 2007.
In 2008, the Indian government headed by
Manmohan Singh awarded Dutt the
Padma Shri
Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
, a civilian honour, for her coverage of the
2004 tsunami
An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time ( UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Su ...
.
She has twice been named on the list of 100 "Global Leaders of Tomorrow" compiled by the World Economic Forum (2001, 2008). In 2005, she was among 50 Indians who were 35 or younger and listed for their achievements and impact on society.
In 2010, she was appointed as a member of India's
National Integration Council
The National Integration Council (NIC) is a group of senior politicians and public figures in India that looks for ways to address the problems of communalism, casteism and regionalism. Council members include cabinet ministers, entrepreneurs, ce ...
. She was named an Asia Society Fellow in 2006 and serves on the International Advisory Council of the Asia Society.
Dutt was awarded the
Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediapersons
The Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediaperson is an Indian journalism award named after Chameli Devi Jain, an Indian independence activist who became the first Jain woman to go to prison during India's independence struggle. The ...
in 2000.
In popular culture
As per movie reviewers and critics, Dutt has been a model for the portrayal of journalist characters in several
Hindi movies. Some of these are –
* In the 2004 movie ''
Lakshya'',
Preity Zinta
Preity G Zinta (pronounced ; born 31 January 1975) is an Indian actress and entrepreneur primarily known for her work in Hindi films. After graduating with degrees in English honours and criminal psychology, Zinta made her acting debut in '' ...
played a female journalist reporting on the
1999 Kargil Conflict
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referred ...
.
* In the 2006 Malayalam Movie
Keerthi Chakra
The Kirti Chakra is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, including posthumous awards. It is the ''p ...
, one of the journalist character was based on Dutt. The protagonist
Mohanlal
Mohanlal Viswanathan (born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal, is an Indian actor, film producer, playback singer, film distributor, and director who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically app ...
gets angry for taking pictures in a sensitive war area. In an earlier incident because of the flash photography by the journalist one of the soldiers was killed.
* In the 2008 movie
Firaaq
''Firaaq'' (English: ''Separation'') is a 2008 Hindi political thriller film set one month after the 2002 violence in Gujarat, India and looks at the aftermath in its effects on the lives of everyday people. It claims to be based on "a thousand ...
, a TV viewer is shown responding to Dutt's commentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots as "They
nglish speaking news reportersall tell lies ... where were they when the Hindus were being killed".
* In the 2010 satire ''
Peepli Live
''Peepli Live'' is a 2010 Indian satirical black comedy film that explores the topic of farmer suicides and the subsequent media and political response. It is written and directed by Anusha Rizvi in her directorial debut, and produced by Aami ...
'', the character of the news anchor was modelled on
Sagarika Ghose or Barkha Dutt, according to movie critic
Raja Sen
Raja Sen (born 10 November 1955) is an Indian film and television director and the winner of three National Film Awards from Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the father of actress Rimi Sen.
Career
Raja Sen first received recognition with ''S ...
.
Sen wrote that in the movie, the news anchor only cared about
TRPs
Tunable Resistive Pulse Sensing (TRPS) is a single-particle technique used to measure the size, concentration and zeta potential of particles as they pass through a size-tunable nanopore.
The technique adapts the principle of resistive pulse se ...
and "squealed inexplicably in English" even when her subject was Hindi-speaking central India.
* In the 2011 movie ''
No One Killed Jessica
''No One Killed Jessica'' is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language crime thriller film directed and written by Raj Kumar Gupta. It stars Vidya Balan and Rani Mukerji in lead roles, with Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub and Myra Karn in supporting roles. The fi ...
'',
Rani Mukerji played a news reporter who is first seen in the movie reporting on the
1999 Kargil Conflict
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referred ...
is portraying Dutt's character.
* In the 2014 movie ''
Singham Returns
''Singham Returns'' is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Rohit Shetty as the second installment of his Cop Universe. '',
Ashwini Kalsekar
Ashwini Kalsekar is an Indian actress who works predominantly in the Marathi and Hindi television and film industry.
She is known mostly for her collaboration with Hindi movies directors Sriram Raghavan, Rohit Shetty, and Ram Gopal Varma. S ...
played a TV journalist role inspired by Dutt.
Dutt was the model for the protagonist in Anand Kurian's novel ''The Peddler of Soaps''.
Publications
* Dutt co-authored the chapter "'Nothing new?': Women as Victims" in the 2002 book ''Gujarat: The Making of a Tragedy''.
* ''This Unquiet Land: Stories from India's Fault Lines'' (2016).
* ''To Hell and Back: Humans of Covid'' (2022)
References
External links
Barkha Dutt's official Twitter page''News Laundry'' Interview: Barkha Dutt on covering migrant crisis, the media economy, and falling out with promoters
Collected Articles at ''Hindustan Times''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dutt, Barkha
1971 births
Living people
Indian women television journalists
Indian television journalists
Indian women editors
Indian editors
Journalists from Delhi
Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education
Indian agnostics
St. Stephen's College, Delhi alumni
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni
Jamia Millia Islamia alumni
Indian broadcast news analysts
20th-century Indian women writers
20th-century Indian writers
21st-century Indian journalists
21st-century Indian women writers
Women writers from Delhi
Indian YouTubers
Female YouTubers