Melville de Mellow (also de Mello) (1913 - 1989) was an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

radio broadcaster with the

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. He is remembered for his high-quality reports and commentary on various events in

independent India Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

, the most notable of which was a seven-hour broadcast of Mahatma Gandhi's funeral in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. He was conferred 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 ...

by the

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in 1963 in recognition of his services to broadcasting.

Family and education

De Mellow was educated at Bishop Cotton School, Shimla, and St George's College, Mussorie and served as a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the 5/2 Punjab Regiment before joining the All India Radio. Melville de Mellow was one of the ''pioneers,'' the first batch of cadets to graduate from the

Indian Military Academy The Indian Military Academy (IMA) is one of the oldest military academies in India, and trains officers for the Indian Army. Located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, it was established in 1932 following a recommendation by a military committee set up ...

. He was married to Coralie Emma de Mellow and his nephew Ian Tudor de Mellow is a recipient of the

Medal of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(OAM) for his services to aged welfare.

Broadcasting career

Melville de Mellow worked with the All India Radio from April 1950 to April 1971 and belonged to the ‘staff artistes’ category. Following his superannuation he was retained as Producer (Emeritus) for another five years with AIR. De Mellow is remembered as an iconic broadcaster noted for his deep

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the ...

d commentary of various events in independent India. In 1948 he accompanied the cortège bearing Mahatma Gandhi's body from Birla House to the

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venue at

Raj Ghat Raj Ghat is a memorial dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi in Delhi, India. Originally it was the name of a historic ghat of Old Delhi (Shahjahanabad). Close to it, and east of Daryaganj was ''Raj Ghat Gate'' of the walled city, opening at ''Raj ...

giving a seven-hour-long commentary of the event from an All India Radio van. Melville de Mellow's moving commentary that day, articulating the nation's grief and homage as the cortege moved towards Raj Ghat, is remembered as one of the best instances of radio broadcasting in India. His commentary that day inspired veteran Hindi commentator

Jasdev Singh Jasdev Singh (1930/31 – 25 September 2018) was an Indian sports commentator. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1985 and Padma Bhushan in 2008. He died on 25 September 2018. He was also an official commentator on Independence Day, and Republic Day ...

, then a seventeen-year-old, to take up commentary as a profession. Singh has since been conferred with a Padma Shri and a

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

for his services to radio broadcasting. In 1952 Melville de Mellow was handpicked by the

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for broadcasting a running commentary on Queen Elizabeth’s coronation procession. He was also the commentator at India's Republic Day parade for several years and his commentary of

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hockey matches are remembered to this day. His reportage on the Bangladesh War and its subsequent

liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

by Indian forces were keenly awaited by listeners of the radio.

Books

Melville de Mellow is the author of several books on sports including ''The Story of the Olympics'', which describes the run up to the

1964 Olympics 1964 Olympics refers to both: *The 1964 Winter Olympics, which were held in Innsbruck, Austria *The 1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held fro ...

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, ''Remembered Glory'', ''The Olympics and their Heroes'', ''Reaching for Excellence'', ''The Glory and Decay of Indian Sports'' and ''Indigenous Games & Martial Arts of India''.

Awards and honours

Melville de Mellow was feted for his work throughout his career. These include the Commonwealth Scholarship (BBC), 1948, Czechoslovak Radio Documentary Prize, 1960, Padma Shri (1963), Prize Italia for Radio Documentary (1964) - which he won for 'Lali and the Lions of Gir', a featured programme on All India Radio, Chaman Lal Award (1971), Czechoslovak Peace Essay Prize (1972), Excellence Award (ICFEE), 1975, Commentary Award (1975), Education Ministry's Award for Best Book on Sports (1976), Long Service Award (1977), FTE Award for Excellence in Radio & TV and the Asiad Jyoti Award (1984).

References

External links

The Last Journey - Melville de Mellow

* ttp://sainiksamachar.nic.in/englisharchives/2009/jan15-09/h61.html A Visit To The Lahore Sector : India’s Response Against Pakistan – Melville de Mellow {{DEFAULTSORT:Mellow, Melville de Indian radio presenters 1913 births 1989 deaths Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Indian Military Academy alumni Bishop Cotton School Shimla alumni