RJ Rohini pays a tribute to the late Ameen Sayani

RJ Rohini (right) remembers the radio icon Ameen Sayani, who passed away on Wednesday.

The late Ameen Sayani has been instrumental in shaping not just the way radio and broadcasting was perceived in India; he also left a huge impact on shaping the destinies and paths of the radio jockeys who followed in his footsteps. RJ Rohini Ramnathan posted a heartfelt tribute to the “OG” thanking him for giving radio presenters the “naam, izzat and pehchaan” they get today.

“Earlier, they were mere announcers. What he did was to give the community and fraternity a chance to be seen for what we do. I think the work we do is very underrated and he was, perhaps, the first person who made all these things happen for radio presenters all across the country,” she says. Ramnathan has known the Sayani family for many years and is a friend of his son Rajil. “His son is constantly in touch with the entire radio fraternity. I think that’s an ethos that Ameen saab has left. He still cared about the media, and they were always giving us feedback,” she adds.

Although the great man of radio has said many a memorable thing, the one thing that stayed on with Ramnathan is when he said that he is not a genius. “The idea that a RJ is one of the listeners was one he maintained as an ethos. He said that I’m not special. ‘Main kuch zyada gyaani bhi nahi hoon. Main dil se baat karta hoon aur woh baat dil tak pahunchti hai’. (I am not very knowledgeable. I speak from my heart and that reaches people). I think that is the true gift of Ameen Sayani - this connect that exists between RJs and listeners,” she adds.

She met him a couple of years ago when he came for a screening of the movie Disco Dancer organised by Radio Nasha. More than anything, Ramnathan recalls his kindness. “He told me “Main aapko sunta hoon”. To hear Mr Ameen Sayani say that to you, what do you reply except ‘wow, thank you sir!’” Back in 2017, Ramnathan was preparing for her interview with Sayani but he fell quite ill that day and was taken to the hospital. “We were expecting this news to come to us in the last six-seven years but we were always hoping that he would stay on forever. He and his family have always been looking after us radio jockeys in a very special way,” she says.