Aggrojo turns the spotlight on the elderly

Pragna Laboni in the TV show Aggrojo

50 pm), which hit the small screen three months ago.

Aggrojo is a series on senior citizens. The show features two or three common people such as a rickshaw puller, vagabond, people from the old home and a celebrity. Among the celebrities featured on the show are Obaidul Haque (a senior journalist and ex-editor of the Bangladesh Observer), Professor Kabir Chowdhury, National Professor, Sudhin Das an exponent of Nazrul songs and Noorjahan Begum (editor of Begum magazine). "Aggrojo was the first to focus on senior citizens in a regular programme. The purpose is to create awareness, give the elderly a voice through the medium of television and a place in society," says Pragna.

The programme also offers viewers tips on handling old age-- ranging from celebrating birthdays of our elders, giving them a patient hearing, presenting them what they want--no matter how small--taking them on an outing and taking group pictures. Explaining the reasoning behind the tips, Pragna says, "In the present day we are busy with ourselves, children and jobs. In the bargain, the elders in the family are neglected. The important thing to recognise is that one day we will be in their shoes."

Aggrojo is not Dhaka-centric, rather it showcases the elderly people from all over Bangladesh. Currently the team is in Laxmipur, where they are shooting. Apparently, a man of all of 103 years will be presented on the show.

Pragna is pleased with the response to Aggrojo. As she says, the team has received mail from many parts of the world. Among those who have written in are a cousin from London and a family friend in Sweden. They were apparently touched by the programme, particularly one episode where an elderly couple is thrown out of their home and sent to an old people's home in Gazipur. Another memorable story is that of a once powerful police sub-inspector who is left to fend for himself in the Gazipur home for old people.

In addition to anchoring, Pragna also writes scripts for TV plays. The first such work is Cha and she has already done 13 scripts. Cha, based on the December 14, 1971 killing of intellectuals, was telecast in 1998. The play Cha is derived from a short story by well known academician- writer Mohammad Zafar Iqbal and in addition to being script writer, Pragna has also directed the play.

There is more to come. Though Pragna feels hamstrung occasionally by the inability to bring about radical change in the lives of the elderly, she hopes that Aggrojo will generate public opinion so that our elders can be assured of dignity and respect in their twilight years.