Farewell, Prateeka!

'Tummuchasal, Yemannasal!'

I got hooked to these two words from Prateeka, the RJ of the show Full2Bindaas on 93.5 Red FM, the radio show in Hyderabad, every evening. I have been listening to the show for about a year now. It used to play every evening from 6 to 7. She then also did a morning show and is currently doing the show from 5 to 8 in the evening.

Prateeka's shows are complete stress-busters. She is truly a bubbly young girl who can leave you in splits with her 'counters' and typical Telugu dialect of the region. I remember the days a few months back, when I was a little depressed. It just took a few minutes of her show to make me cheerful again.

And I wasn't the only one. Hundreds of listeners vouch for her ability to bring a smile to their faces. She would receive a barrage of text messages and calls from them day after day. People loved to respond to her 'topic of the day' which would be hilarious. She also had this knack of cooking up silly yet funny rhymes from people's names. Whenever it was someone's birthday, she would sing the birthday song on air!

Prateeka is moving to the US to do her Master's in Media Management and this Saturday will be her last show. Ever since this was announced by her in yesterday's show, the station has been flooded with calls from heartbroken listeners who cannot come to terms with the fact that they will not be listening to her any more. Many people actually broke down on air!

I am sad too that I will not be listening to Prateeka any more. But I guess, we have to respect her decision to move on in life for better career prospects. Wherever you go, dear Prateeka, keep up your spirits and light up the lives of the people around you, just like you lit up ours day after day on Red FM. All the best!