The first season of Satyamev Jayate premiered from 6 May 2012 on various channels within Star Network, along with Doordarshan's DD National. It marked the television debut of Indian Bollywood actor and filmmaker Aamir Khan. While Hindi is the primary language of the show, it is also dubbed and simulcast in several other Indian languages such as Bengali, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu.
List of episodes
EpisodeTitleTopicSongFemale foeticide in India"O Ri Chiraiya"Break the SilenceChild sexual abuse"Haule Haule"Dowry system in India"Rupaiya"Every Life is PreciousMedical malpractice"Naav"Intolerance to LovePersons with disabilitiesDanger at homePoison on our Plate?Think before you DrinkDignity for AllSunset Years, Sunshine LifeEvery Drop CountsIdea of India
Episode 1: Daughters are precious Air Date: 6 May 2012
The first episode focused on the issue of female foeticide in India. The show began with some stories of mothers who struggled to give birth to their girl child. The first guest on the show was Amisha Yagnik from Ahmedabad; she was forced by her husband and in-laws to abort her female unborn children six times in a span of eight years and further shared her experiences in finally giving birth to a daughter. The second guest, Parveen Khan from Morena, Madhya Pradesh, shared the story of her husband disfiguring her face by biting it when she insisted on giving birth to a female child against his wishes. Another guest, doctor Mitu Khurana from Delhi was asked by her orthopaedic surgeon husband and in-laws to abort her girl twins 20 weeks after conceiving. Her story helped dispel the perception and myth among people that the abhorrent practice of female foeticide is practised only by rural people or those living in small towns, or is limited only to less educated people.
The show claimed that, according to the 2011 Census, the rate at which unborn female children are killed amounts to killing off one million girls a year, and there were 914 girls for every 1,000 boys. The episode concluded with a song "O Ri Chiraiya" sung by Swanand Kirkire along with Ram Sampath. The title of the song translates to "O sparrow!", a bird that is slowly becoming extinct.
Impact On the next day after the episode went on air, Rajasthan Chief Minister, Ashok Gehlot urged the public representatives and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to take actions to stop the illegal practice of female foeticide. An official reported that Gehlot also reviewed existing efforts taken by the government against the practice. He also directed the officials to prepare a plan for a special campaign against female foeticide.
Khan, as promised on the show, met Gehlot over the issue of female foeticide. Gehlot accepted the request to set up fast track court to deal the case of the sting operation featured on the show, which was conducted in 2005 by Meena Sharma and Shripal Shaktawat. After discussion with Gehlot, Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, Arun Kumar Mishra, gave permission to set up the fast track court. The sting operation had revealed the faces of more than 140 doctors involved in the illegal practices of prenatal sex determination tests and abortion. But no one had been punished in the case even after seven years.
On 10 May 2012, The Rajasthan Government suspended the licenses of six sonography centres and issued notices to 24 others for violating the provisions of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal and Diagnostic (PCPNDT) Act, 1994. However, the health minister of Rajasthan, Rajkumar Sharma, criticised the show for "sensationalising female foeticide cases". He argued that the government had already been taking action against female foetecide and did not perform a knee-jerk reaction following the show.
The first episode of the show also influenced several state governments in India. Maharashtra Health Minister, Suresh Shetty asked for Khan's support for the government's campaign against female foeticide. In a letter written to Khan, Shetty mentioned that the Maharashtra government had registered cases against 317 sonography centres in the state conducting unauthorised sex determination tests. Also, 27 doctors and four families who sought sex determination tests have been punished under the PCPNDT Act. Bollywood actor couple Ajay Devgn and Kajol became associated with the government's campaign against female foeticide. Haryana government made it compulsory to submit identification proof of the pregnant woman at ultrasonography centres as a pre-condition for undergoing the prenatal sex discernment test. Haryana government also announced a reward of to those who give information about doctors conducting sex determination tests in the state. The Government of Madhya Pradesh had suspended licences of 65 Medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) centres in the state.
Episode 2: Break the Silence Air Date: 13 May 2012
The second episode focused on child sexual abuse in India. For the episode, Khan had worked with NGOs working with children abused sexually. It highlighted two cases of people – Cindrella Prakash and Harish Iyer – who had gone through bad experiences. Cindrella was molested in her childhood by an elderly person close to her family while her parents were not in the house. Harish was sexually abused and raped for several years by a person close to his family, until one day he fought back at the age of 18. The show also focused on how the victims hesitated to tell their parents about their suffering due to fear and shame. It went on to explain how, at times, even after informing their parents, they are unable to take necessary actions due to disbelief or fears of being ridiculed by society. The chief guest was actress Sridevi, who applauded Harish's courage and determination and handed him a present for appreciation. She signed Khan's letter to the Parliament of India lending his support to the Parliament for strong child sexual abuse laws in India.
The episode included a workshop for children to create awareness about the subject amongst children and their parents. The children were told that there are three "danger zones" (private parts) on everyone's body. These include the chest, area between the legs and the bottom. The children were advised to shout and run to a safe place, and immediately inform a person whom they trust (preferably parents) in case any unwanted person tries to touch them in these areas.
Impact Following the broadcast of the second episode, the helpline for children received an increased number of calls from all over the country, reporting child abuse (sexual abuse of children and other forms of abuse).
On 22 May 2012, the legislation to protect children below 18 years from sexual abuse became a reality with the Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) passing the bill, which was earlier cleared by the Rajya Sabha (upper house of parliament). Child rights activists have called the bill regressive, however, and teens across the country are generally appalled that the bill increased the minimum age for sexual consent from 16 to 18.
Episode 3: Marriage or Marketplace Air Date: 20 May 2012
The third episode focused on the dowry system in India. Khan spoke with several women who had faced dowry harassment by their in-laws before and after marriage. It showcased the story of Komal Sethi from New Delhi, who was married to a software professional. Though her in-laws showcased a loving nature in the beginning of the arranged marriage talks, as the date of the wedding neared, they demanded furniture, cars, jewellery, home appliances, and cash from her family. These kind of demands continued after the wedding. After her husband got a job opportunity in the United States, she was forced to ask for money from her parents so that her husband could buy the travel tickets to the US and get a car there. Once in the US, her husband tortured her (by not respecting her, by not letting her to eat enough, and strangulating her repeatedly) in order to get money for furniture and cars in the US: even though they had already been given those things in India, and her husband was earning $65,000 per year. He also pressured her to get the legal rights to her house in India. Upon her consistent refusal, he left her without food and water, confining her in their apartment for four days before she was rescued by a women's care helpline. Her parents commented at the end of Komal's story that they should have refused the initial demands and broken off the arrangement rather than suffering later and ultimately breaking the marriage.
The second story highlighted on the show was of Nishana, who was then pursuing her PhD from American College, Madurai. A big family from the city had approached her family for their girl's hand in marriage. After the marriage, her in-laws demanded a car, although her family had given a considerable amount of gold and cash in dowry. Even after agreeing to their demand of car, and the demands of a forced plastic surgery for Nishana, the critical comments did not stop. When she could not take it any more, Nishana committed suicide.
The second guest on the show was Paramjeet Kaur Moom, from Karimpur, Punjab, and her marriage was also an arranged marriage. After marriage, her husband demanded money from her to go abroad for studies. Despite having financial difficulties at the time, her family took a loan of ₹ and provided for him. After being abandoned in India just after a week of their marriage, although he had earlier promised to take her abroad with him, her in-laws started abusing her physically and verbally and demanding more money. After 3 years of marriage in 2012, despite her father having provided in excess of ₹, she was forced out of her home. At the time of airing, she was being forced to agree to divorce. In the show, Parneet Singh, Regional Passport Officer of Jalandhar, Punjab was also present and voiced a way for her to take action against the husband. The story of Paramjeet was shown to be part of a more general problem in Punjab of Non-Resident Indian (NRI) marriages (where one spouse lives in India and the other lives abroad).
The episode showcased several additional stories from both urban and rural areas where the women had to face similar abuse and demands, some of which had ended with divorce or lawsuits which are still pending judgement. The show also highlighted that many people from lower income brackets take loans from the bank for their daughters' marriage expenses.
To curb these types of incidents, representatives of some communities present in the audience outlined some steps taken by them. Their main point was to avoid too much fanfare, typical of Indian marriages, so that there is no pressure on the poor to arrange weddings like the rich do.
The episode also showcased the story of Rani Tripathi from Mumbai, who fought back by recording the dowry demands by the groom's parents with a hidden camera. Once she informed the media about the tape, it was showcased in major TV channels across India. Her efforts and courage was appreciated by Khan.
The show was concluded by audience opinions and the episode song "Rupaiyya" composed by Ram Sampath and performed by Sona Mohapatra.
Episode 4: Every Life is Precious Air Date: 27 May 2012
The fourth episode of the show threw light on the frail health care system prevalent in the country. The show started with the story of VS Venkatesh who went through four surgeries to cure an infection in his leg. He later learnt that the entire process that had cost him was unnecessary, and the infection could have been treated with medicines. Next, Arvind Kumar from Hyderabad shared that he was hospitalised in an intensive-care unit (ICU) for three days and later advised to undergo a surgery, when all he needed was a dose of oral rehydration salt.