Some people are truly blessed with the gift of gab. They talk with such confidence that they can draw the attention of others, effortlessly. Pradeep Muthu is one such gifted gabber and he’s landed himself in a few careers that are perfect for him. Muthu, who is all set to become a commentator, will be debuting his skills at the upcoming India-Sri Lanka test series.
But he hasn’t limited himself to just cricket. Muthu has already featured as a commentator at the Pro Kabaddi League and TNPL matches, and will also be commentating at the upcoming Indian Super League.
But do people actually aspire to be commentators? Without much thought, he replies, "No, I’ve never chased my ambitions. I was always one among the average students, both in school and college. Like every other kid around me, I was an ardent fan of cricket. I would even try commentating at home during cricket matches. Obviously, a lot of people must have done that, but not many will tell you the truth," and lets out a hearty laugh.
It doesn’t surprise us to hear that his first job was as an analyst at Goldman Sachs. Besides becoming a commentator, another of Muthu’s passions was to be a radio jockey. He recalls where it all began during his college days, "During the final year of college, there was a guy who spotted me and suggested that I apply to be a radio jockey.” He liked the idea so he asked around and managed to score the number of a senior official at Radio City.
“I called him and told him that I wanted to give it a try, but I wasn’t given much of a response. Then later, I went down to the office and spoke to the same person directly. But unfortunately I learnt that I wasn't RJ material," he says, "But I didn’t call it quits even then. After earning enough money from my previous job, I pursued a master’s in Radio and Broadcast Journalism."
Over the years, Muthu has worked with Radio City and Big FM, where he was mentored by RJ Balaji, who is still a friend and who he still calls his 'go-to person'. "When I completed my master’s, it was the time of recession in media. I couldn't get a job and I was jobless for two months.
Though my interest was always in radio, which is more of an entertainment medium, I always possessed the skill set to do well in journalism,” says Muthu, “But just when I decided to develop that, I joined as an intern in Radio City. By then, I started doing voice-overs and ads. That eventually led me to Big FM."
But the journey did not just stop with the radio. Muthu went on to produce 600 episodes of TV shows and anchor another 300 episodes. Most of South India easily identifies with Muthu as a vlogger. "I was asked to host a live event by Madras Central and eventually, I started with my own series of videos 'In Detail with Muthu', on Madras Central," he says.
Unlike other YouTube channels, Madras Central has created its own identity. The channel has now gained over 1 million subscribers and primarily pushes out political videos with satire. Muthu's recent Amit Shah scam vlog has equally attracted the hearts of fans and the wrath of right-wingers.
