RNIB Bollywood Audio Description Report

Bollywood for allthe demand for audio described Bollywood films

Sonali Rai

The quantitative research for this report was done by Agroni Research.

Agroni ResearchBow Business Centre15-159 Bow RoadLondon E3 2SETel: 020 8981 1020Fax: 020 8983 4136Email: [email protected]: www.agroni.co.uk

Project Steering GroupHeather CryerJoan GreeningAlison HandfordAnna JonesLeen Petré

For further information about this research, contact:

Royal National Institute of Blind PeopleMedia and Culture Department105 Judd StreetLondon WC1H 9NETelephone: 020 7391 2258Fax: 020 7387 7109Email: [email protected]: www.rnib.org.uk

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ForewordFilms and TV programmes are often difficult to appreciate if you can only hear them.Imagine a scene where a would-be killer is stalking the heroine in a lonely alley. In theabsence of dialogue, the background score alone would be inadequate to render thescene captivating unless you can see the action. Audio Description (AD) enhances anaudience’s involvement by adding a narrative, which draws word pictures for theaudience during sequences in which the dialogue is few and far between.

RNIB’s involvement with AD has ensured that more than 300 cinemas in the UK areequipped with systems that facilitate AD and the majority of Hollywood films releasedin UK cinemas have an AD track on them. Going to the movies is no longer consideredthe prerogative of sighted people.

This study seeks to expand the horizons of RNIB’s initiative, and take it to new shores.A logical extension of this initiative would be to involve Bollywood, the world’s mostprolific film industry producing around 700 films every year, in this venture. The studyexplores whether a potential demand for audio described Bollywood films exists in theUK and India. Apart from establishing the demand, it seeks to understand the bestmedium (TV/DVD/Cinema) to introduce the availability of audio described Bollywoodfilms and language preferences of the target audience for audio described Bollywoodfilms. It also aims to understand the best ways of reaching out to this audience tocreate awareness about the availability of this service.

Using both qualitative and quantitative research, the study clearly shows that there is ahuge unmet need for audio described Bollywood films in the UK and India.

Bollywood continues to shine for millions of its fans ever since it released its first silentfilm. These films mean much more to viewers than just pure entertainment. They havemanaged to create that original, sentimental celluloid connection with audiencesaround the world. In such a scenario, it becomes even more significant that everysingle person, including people of Asian origin with sight loss, get that chance to sitback and enjoy a Bollywood film of their choice, independently.

This report can be used as a reference tool by the Bollywood film industry, ADproviders and Bollywood film distributors. RNIB hopes that the results of this researchwill not only assist the introduction of AD in Bollywood films but also go a long way inbridging that gap in accessibility for millions of its fans.

Leen Petré

Principal Manager, Media and Culture Department, RNIB

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AcknowledgmentsA special thanks to Sony Pictures Entertainment for supporting this study, by providingfilm material from the Bollywood film “Saawariya” for the purpose of this researchstudy. A big thanks to Independent Television Facilities Centre Limited (ITFC) forproducing audio description for user material to be used in the qualitative researchstudy.

Sincere thanks to a team of colleagues and friends at RNIB for their encouragementand support throughout this research study.

During the production of the report, the steering group committee dedicated time toreviewing and commenting on the content of the material. Amongst those who fulfilledthis enormous task, a special thanks to Heather Cryer and Alison Handford for theirconstant guidance and support. Thanks also to all those who participated in thequalitative and quantitative research interviews, including those who helped us recruitfurther participants:

All India Confederation of the BlindNational Association for the BlindBlind People’s Association (BPA), AhmedabadSaksham TrustAsian Blind Association (ABA)Kiran Talking NewspaperBradnetBirmingham Focus on BlindnessNewham Voluntary Association for the BlindWaltham Forest Asian Blind AssociationSonali Garden Day CentreDekhtay ChaiVista Community Centre (Leicester)Leicester General Hospital (VI Services)Age Concern (Leicester)Sanatan CentreBradford CollegeBilton Medical CentreOakland House Care for Old People.

Agroni Research would also like to express their sincere gratitude to Dr Sean Carey,Ms Nadira Huda, Dr Kapil Ahmed and all the interviewers for their immensecontribution in the completion of the quantitative research study.

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Executive summary

1. Why was this project undertaken?Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is a registered UK charity, representingthe needs and interests of around two million blind and partially sighted people in theUK. RNIB works directly and indirectly with blind and partially sighted people,representative organisations, government sectors, broadcasting and entertainmentindustries, and a range of professionals working in the field of visual impairment.

A needs survey carried out by RNIB in 1991 showed that 94 per cent of blind andpartially sighted people watch films/television regularly. The survey found that filmedentertainment and media play an important role in their lives by providing access tonews, information and entertainment. Independent film/television viewing can befacilitated by the provision of Audio Description (AD).

AD is an additional commentary to a film/television programme, describing bodylanguage, expressions and movements. It gives people information about the thingsthat they might not be able to see, so that they can keep up with the action on thescreen. It takes away the dependence of relying on someone else to fill in the gaps.

RNIB has ensured access to films by working with all areas of the film industry,including film distributors, exhibitors and equipment manufacturers, and by influencinglegislation. In the UK today, the majority of Hollywood films are screened with AD, and40 per cent of cinemas are equipped to deliver AD. Many Hollywood DVDs also includeAD on mainstream UK releases, with the service often promoted on relevant filmwebsites.

The Indian film industry, popularly known as Bollywood, is by far the most prolific filmindustry in the world. The industry, which produces about 700 films a year, has alwayshad a strong and passionate relationship with its domestic audience. But the 21stcentury has seen a new breed of Bollywood fans cropping up across the globe. Evensecond or third-generation Asian emigrants, who do not always speak the language ofthe film, definitely know their Hrithik Roshans and their Kareena Kapoors. It is thesheer exuberance of these films that drive them to bridge the language barrier.

Today, the UK is the largest market for Bollywood films outside India.

But since Bollywood films are currently not available with AD, they largely remaininaccessible to their blind and partially sighted viewers. RNIB, through this study,sought to investigate the demand for audio described Bollywood films in the UK and India.

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2. What was done during the course of the project?The project aimed to understand behaviours and attitudes of blind and partiallysighted Asian people towards the viewing of Bollywood films with and without AD. Thefindings of this project draw on the data collected through a combination of qualitativeand quantitative research studies to provide an accurate picture of the issue beingaddressed, with a comprehensive analysis of the barriers faced by the target audiencewhen watching Bollywood films.

2.1.Objectives

The primary objectives of this study were to provide answers to the following questionsspecifically in relation to blind and partially sighted people of Asian origin:

How often does the target group watch Bollywood films, eg at the cinema, on DVD,or on television?

Would AD encourage the target group to watch Bollywood films more often?

Is the target group likely to change its film viewing habits if AD was provided onthese films?

Which factors influence the target audience’s views on AD of Bollywood films, egdegree of sight loss, personal circumstances etc?

What preferences do the target audience have in terms of language of thedescription, eg Hindi or English?

When AD is provided, what impact does it have on the experience of watchingBollywood films (positive or negative)?

How might description in Bollywood films differ from description in Hollywood filmsto increase viewing and viewing pleasure?

Should the UK AD guidelines be adapted for AD in Bollywood films?

The project also aimed to put forth recommendations for further implementation ofthe findings.

2.2. Quantitative research study

The quantitative research was undertaken with 260 blind or partially sighted people ofAsian descent (including people of Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani origin only),living in the UK. The sample included a range of ages, sight conditions and levels offamiliarity with Bollywood films.

Executive summary

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2.3. Qualitative research study

Fifty blind or partially sighted Asian people were interviewed for the qualitative study.Of these, 25 people were interviewed in the UK and 25 in India. The sample included awide range of ages, sight conditions and familiarity with Bollywood films although themajority of participants tended to have severe sight problems.

3. Key findings and conclusions3.1.Current barriers to watching Bollywood films

Despite accessibility issues, 19 per cent of the 260 respondents in the quantitativestudy said they watched a Bollywood film on television everyday, with 6 per centstating that they watched them on DVD about once a day.

Viewing of Bollywood films at the cinema was much lower, with 66 per cent statingthey never watched Bollywood films at the cinema. However, about 15 per centsaid they watched a Bollywood film in a cinema at least once a week. A significantnumber of respondents, 40 per cent, believed that their current sight level was amajor factor that prevented them from going to the cinema to watch Bollywoodfilms, as it affected their understanding of the film.

3.2.Likelihood of people watching Bollywood films with AD

Over half of the respondents in both studies stated that they were more likely towatch Bollywood films if AD was provided (56 per cent in the quantitative studyand 92 per cent in the qualitative study). AD improved understanding of the filmclip for blind and partially sighted people, with people reporting a greater grasp oflocation, characters, expressions and the plot.

3.3.Three key areas were identified

3.3.1. Description over songsRespondents felt it was important to provide AD during songs as well as in thestandard story so as to be able to follow what was happening on the screen.

3.3.2. Language of the descriptionThe majority of respondents preferred AD in Hindi compared with description inEnglish.

3.3.3. Awareness about audio description The research found that only five per cent of respondents in the quantitative study had any previous experience of AD. 16 per cent were aware of AD but

Executive summary

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were not aware of its features and what it had to offer. There was a significant lack of awareness about AD amongst blind and partially sighted Asians in the UK.

4. RecommendationsThe study was able to establish a number of areas in which the Bollywood filmindustry, RNIB, various associations working with blind and partially sighted people inIndia, sectors within the Government of India and other stakeholders could usefullycollaborate to improve the accessibility of Bollywood films in the UK and India. Thefindings of this research study resulted in the following recommendations:

Recommendation 1: Initiate partnership working with the Indian filmindustry

RNIB to work closely with the Indian film industry, sharing the expertise and theexperience, it has built up while working with UK Hollywood distributors. The aimwould be to support the setting up of a system in the UK and India that canproduce AD for Bollywood films.

Recommendation 2: UK pilot of audio described Bollywood films

Keeping in mind that all systems and infrastructure enabling the provision anddelivery of AD in films are in place within the UK, it would be operationally simplerto pilot the product in the UK first, and then share the experience and expertisewith the industry in India.

If the AD track was available for UK cinema release, the track could then beincluded on the DVD and tested in the Indian DVD market.

Recommendation 3: AD for all mediums

The research study was unable to bring out a clear preference for any particularmedium for accessing Bollywood films in the UK or India. A split betweenpreferences was evident amongst younger cinema goers (18-44 years) and olderhome entertainment enthusiasts. Therefore, the Bollywood film industry should beencouraged to make AD tracks available across diverse film viewing platforms –cinema, DVD and eventually television.

If AD were to be made available as an optional audio track on the regular DVDrelease, it would not only increase the availability of accessible Bollywood films butalso lead to a greater acceptance of AD amongst the general population in bothIndia and the UK.

Executive summary

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Recommendation 4: Raising awareness amongst the target populationin the UK

4 (a) RNIB to plan awareness campaigns with the aim of familiarising the UK Asianblind community with the concept of AD. These promotional activities should beplanned bearing in mind the specific characteristics of the Asian community suchas language preference of the target audience and their knowledge of Hindi.

4 (b) RNIB to share the findings of this research with the UK distributors ofHollywood films who are forming alliances with the Indian film industry anddistributing Bollywood films in the UK, including Warner Bros and Sony Pictures.

4 (c) RNIB to create awareness within the UK cinema exhibitors about the possiblearrival of audio described Bollywood films. This would enable cinemas toappropriately assign films to specific screens that are equipped to handle AD.

4 (d) RNIB should work in partnership with organisations providing services todifferent Asian communities in the UK to raise the level of awareness about AD forblind and partially sighted people. The evidence from the research indicates thatthere is a high demand for other specialist services like ‘talking newspapers’ forblind and partially sighted people within the different Asian communities. Thisprovides a favourable context for the introduction of AD aimed at Asiancommunities via Bollywood films.

These activities and campaigns would need to be planned and organised inconjunction with the relevant industries.

Recommendation 5: Raising awareness amongst the target populationin India

5 (a) RNIB and associations working for/with blind and partially sighted people inIndia to work collaboratively with the specific departments within the Governmentof India, with the Indian counterparts taking a lead role in creating awarenessabout AD and its eventual availability on Bollywood films in India. As AD is amedium for moving images, cinemas and television could play an instrumental rolein creating this awareness.

Executive summary

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Recommendation 6: Engage with the Bollywood film industry

6 (a) RNIB could participate in conferences and discussions relevant to the Indianfilm industry and non-profit organisations working in the field of visual impairmentand access technologies in India. This would enable wider awareness anddiscussion on the subject with a larger audience. Once the discussion gathersmomentum, it should be steered towards practical solutions to making ADtechnology widely available.

6 (b) RNIB may wish to think about working in partnership with selectedBollywood film producers in order to set up a pilot project using AD in Bollywoodfilms. Such a development would not only benefit blind and partially sightedpeople in the UK and India but others living across the globe. This could be doneby organising workshops for selected Bollywood film producers and provide themwith practical advice and support for implementing the Bollywood AudioDescription Initiative.

Recommendation 7: Possible introduction of a legislation in the UK

RNIB may wish to explore with Ofcom, the possibility of achieving a quota for ADon Bollywood channels shown in the UK.

Recommendation 8: Accessible technology in the UK

The evidence from the survey suggests that many blind and partially sightedpeople have difficulty operating current electronic devices providing access to AD.It is recommended that RNIB continues to work with manufacturers and televisionplatform operators to ensure that they implement a ‘shortcut’ button on theremote control so that people can easily access AD.

Executive summary

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Contents

1. Introduction to Bollywood films and its blind and partially sighted audience ________________________________________________15

1.1. Objectives __________________________________________________17

1.2. Quantitative research study ____________________________________17

1.3. Qualitative research study ______________________________________18

1.4. Structure of the report ________________________________________18

2. Audio Description (AD)____________________________________________20

2.1. What is AD? ________________________________________________20

2.2. Development of AD in the UK __________________________________20

2.3. Enabling AD for 35mm film prints ________________________________20

2.4. Enabling AD for digital cinema __________________________________21

2.5. AD guideliness ______________________________________________21

3. Personas________________________________________________________22

4. Quantitative research study ________________________________________27

4.1. Executive summary ____________________________________________27

4.2. Introduction ________________________________________________28

4.2.1. Approach: Sample and methodology ________________________29

4.2.2. Sample size and the locations of interviews __________________30

4.2.3. Fieldwork ____________________________________________30

4.2.4. Data processing ________________________________________30

4.3. Key finding 1: About the respondents ____________________________31

4.3.1. Regional distribution of interviews __________________________31

4.3.2. Ethnicity and gender ____________________________________32

4.3.3. Place of interviews and gender of respondents ________________33

4.3.4. Age of respondents ____________________________________33

4.3.5. Types of interviews and the language used for interviews ________34

4.3.6. About respondents’ eye sight______________________________35

4.4. Key finding 2: About television and DVD viewing habits ______________36

4.4.1. Watching Bollywood films on television ______________________38

4.4.2. Watching a Bollywood film on the DVD ______________________40

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4.4.3. Factors that affect the viewing of Bollywood films______________42

4.5. Key finding 3: About cinema viewing habits ________________________45

4.5.1. Watching Bollywood films at the cinema ____________________45

4.5.2. Factors that affect the viewing of Bollywood films at the cinema __47

4.5.3. Strategies for watching Bollywood films in a cinema ____________49

4.6. About AD __________________________________________________50

4.7. Preferred mediums for accessing information about new products/services ____________________________________________53

4.7.1. Top five general sources of information ______________________54

4.7.2. Radio as a source for information __________________________56

4.7.3. Television as a source for information________________________57

4.7.4. Talking Newspapers as a source for information ________________57

4.7.5. Mainstream newspapers and magazines as a source for information ________________________________________58

4.8. Conclusion __________________________________________________58

4.8.1. Main findings __________________________________________58

4.8.2. Current level of awareness of AD and a further likelihood of watching a Bollywood film with AD if introduced ____________59

4.8.3. Potential for audio described Bollywood films in the UK ________60

5. Qualitative research study ________________________________________61

5.1. Executive summary ____________________________________________61

5.2. Introduction to AD and the relevant film industry ____________________62

5.2.1. Aims and objectives ____________________________________64

5.2.2. Approach ____________________________________________64

5.2.3. Sample ______________________________________________65

5.2.4. Film material __________________________________________67

5.3. Results ____________________________________________________68

5.3.1. A summary of characteristics of participants __________________68

5.3.2. Level of sight impairment ________________________________69

5.4. Current viewing habits ________________________________________71

5.4.1. Film viewing habits ____________________________________71

5.4.2. Current methods of watching television/films ________________71

5.4.3. Following films/television programmes on television with the current level of vision ________________________________72

5.4.4. Knowledge of AD ______________________________________76

Contents

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5.5. What difference does AD make?__________________________________76

5.5.1. Initial impressions ______________________________________76

5.5.2. Objective measures of understanding________________________77

5.5.3. Does better understanding also translate into increased enjoyment?____________________________________________84

5.5.4. Initial indication of the demand for AD ______________________86

5.5.5. Preferred method for accessing described content ____________87

5.6. Optimising AD for Bollywood films________________________________88

5.6.1. Language preferences____________________________________88

5.6.2. Describing over songs____________________________________89

5.6.3. What to include in AD __________________________________90

6. Proposed AD guidelines for Bollywood films __________________________91

6.1. What is Audio Description (AD)? ________________________________91

6.2. Users ______________________________________________________91

6.3. Best practice ________________________________________________91

6.3.1. What to describe ______________________________________91

6.3.2. Characters ____________________________________________91

6.3.3. On-screen action ______________________________________92

6.3.4. Settings ______________________________________________92

6.3.5. What not to describe ____________________________________92

6.3.6. When to describe ______________________________________92

6.3.7. Language ____________________________________________93

6.3.8. Delivery ______________________________________________93

6.3.9. Balance ______________________________________________93

6.3.10. Describers ____________________________________________94

6.3.11. Children’s programmes/films ______________________________94

6.3.12. Language and songs in Bollywood Films ____________________94

Contents

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7. Practical aspects to providing AD on Bollywood films __________________95

7.1. Lack of awareness of AD within the target market in the UK and India __________________________________________95

7.2. Operational barriers to making audio described films available __________96

7.2.1. Operational barriers to making audio described films available in India ______________________________________________96

7.2.2. Operational barriers to making audio described films available in the UK ____________________________________________96

7.3. Commercial considerations ______________________________________97

7.4. Conclusion __________________________________________________98

7.5. Recommendations ____________________________________________98

8. References ____________________________________________________102

Appendix 1: Questionnaire for qualitative study ________________________104

Appendix 2: Questionnaire for quantitative study________________________112

Contents

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1. Introduction to Bollywood films and itsblind and partially sighted audienceThe genesis of India’s Hindi film industry can be traced to a public screening of RajaHarischandra, India’s first silent film, in 1913. It gave the Indian film industry its firstoccasion to celebrate.

Almost a hundred years on, the industry continues to be a veritable dream factory formillions of fans worldwide, without the dream having lost its sheen. The sheer riot ofcolours makes an Indian film stand out amongst the crowd of filmed entertainment.

The 1970’s gave birth to a peculiar term, Bollywood, which interestingly, struck a chordwith millions of its film fans living in India and overseas, and over the years it has cometo define the Hindi film industry from Bombay, now known as Mumbai. Bollywoodembodied a style of cinema determined by musical interludes, opulent settings andhigh production values that still define the form today.

In 2001, the film industry was brought under the Federation of Indian Chambers ofCommerce and Industry (FICCI). This was done with a view to corporatise the filmindustry in India. Within a few years of its inception, the FICCI entertainmentcommittee was able to obtain an ‘industry’ status from the government.

Bollywood produces, on average, around 700 films a year, making it not only thedominant national film industry, but perhaps the largest in the world. With films beingthe most popular form of mass entertainment in India, the industry has witnessed arobust double digit growth over the past decade.

The massive Indian expatriate population, for whom Bollywood movies are not justthree-hour diversions on a week-night but a part of their childhood memories, isturning Bollywood blockbusters into international hits. Things have come a long wayfrom the 1970’s Britain, when there were no cinemas devoted to Bollywood films andits fans would take over a local cinema to show a popular Hindi film over the weekend.Today popular cinema chains like Odeon, Vue and Cineworld regularly screenBollywood films.

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Gauging the popularity of Bollywood films in the UKA small, but growing, part of the audience in the UK and Republic of Irelandenjoys foreign language films, of which there were 170 releases in 2007 in 33languages, taking 3.5 per cent of the box office. Hindi figured at the top of the listof foreign languages in the UK and Republic of Ireland box office in 2007 with 13Hindi titles dominating the top 20 foreign language film chart of 2007. [UK Film Council (2007) Statistical Year Book, Page 73]

The Indian film industry too is equally keen to reach out to its global audience. Inaccordance with the FICCI and Pricewaterhouse Coopers report on Indianentertainment and media industry 2007, even though domestic box office collectionscontinue to be the largest contributor to the revenues of the industry at 74 per cent,the share of the domestic box office is projected to reduce to 70 per cent by 2012,primarily in favour of overseas and ancillary revenues. The report also points out that“the overseas collections are estimated to grow cumulatively at 19 per cent over thenext five years to reach GBP 250 million in 2012 from a current size of GBP 105million in 2007. [June 2009: 1 GBP = 79.69 Indian Rupees]. There are several growthdrivers for this segment from increased marketing and selling efforts internationally, toa significantly more organised distribution plan.” [FICCI and Pricewaterhouse Coopers(2007) – Indian entertainment and media industry]

This trend is also reflected in the UK Film Council’s “Statistical Yearbook 2007”, whichsays that minority ethnic groups were equally or over-represented in the 60 per cent ofthe UK population that said they went to the cinema at least once a year.

But Bollywood films continue to remain inaccessible to blind and partially sightedpeople because of the absence of AD. One of the major reasons contributing to thiscontinued inaccessibility could be the absence of technology enabling AD in Indiancinemas, which is the primary market for Bollywood films.

In the UK, more than 300 cinemas are equipped with AD facilities and the UK distribu-tors for Hollywood films such as Warner Bros Distributors, Walt Disney Studios MotionPictures UK, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Paramount Pictures UK,Universal Pictures UK, Pathé Distribution and Sony Pictures Releasing increase theaccessibility of their films by providing subtitling for deaf and hard of hearing peopleand AD for blind and partially sighted people on almost 100 per cent of their UKreleases. The Bollywood Audio Description Project seeks to explore this gap in accessi-bility of Bollywood films and its ramifications on blind and partially sighted Bollywoodfans living in the UK and India.

1. Introduction to Bollywood films and its blind and partially sighted audience

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1.1. ObjectivesThis report is the first in-depth investigation of AD for Bollywood films that RNIB hasundertaken. It seeks to understand behaviours and attitudes of blind and partiallysighted people towards viewing Bollywood films with and without AD. The objectivesof this report are as follows:

to look at television viewing and cinema going habits of blind and partially sightedpeople in India and within the Asian community in the UK

to investigate if there is an unmet demand within the target audience for audiodescribed Bollywood films

to broadly gauge the size of the market for such films in both countries

to investigate the feasibility of audio described Bollywood films for the benefit ofblind and partially sighted film viewers in the UK and India.

This report draws on a combination of qualitative and quantitative research studiescarried out for the purpose of this project.

1.2. Quantitative research studyThe purpose of this quantitative research study, aside from throwing light on theapproximate market size for audio described Bollywood films in the UK, was to explorethe cinema and DVD viewing habits of people with sight loss within the UK Asiancommunity. The survey interviewed a total of 260 blind and partially sighted peoplefrom the Asian community across the UK. It was carried out by Agroni Research.

It is important to understand that, in the absence of any robust data being available onblind and partially sighted Asian population living in the UK, the study is onlyequipped to give an impression of the approximate market size for audio describedBollywood films in the UK. As part of the study to understand the market size, wefollowed a basic deductive process with the available data, which indicate that 4 percent of the UK’s current population of 54 million either belong, or are descendants of,people who belonged to the Indian sub-continent. Combined with RNIB’s estimate thatthere are around two million blind and partially sighted people in the country (RNIB,2005), it led us to conclude that about 80,000 people should be the approximatenumber of blind and partially sighted Asians in the UK. But this process failed to takeinto account various other factors that would significantly influence the size of thisgroup such as:


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Older people are far more likely to be affected by sight problems and, according tothe Office of National Statistics, there is a lower proportion of older peoplebelonging to the Asian population in the UK.

People of Asian descent are more likely to have diabetes and about 60 per cent ofpeople with diabetes go on to develop diabetic retinopathy. The early stages ofdiabetic retinopathy may cause blurred vision, or they may produce no visualsymptoms at all. As the disease progresses, a cloudiness of vision, blind spots orfloaters may occur. This makes activities such as reading, driving and watchingtelevision extremely difficult. If left untreated, diabetic retinopathy can causeblindness.

1.3. Qualitative research studyThis in-depth qualitative research study investigated behaviours, attitudes and barriersfor watching Bollywood films among 25 blind or partially sighted Asians living in theUK; and 25 blind and partially sighted people in India. The study included adults andchildren, viewers and non-regular viewers of Bollywood films.

This report includes findings from this qualitative research study. While it is believedthat these findings will make a useful contribution to the debate in this area, theresults of the qualitative research should not be used to draw statistically robustconclusions for the entire population of blind and partially sighted people from theAsian community in the UK or India.

1.4. Structure of the reportChapter 2 discusses the development of AD in the UK and its current status.

Chapter 3 presents a series of six personas, to summarise the breadth of Bollywoodfilm viewing experiences observed across the samples. Each persona represents anamalgamation of insights obtained across the samples. It also provides furthercontext to the results with particular regard to the key user group – blind or partiallysighted Bollywood film viewers.

Chapter 4 looks quantitatively at people’s habits with reference to the watching ofBollywood films on television, DVD and in cinemas in the UK. It includes anindication of the market size for such films.


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Building on this, chapter 5 uses the qualitative study to look at the behaviours andattitudes to the viewing of Bollywood films and related aspects with specialreference to AD.

Chapter 6 draws up guidelines for AD in Bollywood films using the research findings.

Chapter 7 draws up recommendations based on the quantitative data, qualitativedata and interaction with the Bollywood film industry to look at the best ways ofintroducing AD in Bollywood films.


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2. Audio Description (AD)

2.1. What is AD?Similar to a narrator telling a story, AD is an additional commentary describing bodylanguage, expressions and movements – allowing you to hear what you might not beable to see.

2.2. Development of AD in the UKEven though research and actual testing of AD was being carried out in the UK in theearly 1990’s, it was the Broadcasting Act 1996, which made it mandatory for UK digitalterrestrial television broadcasters to provide AD on 10 per cent of its programming.

The Communications Act 2003 extended this legal obligation to cable and satellitebroadcasters. The provision has come a long way, with one of the private broadcastersin the UK, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) having committed to providing AD on 20per cent of its programming.

The first UK cinema release with AD was in 2002 – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

In 2003, the UK Film Council launched its Cinema Access Programme to improvefacilities for people with hearing or sight loss. Within a year, a further 79 UK cinemaswere equipped with subtitle/caption and AD equipment to enable more people toenjoy the cinema experience. Today, there are more than 300 ‘accessible’ cinemas. As aconsequence, there is now a thriving industry of AD providers in the UK.

2.3. Enabling AD for 35mm film prints Until recently, there were only two systems that enabled AD in UK cinemas – DTS andDolby.

The DTS Cinema Subtitling System (DTS-CSS) is installed in more than 200 UKcinemas. A disc containing both the subtitles/captions is projected directly onto thefilm print and the AD track is synchronised with the DTS time code.

The Dolby ScreenTalk system is installed in almost 100 UK cinemas and delivers cinemasubtitles/captions and AD for films. The system allows subtitles to be projected on toany standard film print. This system is no longer available in the market.

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In both systems, AD is transmitted to blind and partially sighted people in theauditorium via an infrared headphone system. Once a film print has been provided with DTS and/or Dolby time codes, the AD for the film is decoded in the cinema byeither the DTS-CSS system or Dolby ScreenTalk – depending on which system has been installed.

2.4. Enabling AD for digital cinemaWith the advent of Digital cinema, AD is now part of the digital cinema package and is transmitted through an infra red headphone system. The challenge for the industryis to have the AD track finished and available in time for it to be included on thedigital print.

2.5. AD guidelinesThe most comprehensive set of instructions for audio describers, Guidance onStandards for Audio Description, was developed by the Independent TelevisionCommission (ITC) in the UK as a result of the Broadcasting Act 1996. Amongst otherthings, the document laid down guidelines in considerable detail on prioritisinginformation, stating the obvious, mentioning colours and ethnic origins.

Complete guidelines are available on: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/uploads/ITC_Guidance_On_Standards_for_Audio_Description.doc

These were later updated by Ofcom in their Code on Television Access Services in 2006.The updated Guidelines on the Provision of Television Access Services, are available on:http://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv/ifi/guidance/tv_access_serv/guidelines/

These guidelines are used by the AD service providers as a tool while writing andrecording descriptions for broadcast and film materials.

2. Audio Description (AD)

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3. PersonasA total of 260 people were interviewed for the quantitative study and a total of 50people were interviewed for the qualitative study of this research. Amongst the 50people interviewed for the qualitative research study, 25 people were interviewed inthe UK and 25 in India. All participants tended to have severe sight problems. A wideage range of people was interviewed to gain a comprehensive understanding ofproblems faced by blind and partially sighted viewers of Bollywood films. From thequalitative sample, 40 people were interviewed in Hindi and 10 in English.

During the study, a broad range of life situations and experiences in reference to theirfilm viewing habits was described to us. To bring our research participants to life forthe reader, we present six personas. None of the personas were real participants in theresearch, but their characteristics and features were based on research observationsgained in this project.

Persona 1: Asha, age 32, unemployedLoves going to the movies and watches almost every Bollywood film released in UKcinemas. Also, watches a lot of films and film related shows on television.

Not a native Hindi speaker, she understands the language sufficiently to followBollywood films. She enjoys film music and regularly downloads Bollywood songs fromthe internet.

Partially sighted since birth, Asha differs in the techniques she uses to understand afilm from a sighted person:

She often depends on her friends to tell her what is happening on the screen.

She depends a lot on audio clues to understand the film better.

While watching a Bollywood film in a cinema, Asha does not like asking herfriends/family to explain to her what’s happening on the screen and, as a result,quite often ends up losing track of the plot.

Asha is familiar with AD and uses it to watch soaps on British television channels,and wishes that Bollywood films were available with AD.

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Persona 2: Rajesh, age 87, a retired musician He enjoys his Bollywood films at home now – television or DVD. Rajesh has subscribedto the Asian package offered by one of the satellite television service providers. Hereceives seven Asian entertainment channels, three of which are 24-hour Hindi moviechannels.

A native Hindi speaker, he has a collection of old Bollywood films on DVD, which helistens to (views) when someone gets the player going for him. He can manage theremote control but with difficulty.

Totally blind since birth, Rajesh differs in the techniques he uses to understand a filmfrom a sighted person:

He used to enjoy going to the cinema when he was younger but says that he nowfinds it embarrassing when his companion/friend, who is trying to help byexplaining the screenplay, is asked to keep quiet. He would rather watch them athome where he can ask friends/family for assistance.

A musician by profession, he loves film music. So his family purchases a lot of musicCDs for him. But he does not enjoy songs while watching the films as he misses outon all the action during the songs.

Rajesh has never heard or used AD as an aid to understand what is happening onthe television/cinema screen.

Persona 3: Tarun, age 46, works for a private companyHe is very fond of watching films in cinemas and has always enjoyed going to thecinema. He watches at least one film a week in a cinema. Depending on his mood andthe availability of films in his local cinemas, he will go for a Bollywood or a Hollywoodfilm.

Not a native Hindi speaker, Tarun can speak little Hindi but understands the languageas Urdu, a language very similar to Hindi, is spoken at home. He does not face anylanguage barriers in gaining an understanding of a Bollywood film, and, in fact,attributes his knowledge of Hindi to Bollywood films.

Tarun has been totally blind since the age of 12 and differs in his film viewing habitsfrom a sighted person:

He rarely asks any one for help to understand a film as he feels it will spoil the filmfor him and his friend. He prefers to use audio clues to understand what he can on

3. Personas

23

his own. Occasionally, he gets frustrated if he fails to understand the plot or the filmtakes a weird turn – he knows he has missed something but does not have a cluewhat that could be.

Tarun uses AD very regularly to watch Hollywood films in cinemas and at home onthe television. He wishes audio described Bollywood films were available.

Persona 4: Aarti, age 58, housewifeLikes watching films and dramas on the television:

She does not visit the cinema any more unless there is a very good film on, maybe afilm starring one of her old favourites.

She only goes when her family is able to find time to visit the cinema with her andwants to watch the same film. Aside from the fact that she enjoys their companyand takes it as a family day out, she is now unsure about her ability to move aroundindependently.

A native Hindi/Gujarati speaker, she watches at least five to six hours of televisioneach day, which usually includes one film. She has subscribed to the entire Asiantelevision channel package by one of the private satellite broadcasters:

Aarti often discusses films/television soaps with her neighbours/friends so she feelsit is important for her to watch films/television soaps to be a part of the group.

Aarti is now partially sighted. She was diagnosed with glaucoma seven years ago.Glaucoma is a sight condition that can lead to blindness if left untreated. Aarti wearsprescription glasses and has to use to eye drops that may control further damage toher sight. Aarti differs in her film/television viewing habits from sighted people:

She sits very close to the screen when she watches television and also wears specialstronger glasses to improve the quality of the picture as much as possible.

Even though Aarti has digital television at home, she never accesses the electronicprogramme guide because she can’t read the small print even when she sits close tothe screen. She is reluctant to try out new features on her digital television and hasmemorised the few buttons which she uses regularly on her remote control.

Aarti has heard about AD but doesn’t know what it exactly is. She would like to findout more and is keen to use it, provided it is easy to find out which films aredescribed and it is not difficult to switch it on and off on her television/or on DVDs.

3. Personas

24

Persona 5: Puja, age 13, school student She loves watching films in a cinema or on the television. She is allowed to watch twohours of television each day and one or two films in a week:

She forces her parents to take her to the cinema over the weekend so that she cantalk about it with her friends at school.

She watches a lot of film based shows on the television and is very comfortableusing the television remote control. Her favourite television channels, when she isnot watching films or kids programming, are MTV and Channel V. These are 24-hourmusic channels that play songs from latest Bollywood films.

Puja is totally blind from birth and her film/television viewing habits differ from otherchildren’s:

She seeks help from her sibling to explain to her what’s happening on the screen.

She does not like cartoons or animated films as there is too much going on for herto understand on her own.

Puja has never heard or used AD as an aid to understand what is happening on thetelevision/cinema screen, but she is always keen to try out new features on hertelevision/DVD player. So she is quite likely to want to try it if it becomes available.

Persona 6: Mukesh, age 76, retiredHe likes to watch television and, aside from Bollywood classic films, he enjoys newsand sports based programmes. On average, he watches about four to five hours oftelevision each day, mostly in his wife’s company. He has mobility problems andtherefore does not go to the cinema:

Mukesh has always been a cricket enthusiast. He watches all the matches that arebroadcast on television.

He used to enjoy watching a lot of films until about a decade ago. Now he onlywatches new films by selected directors or he will watch films that he enjoyed earlierin his life.

Mukesh has been diabetic for almost 22 years and has lost most of his sight due todiabetic retinopathy. The technique he uses for watching film/television differs fromsighted people:

3. Personas

25

He says he does not watch films/ television anymore; he listens to them in the sameway as he would listen to a radio.

He misses watching cricket matches and his favourite star’s films when they arereleased.

He does not like asking anyone, even his wife, to explain to him what is happeningon the screen as it makes him feel dependant.

Even though Mukesh is relatively comfortable with technology, he is reluctant to tryout new devices such as his new digital set-top box or his new DVD player. He hasmemorised a few buttons on the remote control to facilitate basic functions.

Mukesh has heard about AD but has never used it. He is not aware that AD is availableon some of the television channels that he watches regularly such as BBC/Sky sports.He would be willing to try out AD if it was easy to access on his digital set top box anddid not require him to go into complicated menus. He would certainly access it if it wasa single step process as he misses the independence that he lost with his sight.

3. Personas

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4. Quantitative research study

4.1 Executive summaryThis study explored Bollywood film viewing behaviour amongst blind and partiallysighted people of Asian origin in the UK to understand:

the film viewing habits of blind and partially sighted people of Asian origin residentin the UK

the specific needs and preferences of blind and partially sighted people of Asianorigin in relation to AD in Bollywood films

the demand for audio described Bollywood films in the UK.

Overall, 260 blind and partially sighted people from the Asian community living inLondon, Leicester, Birmingham and Bradford were interviewed for this study.

The research was able to establish that Bollywood films were popular amongst thetarget audience; 73 per cent of the respondents stated that they watched Bollywoodfilms on television; 53 per cent of respondents reported that they watched them onDVD. The frequency of viewing Bollywood films obviously varied amongst respondents;43 per cent of the respondents watched a Bollywood film on television at least once aweek while 19 per cent of the respondents watched a Bollywood film on DVD duringthe same period. Interestingly, 15 per cent of respondents reported that they watcheda Bollywood film in the cinema at least once a week.

However, a minority of respondents, 10 per cent for television and 14 per cent forDVD, stated that they did not watch Bollywood films because they found it toodifficult to engage with the current technology. This research finding suggests that theintroduction of simpler technology allowing easier access to television and DVD couldsignificantly boost the number of blind and partially sighted Asian people viewingBollywood films.

Another significant finding was the low level of awareness about AD amongst blindand partially sighted Asian people. 56 per cent of the respondents stated they hadnever heard of AD while only five per cent of respondents said that they had used it atsome point. Having introduced users to AD during the study, 57 per cent ofrespondents reported that they would be more likely to watch a Bollywood film thatwas audio described compared to a film that was not. Only 14 per cent of respondentssaid they were less likely to watch a Bollywood film that was audio described.

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Overall, the evidence from this research suggests that there is demand for audiodescribed Bollywood films amongst blind and partially sighted people from the Asiancommunity living in the UK.

4.2. IntroductionThough it might be hard to comment on the exact size of the Bollywood film industry,it would not be wrong to say that it is the largest and the most prolific film industry inthe world. Mihir Bose (2007), in his book Bollywood: A History, notes that the Indianfilm industry produces around 1,000 feature films annually and that some 14 millionIndians go to the cinema every day. These figures suggest that on an annual basisaround a million more people buy tickets for Indian films than for those produced inHollywood. Interestingly, the International Indian Film Academy (2007) offers analternative estimate to Bose’s and claims that around 23 million Indians go to see a filmevery day. It also calculates that around 15-20 per cent of the income of the Indianfilm sector comes from overseas markets.

A recent study carried out by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) and the Federation ofIndian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) confirms that revenue fromoverseas releases is becoming a significant source of income for the Indian filmindustry. It reports that the income from overseas markets for the sector was estimatedto be £107 million in 2007. This translates into 21 per cent growth since 2006 (TheIndian Entertainment and Media Industry; Sustaining Growth, 2008:28). Furthermore,PWC and the FCCI predict that income from overseas markets for the Indian filmindustry will reach £251 million by 2012 (note figures based on current currencyexchange rate of 1 GBP = 79.69 Indian Rupees, June 2009). However, despite thesocial and economic significance of the Bollywood film industry, Bollywood films arenot available with AD.

Significantly, the UK has the largest audience for Indian cinema outside India withBollywood films regularly achieving a position within the UK box office top 10. Thissuccess can be largely, although not exclusively, attributed to film goers in the largeAsian communities, namely people from the Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi originsettled in the UK.

The 2001 census shows that over half of the black and minority ethnic (BME)population in the UK is of Asian origin constituting four per cent of the overallpopulation. Indians were the largest minority group – 23 per cent of the total minorityethnic population; 16 per cent were Pakistanis and six per cent were Bangladeshis.

A report published by The Information Centre (2006) estimated that there were152,000 registered blind and 155,000 registered as partially sighted people in the UK.


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(Note: Registration is not mandatory therefore actual numbers of blind and partiallysighted people are higher). Sefton, Baker and Praat, (2005) suggest that five per centof the registered blind/partially sighted people are from the Black and Minority Ethniccommunities. They also estimated that Pakistanis represent 31 per cent and Indians 29per cent of BME people with a sensory disability.

In this context, RNIB commissioned Agroni Research to undertake a quantitativeresearch survey amongst blind and partially sighted people of Asian origin. Asmentioned earlier, for the purpose of this study the term Asian refers to people fromthe Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities only. The aims and objectives ofthe research were as follows:

Explore the film viewing habits of blind and partially sighted people within the Asianpopulation in the UK

Establish whether there is a demand for audio described Bollywood films in the UK

Investigate the specific needs and preferences of blind and partially sighted peoplein relation to the AD of Bollywood films.

4.2.1. Approach: Sample and methodology

A combination of face to face and telephone interviews was used to gather responses.Multilingual interviewers were used to ensure effective engagement with respondentsfrom the designated ethnic groups. Interviewers were also gender matched torespondents to overcome cultural barriers.

Fifty organisations working with blind and partially sighted Asian people, includingcharitable and statutory organisations such as local authorities and specialist eyehospitals, were contacted. A number of appropriate organisations were also contactedin regions known for their high Asian population. Some of these organisations wereunable to provide contact details of their members, for reasons including dataprotection. Overall, 20 organisations were willing to assist with this research. Some of these were only able to sign post to other institutions, while others were ableto facilitate interviewers in their scheduled gatherings and meetings of blind andpartially sighted people. It should be noted that in the end only 85 (33 per cent) outof 260 successfully completed interviews were conducted in community centres, while168 (65 per cent) of the interviews were conducted at the homes of respondents. Inaddition, interviewers identified blind and partially sighted people from the differentAsian communities and used a range of approaches to generate contacts including theuse of social networks of friends and relatives as well as visiting local shops, schools,colleges, hospitals and housing estates.


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4.2.2. Sample size and the locations of interviews

The sample size for the study was 260 people. Interviews were conducted with blindand partially sighted people from the Asian community spread across the UK. Theregions selected for the study were London, Birmingham, Leicester and Bradford. Asmall number of interviews were also conducted in Manchester and Oldham. For thepurpose of this report, and because of the geographical proximity of these locations,these interviews were grouped together with those carried out in Bradford. An attemptwas made to include an equal number of respondents from each of the ethniccommunities. In addition, an attempt was made to make the regional spread reflect thepopulation size of the respective communities. However, a relaxation of theaforementioned soft quotas was made as the fieldwork progressed to ensure asufficient number of respondents were interviewed.

It should be noted, however, that no strict quotas were set for ethnicity, gender andage among the target population. Further details about the ethnicity, gender and ageof respondents are provided in the key findings section.

4.2.3. Fieldwork

The research questionnaire was made available in five different languages – English,Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati and Urdu. This was done to standardise the script for the fieldresearchers since the project required them to interview people who might be morewilling to participate if the interview was done in their preferred language. Hindi,Bengali, Gujarati and Urdu were chosen as they are the most commonly spokenlanguages amongst the Asian community.

23 interviewers were able to complete around 11 interviews each on average over aperiod of nine weeks. However, two interviewers in Leicester and Birmingham wereable to secure the co-operation of staff at drop-in centres for blind and partiallysighted people and were, therefore, able to benefit from the excellent connections thatthese organisations had with local blind and partially sighted people.

4.2.4. Data processing

Data was first entered in the Excel program with a unique identification number andthen transferred to SPSS for analysis. Frequency tables were created to check thecategories of all variables and to identify coding errors to ensure that they wereconsistent with the original records. Different consistency checks were then carried outbetween the variables to ensure the integrity of the data. Finally, a clean data set wasgenerated to produce a variety of tables and graphs. Tables were prepared for almostall variables included in the questionnaire and SPSS outcomes were presented with a


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number along with percentages either in a tabular format or in a graphicalrepresentation. Additional cross tables were also prepared by controlling some socio-demographic aspects and presented in a tabular format indicating both number andpercentages.

Appropriate statistical tests were performed for relevant characteristics, eg age andsight level of respondents relating to some selected responses. In this instance it wasnot feasible to use random sampling owing to the unavailability of reliable data on thesampling population to work from. Other practical implications, such as time and cost,made a thoroughly comprehensive sampling method prohibitive. Hence stratifiedopportunity sampling was utilised in this study. However, it is a well establishedresearch principle that any sample that includes at least 200 cases is deemed to berepresentative. In this instance this study utilised a sample size of 260 respondents.Therefore the study is very confident that the sample is representative of blind andpartially sighted people of Asian origin and descent.

4.3. Key finding 1: About the respondents

4.3.1. Regional distribution of interviews

Figure 1 shows the number of valid interviews that were successfully completed ineach region.

Figure 1. Distribution of respondents according to region (N=260).


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25 per cent of interviews were conducted in London, 33 per cent in Leicester, 21 percent in Birmingham and 21 per cent in Bradford and Manchester. The number ofinterviews conducted in Leicester was relatively high compared with other regions. Thiswas primarily because of the co-operation of a community centre which offered a widerange of activities for blind and partially sighted people. Leicester is home to one ofthe largest Indian communities living outside India. Figures obtained from LeicesterCity Council (2009) count 72,000 Indian residents amongst its population, the highestfor any single area in the UK.

4.3.2. Ethnicity and gender

Overall 60 per cent interviews were conducted with respondents of Indian origin,29 per cent of the interviews were conducted with respondents of Bangladeshi originand 11 per cent of the interviews were conducted with respondents of Pakistani origin.Table 1 shows the ethnicity of respondents.

Table 1. Ethnicity of respondents (N=260)

There were more male respondents (57 per cent) than female respondents (43 percent). This reflects the fact that the male respondents were easier to identify andapproach through community networks than the female respondents, some of whomare part of a ‘hard-to-reach’ population in many areas. The decision not to use agender specific quota system in the research also contributed to the unequalparticipation of male and female respondents. Table 2 shows the gender breakdown.

Table 2. Gender breakdown of respondents (N=260)


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Ethnicity of respondents Number of respondents Per cent

Indian 157 60.3%

Bangladeshi 75 28.8%

Pakistani 28 10.8%

TOTAL 260 100%

Gender of respondents Number of respondents Per cent

Male 148 57%

Female 112 43%

TOTAL 260 100%

4.3.3. Place of interviews and gender of respondents

Table 3 shows that the majority of the interviews were conducted either atrespondents’ homes (65 per cent) or community centres (33 per cent). A smallernumber of interviews were carried out in places of worship (five per cent) and theworkplace (one per cent). Of all the female respondents interviewed, the number offemale respondents interviewed at home (61 per cent) was lower than the number ofmale respondents (68 per cent) interviewed at home. By contrast, the number of malerespondents interviewed in community centres (28 per cent) was lower compared withfemale respondents (39 per cent). This difference is readily explained because oneresearcher located a large number of female respondents at a community centre inLeicester. It is also noteworthy that the relatively small number of interviews that werecarried out in the workplace were carried out with male respondents only.

Table 3. Place of interview by gender

4.3.4. Age of respondents

Table 4 shows a spread of the age groups that participated in the research. Themajority of respondents (79 per cent) were between the ages of 45-74. Only 12 percent were between the ages of 18-44. Furthermore, 14 per cent of respondents werebetween 75-84 years of age and only five per cent over 85 years of age. The older agegroup, often first-generation emigrants, were usually only fluent in their nativelanguage. Members of older age groups tended to spend more time at home andconsequently were far less likely to use outside facilities (including cinemas) than theiryounger counterparts.


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Place of interviewMale respondents(N=148)

Female respondents(N=112)

Home 68% 61%

Community centre 28% 39%

Workplace 2% 0%

Place of worship 3% 0%

Table 4. Age of respondents (N=260)

4.3.5. Types of interviews and the language used for interviews

The overwhelming majority of the interviews (84 per cent) were conducted face-to-face while the remainder (16 per cent) were conducted over the telephone.

Figure 2. Type of interview (N=260)


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Age of respondents Number of respondents Per cent

18-24 years 8 3.1%

25-34 years 26 10%

35-44 years 22 8.5%

45-54 years 47 18.1%

55-64 years 53 20.4%

65-74 years 55 21.2%

75-84 years 37 14.2%

85+ years 12 4.6%

TOTAL 260 100%

Respondents were offered a choice of languages in which the interviews could beconducted. The majority of respondents (78 per cent) selected their native languagewhile 22 per cent preferred to speak in English. The number of interviews conducted incommunity languages were as follows:

Table 5. Language used for the interview (N=260)

Because of their language preference, interviews with 10 per cent of the respondentsfrom the Indian origin were actually conducted in Urdu while one Bengali respondentand a Pakistani respondent were interviewed in Hindi. Here it is relevant to note thatnearly all Asians, even young British-Asians from non-Hindi speaking communities,have an adequate knowledge of the Hindi language to be able to follow the story linesof contemporary Bollywood films.

4.3.6. About respondents’ eye sight

When respondents were asked to describe the current condition of their eyesight, justover one-third (34 per cent) reported that they defined themselves as blind. Of theremainder, two out of three respondents (66 per cent) stated that they definedthemselves as partially sighted (Table 6).

Table 6. Condition of respondent eye sight (self-assessment) (N=260)


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Language Number of respondents Per cent

Gujarati 71 27.3%

Bengali 66 25.4%

English 58 22.3%

Urdu 48 18.5%

Hindi 17 6.5%

TOTAL 260 100%

Frequency Per cent Cumulative

Blind 88 34% 34

Partially sighted 172 66% 100

TOTAL 260 100% 100%

When asked whether they were registered blind or partially sighted, 35 per cent saidthey were registered as partially sighted while 32 per cent of the respondents reportedbeing registered as blind as table 7 shows.

Table 7. Are you registered as blind or partially sighted?

The remaining 15 per cent of respondents had not registered and an additional 18 percent did not know whether they were registered or not, often because they were“looked after by others”, ie family members.

4.4. Key finding 2: About television and DVD viewing habitsRespondents were asked to identify the level and type of difficulty they had whilewatching television from a list of options. Only a small number of respondents, eightper cent, said that they had no difficulty following programmes/films on television.

However, many respondents reported experiencing the following difficulties:

52 per cent had difficulty in seeing the buttons on the remote control

A similar percentage (52 per cent) said that they were unable to see the fine detailson the television screen

44 per cent had difficulty seeing the picture on the television screen

Just under half of all respondents (49 per cent) had difficulty seeing text on thetelevision screen

22 per cent could not see anything on the television screen.


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Frequency Per cent

Blind 92 35.4%

Partially sighted 83 31.9%

Don’t know 46 17.7%

Neither 39 15%

TOTAL 260 100%

Table 8. When watching TV, do you have any of the following? (N= 260)

This data clearly lends support to the belief that sight problems have a significantimpact on a blind or partially sighted person’s experience of watching aprogramme/film on television or DVD.

Respondents were also asked what sort of adjustments they made when watchingtelevision and/or DVDs or whether they used any visual aids to improve their visualcapacity. The most common coping strategies were as follows:

45 per cent of respondents stated that they simply picked up as much as possiblefrom the sound of the programme/film

39 per cent reported that they wore stronger glasses to improve their vision

29 per cent stated that they sat closer to the television screen

24 per cent relied on the assistance of family members or friends to explain to themwhat was happening on the screen

Table 9 (overleaf) provides further details of strategies employed by respondents toimprove their television and DVD viewing.


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Multiple responses Frequency Per cent

Difficulty seeing the buttons on the remote control 134 51.5%

Difficulty seeing the fine detail on the TV screen 134 51.5%

Difficulty seeing text on the TV screen 127 48.8%

Difficulty seeing the picture on the TV screen 114 43.8%

Able to see the light of the TV screen 84 32.3%

Cannot see anything on the TV screen 58 22.3%

Do not find any difficulty following what is going on the screen

21 8.1%

Table 9. What adjustments do you make when watching television or DVD? (N=260)

It is noteworthy that only a small minority (three per cent) of the respondents,reported that they had used AD at some point in the past. Interestingly, only three percent of all respondents stated that they never watched television or DVDs.

4.4.1. Watching Bollywood films on television

A large majority of the respondents reported that they liked watching Bollywood filmson a variety of television channels with a fifth of the sample watching a Bollywood filmon television every day. But a quarter of the sample said that they never watchedBollywood films on television at all.

19 per cent of the respondents stated that they watched a Bollywood film once aday on television.

15 per cent of the respondents said that they watched a Bollywood film a couple oftimes a week on television.

11 per cent of the respondents said that they watched a Bollywood film once aweek on television.


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Just pick up as much as possible from the sound ofthe film or programme

117 45%

Wear special stronger glasses 101 39%

Get closer to the television screen 76 29%

Ask my friends or family members to assist byexplaining what happens on the screen

63 24%

Use residual sight to watch 54 21%

Use a large screen television 23 9%

Adjust the lighting in the room 17 7%

Use a magnifier 16 6%

Adjust the screen settings 10 4%

Make none of these adjustments 10 4%

Use AD to explain what happens on the screen 8 3%

Never watch television or DVD(s) 7 3%

Four per cent of respondents said that they watched Bollywood films once afortnight on television.

10 per cent of the respondents indicated that they watched a Bollywood film once amonth on television.

Five per cent of the respondents stated that they watched a Bollywood film onceevery three months on television.

Eight per cent of respondents said that they watched a Bollywood film once a yearon television.

27 per cent of the respondents said that they never watched a Bollywood film ontelevision.

Overall, 73 per cent of respondents stated that they watched Bollywood films onvarious television channels at least once a year.

Table 10 below shows the frequency of respondents broken down by sight level whowere regular watchers of Bollywood films and those who were not interested inBollywood films.

(Notes: Sight level groupings are based on self-reported assessment as blind orpartially sighted. Those who never watched Bollywood films on TV were categorised as“not interested”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a monthwere categorised as “watch often”)

Table 10. Watching Bollywood films on television by sight levels (N=217)

Chi-Square = 2.01, 1 d.f, p=0.103 (Not Significant) N of valid cases 217. *Figures rounded to nearest whole number.

When comparing groups by sight level, no significant difference was found betweenthose who reported that they were blind and those who reported that they werepartially sighted in terms of how regularly they watched Bollywood films on television(p=0.103).

Table 11 shows frequency of watching Bollywood films on television by age groups.


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Sight level Not interested Watch often Total

Blind 25% 75% 100%

Partially sighted 35% 66% 100%*

TOTAL 31% 69% 100%

(Note: Those who never watched Bollywood films on television were categorised as“not interested”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a monthwere categorised as “watch often”)

Table 11. Watching Bollywood films on television by age groups (N=217)

Chi-Square = 3.99, 2 d.f, p=0.135 (Not significant). N of valid cases 217. *Figures rounded to nearest whole number.

No significant difference was found between age groups in terms of how regularly theywatched Bollywood films on television (p=0.135).

4.4.2. Watching a Bollywood film on the DVD

Table 12 shows how respondents reported their frequency of watching Bollywood filmson a DVD.

Table 12. How often do you currently watch Bollywood films on DVD?


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Age group Not interested Watch often Total

Young adult (18-44) 21% 80% 100%*

Middle age (45-74) 38% 62% 100%

Older adult (75+) 30% 70% 100%

TOTAL 31% 69% 100%

Age group Frequency Per cent Cum %

About once a day 14 5.6% 5.6%

About a couple of times a week 15 6% 11.5%

About once a week 20 7.9% 19.4%

About once a fortnight 9 3.6% 23%

About once a month 21 8.3% 31.3%

About once every three months 30 11.9% 43.3%

About once a year 24 9.5% 52.8%

Never 119 47.2% 100%

TOTAL 252 100%

Table 12 shows that one in five watched a Bollywood film on DVD at least once aweek, but almost half (47 per cent) of the respondents never watched Bollywood filmson DVD. This is probably because a significant number of the respondents did not ownor did not have access to, or found it difficult to use a DVD player. (See table 15 forfurther details.)

Table 13 shows the frequency of watching Bollywood films on DVD by sight level.(Note: Sight level groupings are based on self-reported assessment as blind or partiallysighted. Those who never watched Bollywood films on TV were categorised as “notinterested”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a month werecategorised as “watch often”)

Table 13. Watching Bollywood films on DVD by sight levels (N=198)

Chi-Square = 1.01, 1 d.f, p=0.198 Not Significant (p=NS). N of valid cases 198

When comparing groups by sight level, no significant difference was found betweenthose who reported that they were blind and those who reported that they werepartially sighted in terms of how regularly they watched Bollywood films on DVD(p=0.198).

Table 14 shows the frequency of watching Bollywood films on DVD by age groups.(Note: Those who never watched Bollywood films on TV were categorised as “notinterested”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a month werecategorised as “watch often”.)


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Sight level Not interested Watch often Total

Blind 55% 45% 100%

Partially sighted 63% 37% 100%

TOTAL 60% 40% 100%

Table 14. Watching Bollywood films on DVD by age groups (N=198)

Chi-Square = 17.40, 2 d.f, p=0.000 (p<0.001). N of valid cases 198

Table 14 shows a significant difference (p< 0.001) between age groups in terms oftheir regularity in watching Bollywood films on DVD. Younger respondents (18-44)were more likely to watch Bollywood films often on DVD than older respondents.

4.4.3. Factors that affect the viewing of Bollywood films

When asked to identify factors that stopped them from watching Bollywood films ontelevision or DVD, 20 per cent of the respondents said that they were not interested inwatching Bollywood films. A further four per cent of the respondents stated that theywere not interested in watching television or DVD at all. However, over 42 per cent ofthe respondents reported that they did not watch Bollywood films either on televisionor DVD as a result of their sight problem. Another 14 per cent of the respondentsstated that they were either unfamiliar with DVD players or found them too difficult tooperate.

Table 15 (overleaf) shows the factors which stopped respondents from watchingBollywood films on television or DVD.


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Age group Not interested Watch often Total

Young adult (18-44) 31% 69% 100%

Middle age (45-74) 62% 38% 100%

Older adult (75+) 71% 29% 100%

TOTAL 60% 40% 100%

Table 15. Factors that stop you watching Bollywood films on TV or DVD

Further investigation of these responses by sight level and age groups is set out overleaf.

(Note: “Find too difficult” consists of respondents who found it too difficult to followBollywood films due to their sight problem, and those who found it difficult to use aTV/DVD player; “Not interested” consists of those who were specifically not interestedin Bollywood films and those who were not interested in watching TV/DVD in general).


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Multiple responses Frequency Percent

I find it difficult to follow Bollywood films because ofmy sight problem

108 42%

I am not interested in watching Bollywood films 53 20%

Nothing stops me from watching Bollywood films ontelevision or DVD

46 18%

I find it too difficult to use a DVD player 36 14%

I find it too difficult to use a television 25 10%

I do not own a DVD player 19 7%

I don’t have time to watch television or DVDs 18 7%

I have no access to a DVD player 17 7%

I am not interested in watching television or DVD 9 4%

Other 5 2%

I do not own a television 4 2%

I have no access to a television 1 0%

TOTAL 260

Table 16. Factors that prevent viewing of Bollywood films on TV or DVD by sightlevels

Note: This was a multicode question meaning some respondents may have chosenmore than one response. This table shows the percentages of each group who choseparticular responses.

When comparing groups by sight level in terms of factors that prevent viewing ofBollywood films on TV or DVD, table 16 shows that a higher proportion of blindrespondents reported finding it too difficult to operate a TV/DVD player (87 per centcompared to 37 per cent partially sighted). A higher proportion (29 per cent) of thepartially sighted respondents was not interested in watching Bollywood films on TV orDVD compared to the blind respondents (8 per cent). Likewise, a higher proportion ofthe partially sighted group reported that nothing stopped them from watchingBollywood films on TV or DVD.

Table 17. Factors that prevent viewing of Bollywood films on TV or DVD by agegroup



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Whole sample(N=260)

Young adult(N=56)

Middle aged(N=100)

Older adult(N=104)

Find too difficult to use

52% 39% 54% 58%

Not interested 22% 11% 28% 22%

Nothing stops me 18% 12% 14% 13%

Whole sample(N=260)

Blind (N=88)Partially sighted(N=172)

Find too difficult to use

52% 87% 37%

Not interested 22% 8% 29%

Nothing stops me 18% 7% 23%

It was found that a similar proportion (over 50 per cent) of respondents from themiddle and older age groups reported difficulty in operating equipment whichprevented them from watching Bollywood films on TV or DVD. The younger age group,meanwhile, were less affected (39 per cent) compared to the middle and older agegroups by the difficulty experienced operating equipment. A higher proportion of themiddle and older age group respondents reported no interest in watching Bollywoodfilms on TV or DVD (28 per cent and 22 per cent respectively), while only 11 per centof the younger age group said they were not interested in watching Bollywood filmson TV or DVD.

One possible explanation for the lack of interest in Bollywood films expressed by onein five respondents could be the presence of a large number of Asian and mainstreamsatellite television channels offering a wide range of entertainment content. As theseprogrammes typically have a high level of verbal content they may be more readilyunderstood by blind and partially sighted people than films with complex dreamsequences and songs.

4.5. Key finding 3: About cinema viewing habits

4.5.1. Watching Bollywood films at the cinema

Sixty six per cent of the respondents (172) reported that they never went to a cinema.In such a scenario, it is perhaps not surprising that a large proportion of therespondents stated that they never visited a cinema to watch a Bollywood film, asthese locations were often perceived to be ‘unfriendly’ or ‘unwelcoming’ for blind andpartially sighted people. (See the next section – ‘Factors that affect viewing ofBollywood films in a cinema for further details).

Amongst the sample, those who said that they go to the cinema (34 per cent) werethen asked how often they watched Bollywood films in a cinema. Results are shown intable 18 overleaf.


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Table 18. How often do you currently watch Bollywood films in the cinema?

In terms of watching Bollywood films in a cinema by sight level (table 19), the resultwas similar to the pattern of watching Bollywood films on television and DVD asindicated earlier (see tables 10-14).

Table 19 shows the frequency of watching Bollywood films by sight levels. (Note: Sightlevel groupings are based on self-reported assessment as blind or partially sighted.Those who never watched Bollywood films at the cinema were categorised as “don’twatch”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a month werecategorised as “watch often”).

Table 19. Watching Bollywood films in the cinema by sight levels (N=212)

Chi-Square = 0.92, 1 d.f, p=0.222 (Not significant). N of valid cases 212

When comparing groups by sight level, no significant difference was found betweenthose who reported that they were blind and those who reported that they werepartially sighted in terms of how regularly they watched Bollywood films at the cinema(p=0.222).


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Frequency Percent Cum %

About once a day 7 8% 8%

About a couple of times a week 3 3% 18%

About once a week 6 7% 15%

About once a fortnight 9 10% 28%

About once a month 15 17% 45%

About once every three months 11 13% 58%

About twice a year 10 11% 69%

About once a year 27 31% 100%

TOTAL 100%

Sight level Don’t watch Watch often Total

Blind 85% 15% 100%


TOTAL 81% 19% 100%

Table 20 shows the frequency of watching Bollywood films in a cinema by age groups.(Note: Those who never watched Bollywood films at the cinema were categorised as“don’t watch”, whereas those who watched between once a day and once a monthwere categorised as “watch often”.)

Table 20. Watching Bollywood films in the cinema by age groups (N=212)


When comparing age groups, no significant difference was found between age groupsin terms of how regularly they watched Bollywood films at the cinema (p=0.087).

4.5.2. Factors that affect the viewing of Bollywood films at the cinema

A significant number of respondents (40 per cent) believed that their current sightlevel was a major factor that prevented them from going to the cinema to watchBollywood films (Table 21). Just over a quarter of the respondents (27 per cent) statedthat they found it exceedingly difficult to travel to a cinema while six per cent saidthey didn’t have a cinema showing Bollywood films in close proximity to where theylived. Only a small number of respondents (five per cent) said that they did not havetime to go the cinema. Interestingly, a sizable proportion (22 per cent) of therespondents stated that nothing stopped them going to the cinema to watch aBollywood film.


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Age group Don’t watch Watch often Total

Young adult (18-44) 71% 29% 100%

Middle age (45-74) 80% 20% 100%

Older adult (75+) 87% 13% 100%

TOTAL 81% 19% 100%

Table 21. What factors stop you from watching Bollywood films in a cinema?

Further investigation of these responses by sight level and age group were as follows:

(Note: rows depict breakdown by sight level and age group for responses shown intable 21)

Table 22. Factors that prevent viewing of Bollywood films in a cinema by sightlevels


Table 22 shows that 65 per cent of blind people and 28 per cent of partially sightedpeople find it difficult to watch Bollywood films due to their sight problem.


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Find it difficult to follow Bollywood films in the cinema because of current sight level

105 40%

Find it difficult to travel to the cinema 70 27%

Nothing stops me from watching Bollywood films inthe cinema

56 22%

Not interested in watching Bollywood films 24 9%

Other 21 8%

There are no local cinemas that screen Bollywoodfilms

15 5%

No time to go to a cinema 13 5%

TOTAL 260

Whole sample(N=260)


Difficult due to sightproblem

40% 65% 28%

Difficult to travel 27% 36% 22%

Not interested 9% 11% 8%

Nothing stops me 22% 10% 27%

Similarly a higher proportion of blind people cited ‘difficult to travel’ as a factorpreventing them from watching Bollywood films (36 per cent) compared to partiallysighted people (22 per cent). A higher proportion of partially sighted people reportedthat nothing stops them from viewing Bollywood films at the cinema.

Table 23. Factors that prevent viewing of Bollywood films in a cinema by agegroups


Table 23 shows that a higher proportion of the older age group reported havingdifficulty going to the cinema due to their sight problem. Difficulty travelling alsoseemed to increase with age.

A higher proportion of respondents in the younger age group reported that nothingstops them from viewing Bollywood films at the cinema.

4.5.3 Strategies for watching Bollywood films in a cinema

Respondents were asked to respond to a multiple choice question on how theywatched or followed a Bollywood film in a cinema currently.

12 per cent of the respondents stated that they tried to pick up as muchinformation as possible from the soundtrack/audio clues in the film.

11 per cent stated that they either asked someone typically but not always, a friendor family member, to explain to them what was happening on the screen.

eight per cent reported that they used their residual eye sight to watch a film.


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Whole sample(N=260)

Young adult(N=56)

Middle aged(N=100)

Older adult(N=104)

Difficult due to sightproblem

40% 20% 39% 53%

Difficult to travel 27% 21% 25% 32%

Not interested 9% 13% 8% 9%

Nothing stops me 22% 30% 22% 16%

4.6. About ADDuring the interview, respondents were asked if they had ever heard of AD before thesurvey. The responses were as follows:

56 per cent of the respondents stated that that they had never heard of AD;

27 per cent of the respondents said that they had heard about AD but did not knowwhat AD involved.

12 per cent of the respondents said that they had heard of AD and were aware of itsfeatures.

five per cent of the respondents stated that they were aware of AD and had used it.

Table 24 shows awareness of AD by sight levels. (Note: Sight level groupings are basedon self-reported assessment as blind or partially sighted. Those who had used ADpreviously, or were aware of its features were categorised as “aware”, whereas thosewho had never heard of AD or had heard of it but did not know what the mediuminvolved were categorised as “not aware”.)

Table 24. Awareness of AD by sight levels (N=230)

Chi-Square =6.63, 1 d.f, p=0.009 (p<0.01). N of valid cases 230

When comparing groups by sight level, a significant difference was found betweenthose who reported that they were blind and those who reported that they werepartially sighted in terms of their awareness of AD (p<0.01). The results show that theawareness of AD was higher amongst blind respondents as compared to partiallysighted respondents (as shown in table 24).

Table 25 (overleaf) shows awareness of AD by age group. (Note: Those who has usedAD previously, or who knew of its use were categorised as “aware”, whereas those whohad not heard of AD or had heard of it but did not know what it was were categorisedas “not aware”.)


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Sight level Aware Not aware Total

Blind 28% 72% 100%


TOTAL 19% 81% 100%

Table 25. Awareness of AD by age group (N=230)

Chi-Square =12.33, 1 d.f, p=0.002 (p<0.01). N of valid cases 230

When comparing groups by age group, a significant difference was found between agegroups in terms of their awareness of AD (p<0.001). The results show that theawareness of AD was higher amongst younger respondents.

All respondents were asked to listen to an audio described clip from a Bollywood filmbefore responding to the next question, “Are you more likely to watch a Bollywood filmwith AD than without it?”

Figure 3 below shows that 57 per cent of the respondents stated that on the basis oftheir experience of having an audio described clip from a Bollywood film, they wouldprefer to watch an audio described rather than a non audio described Bollywood film.This suggests that there is a demand for audio described Bollywood films in the UK.

Figure 3. Likelihood of watching audio described Bollywood films compared tonon-audio described Bollywood films


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Age group Aware Not aware Total

Young adult (18-44) 36% 64% 100%

Middle age (45-74) 16% 84% 100%

Older adult (75+) 12% 88% 100%

TOTAL 19% 81% 100%

13%

30%

57%

16 per cent of respondents said that they would be less likely to watch audio describedBollywood films. However, it is also noteworthy that a number of respondents (30 percent) were not sure whether they would be more or less likely to watch a Bollywoodfilm with AD. Amongst other reasons, the most significant factor that came up wasthat accessing AD through television, DVD (or cinema) would require a change inviewing behaviour. For example, to enable AD on television, irrespective of theplatform – Freeview, Cable or Satellite – one is required to navigate through variouson-screen menus using the remote control. For many blind and partially sighted first-time or novice users of AD, this a daunting prospect. Furthermore, it has already beenestablished that a significant number of respondents found it difficult to engage withthe buttons on the remote control which only complicates matters. It seems likely,therefore, that the introduction of more accessible technology would significantlyboost demand for AD amongst those who are nervous about its current complexity.

Table 26 shows reported likelihood of watching audio described Bollywood films bysight level. (Note: Sight level groupings are based on self-reported assessment as blindor partially sighted.)

Table 26. Likelihood of watching audio described Bollywood films compared tonon-audio described Bollywood films by sight levels (N=183)

Chi-Square = 2.88, 1 d.f, p=0.064 (p<0.10). N of valid cases 183.

Table 26 shows marginally significant difference in terms of reported likelihood ofwatching audio described Bollywood films between sight levels. Those who reportedthat they were blind were slightly more likely to report a likelihood of watching audiodescribed Bollywood films, although the difference between the two groups was notlarge.

Overall, the majority of respondents across all sight levels reported that they would bemore likely to watch Bollywood films if they were audio described.


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Sight level More likely Less likely Total

Blind 87% 13% 100%


TOTAL 81% 19% 100%

Table 27 shows reported likelihood of watching audio described Bollywood films byage groups.

Table 27. Likelihood of watching audio described Bollywood films compared tonon-audio described Bollywood films by age group (N=183)


Table 27 shows a significant difference in terms of the reported likelihood of watchingaudio described Bollywood films between age groups. While across all age groups, themajority of respondents reported that they were more likely to watch audio describedBollywood films, this was less pronounced in the younger age group, where a largerproportion (32 per cent) reported they would be less likely to watch Bollywood films ifthey were audio described.

4.7. Preferred mediums for accessing information aboutnew products/servicesThe last question in the research topic guide dealt with methods preferred by Asianblind and partially sighted people for accessing information about new services or newproducts. Once established these preferred mediums could then potentially be used tocreate awareness about services such as availability of AD on UK television channels.

The rank order of most popular sources was:

family and friends

radio

television

local organisations

talking newspapers.


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Age group More likely Less likely Total

Young adult (18-44) 68% 32% 100%

Middle age (45-74) 81% 19% 100%

Older adult (75+) 88% 12% 100%

TOTAL 81% 19% 100%

4.7.1. Top five general sources of information

Please see figure 4 for further details of the ranking.

Figure 4. Top five sources of information (N=260)

Figure 4 shows the top five sources of information for products and/or services forblind and partially sighted people as chosen by respondents in this study wereestablished as:

49.2 per cent of the respondents reported family and friends as a source ofinformation

40.8 per cent of the respondents reported radio as a method for accessinginformation

33.8 per cent of the respondents selected television as one of their significantmediums for getting information

28.1 per cent of the respondents selected local organisations as a method forgetting information

19.6 per cent of the respondents chose talking newspapers as a source forinformation about services/products for blind and partially sighted people.

While respondents also chose other sources of information, figure 4 above only showsthe top five sources.

The top five sources of information were also considered by sight level and age groups.


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Table 28. General sources of information by sight levels


Table 28 shows that a higher proportion of blind respondents (48 per cent) use radioas their source of information compared to partially sighted respondents (37 per cent).There was also a difference between groups when comparing television as a source ofinformation for the blind (26 per cent) and partially sighted (38 per cent) respondents.A higher proportion of the partially sighted respondents (57 per cent) used theirfriends and family as a source of information whilst 34 per cent of blind respondentsused the same source. 45 per cent of blind respondents utilised local organisations forinformation whilst 19 per cent of partially sighted respondents utilised the same forinformation. Talking newspapers were used as a source of information by 33 per cent ofblind respondents and 13 per cent of partially sighted respondents.

Table 29. General sources of Information by age groups



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Whole sample(N=260)


Radio 41% 48% 37%

Television 34% 26% 38%

Friends/family 49% 34% 57%

Local organisations 28% 45% 19%

Talking newspapers 20% 33% 13%

Whole sample(N=260)

Young adult(N=56)

Middle aged(N=100)

Older adult(N=104)

Radio 41% 50% 36% 40%

Television 34% 32% 34% 35%

Friends/family 49% 43% 53% 49%

Local organisations 28% 20% 24% 37%

Talking newspapers 20% 5% 19% 28%

Table 29 shows that 50 per cent of respondents from the younger age group used theradio as a source of information, whilst the middle and older age groups used the samesource comparatively less at 36 per cent and 40 per cent respectively. Television as asource of information was used by the younger (32 per cent), middle (34 per cent) andolder (35 per cent) age groups at similar proportions. The younger age group reportedusing friends and family as a source of information slightly less than the other groups(43 per cent, compared to 53 per cent and 49 per cent). A higher proportion of olderrespondents reported using local organisations as a source of information (37 per cent,compared to 24 per cent middle age and 20 per cent younger). Likewise, use of talkingnewspapers as a source of information appeared to increase with age (5 per centyounger group, 19 per cent middle, 28 per cent older).

4.7.2. Radio as a source for information

After family and friends, radio emerged as the most popular source of information forrespondents. Amongst the 63 respondents who chose radio as one their preferredmediums for sourcing information on products/services for blind and partially sightedpeople:

16 people chose Sunrise Radio

14 people chose the BBC Asian Network

8 people chose Kismat Radio

6 people chose Sabras Radio

4 people chose Radio Punjab

2 people chose Virgin Radio

2 people mentioned getting their information from various digital radio stations

2 people chose the LBC Radio service

2 people chose Leicester Radio

1 person each chose Akash Radio, 87.9 FM, and Talk Sport Radio

1 person mentioned Asian radio stations in general.


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4.7.3. Television as a source for information

After radio, television proved to be the most popular source for information for blindand partially sighted Asian people in the UK. From the data collected, it is evident thatZee TV was the most popular channel amongst respondents, followed by Star Plus,B4U, 4TV and the BBC.

Amongst the 22 respondents who chose television as one their preferred mediums forsourcing information on products/services for blind and partially sighted people:

6 people chose the ZEE television network

3 people each chose the BBC network, Star Plus entertainment channel, B4Unetwork and 4TV (online resource for free television viewing).

2 people chose Sony Entertainment Network

1 person each chose varied sports channels and Alpha Punjabi.

4.7.4. Talking Newspapers as a source for information

Talking Newspapers were the next most popular source for information amongst thetarget audience of this research.

Amongst the 52 respondents who chose newspapers and magazines as one theirpreferred mediums for sourcing information on products/services for blind and partiallysighted people:

38 people chose the Gujarati Talking Newspaper, produced and distributed by theVista Community Centre in Leicester

6 people chose the Leicester Mercury Talking Newspaper, again produced anddistributed by the Vista Community Centre in Leicester

4 people chose the Gujarati News-line

2 people chose the London based Kiran Talking Newspaper which is available in 3languages – Hindi, Gujarati and Bengali

2 people chose Hindi Talking Newspapers in general.

With the exception of Kiran Talking Newspaper, which has a Bengali, a Gujarati and aHindi version, other talking newspapers are either targeted at specific language groupsor at populations in particular localities.


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4.7.5. Mainstream newspapers and magazines as a source for information

Mainstream newspapers and magazines were also an important source of informationfor accessing data on products and services for blind and partially sighted people.Amongst the 13 respondents who chose newspapers and magazines as one theirpreferred mediums for sourcing information on products/services for blind and partiallysighted people:

6 people chose the Daily Jung newspaper

2 people each chose the Ausaf Newspaper and RNIB Insight Magazine

1 person each chose a gardening magazine, The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mail.

4.8. ConclusionThis research project reports on interviews with 260 blind and partially sighted peoplefrom Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities spread across London,Birmingham, Leicester and Bradford in the UK.

4.8.1. Main findings

The main findings of our research study are:

Out of a sample of 260 blind and partially sighted people, only 8 per cent (21) ofthe respondents who participated in this study stated that they had no difficulty infollowing what was happening on the screen ie film/television programme.

The remaining 92 per cent of the respondents resorted to other methods, such asusing audio clues or asking family members or friends to explain to them what wasgoing on, to help them understand what was happening in a film/televisionprogramme. Close to 50 per cent of the sample depended heavily on audio clues tounderstand a film/television programme.

19 per cent (48) of the respondents said they watched a Bollywood film ontelevision everyday despite accessibility issues. No significant difference was foundin the level of frequency of watching Bollywood films between blind people andpartially sighted people. However, there was a difference when comparisons weredrawn between various age categories of the viewers; respondents between the agesof 18-44 came across as more interested in watching Bollywood films on televisionthan their older counterparts.


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About six per cent (14) of the sample stated that they watched a Bollywood film onDVD about once a day. Similarly as above, no significant difference was found in thelevel of frequency of watching Bollywood films amongst blind people and partiallysighted people. However, there was a difference when it came to various agecategories of the viewers; respondents between the ages of 18-44 were seeminglymore interested in watching Bollywood films on DVD than their older counterparts.

The number of people from the sample visiting a cinema to watch a Bollywood filmin the UK was very low when compared to the incidence of people from the samplewatching films on the television. About 15 per cent (13) said they watched aBollywood film in a cinema about once a week. A significant number of respondents,40 per cent (105), believed that their current sight level led to lack of completeunderstanding of the film and was a major factor that prevented them from going tothe cinema to watch Bollywood films.

4.8.2. Current level of awareness of AD and a further likelihood ofwatching a Bollywood film with AD if introduced

The research found that only five per cent of the respondents had any previousexperience of AD. Only 16 per cent of respondents were aware of AD but were notaware of its features and what it had to offer. This indicates that there is a significantlack of awareness about AD amongst blind and partially sighted Asians in the UK.

Overall, the study found that once introduced to AD, over 56 per cent of therespondents stated that they were more likely to watch a Bollywood film that wasaudio described than without it. However, a small percentage (14 per cent), of therespondents failed to express a keen interest in watching audio described Bollywoodfilms. It is significant to point out that the middle-aged (36 per cent) and the olderrespondents (45 per cent) were more likely to watch a Bollywood film than many oftheir younger counterparts (19 per cent).

The research findings suggest that there is a considerable amount of interest inBollywood films amongst blind and partially sighted Asian people in the UK. This isdespite the fact that a relatively small number of people are currently going to thecinema on a regular basis to watch Bollywood films.


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4.8.3. Potential for audio described Bollywood films in the UK

The findings do outline a strong case for the introduction of AD to Bollywood films forsound economic and business reasons. As of now, there are numerous accessibilitybarriers for blind and partially sighted people to be able to fully engage withBollywood films in their current format. Clearly, it is not only the blind and partiallysighted Asian community that stand to benefit from this introduction but the filmindustry as well, who could potentially be widening their audience base if AD is addedto Bollywood films.

It is also important to stress that the introduction of AD to improve Bollywood filmviewing experience for blind and partially sighted Asian people in the UK, may alsobenefit a similar blind and partially sighted community living in the Indiansubcontinent. For example, Pokharel and Mariotti (2004) estimate that India aloneaccounts for 6.7 million of the estimated 161 million blind or partially sighted personsworldwide. It should also be noted that the use of AD in Bollywood films will also havea significant impact on blind and partially sighted people of Asian origin living inDiaspora communities in North America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East (as well asthose from non-Asian backgrounds that are interested in Bollywood films).

It becomes crucial to mention here that none of the above can be achieved withoutthe co-operation of the Indian film industry, popularly known as Bollywood.Consequently, the biggest challenge is to create awareness about AD amongst the keyfilm companies in Bollywood and the potential it has to bridge the gap in accessibilityfor a blind or partially sighted person.


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5. Qualitative research study

5.1 Executive summaryThe main purpose of this qualitative study was to provide insights into the Bollywoodfilm viewing habits of blind and partially sighted Asians living in the UK and in India. Itwas further intended to shed some light on the barriers to viewing these films and todetermine their views on the concept of audio described Bollywood films. In-depthsemi-structured interviews were used to understand the current mode and frequencyof watching Bollywood films within the target group, and to gather views on the leveland style of audio description (AD), language, and other preferences to help identifythe potential for AD in Bollywood films.

The research sought to establish whether the concept of audio described Bollywoodfilms was able to generate a significant amount of interest in the UK and in India.Following on from this, a secondary aim was to establish the preferred method forviewing these films amongst the group.

This in-depth qualitative research project investigated behaviours, attitudes andbarriers to watching Bollywood films among 25 blind or partially sighted Asians livingin the UK and 25 blind or partially sighted people in India. Respondents were agedbetween 8 and 85 years and the sample included regular and occasional viewers ofBollywood films. In the UK, participants were recruited from areas with a highpercentage of Asian population as per the government population census of 2001. InIndia, interviewees were recruited from the All India Federation of the Blind, NationalAssociation for the Blind, and Blind People’s Association.

The majority of people enjoyed watching Bollywood films or had done so before theydeveloped sight problems. They found it hard to understand the film with their currentvisual impairment. Consequently, their enjoyment of the film was reduced. Theoutcome showed that almost everyone who participated in the study was positiveabout the addition of AD to Bollywood films. This was especially pertinent becauseonly a minority of respondents currently use AD and it was essentially a new conceptfor many of those interviewed.

Results from the qualitative study indicated that:

Blind and partially sighted Asian people stated that they were more likely to watchBollywood films if AD was provided.

Enjoyment of the Bollywood film clip was much greater with AD than without it.

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AD improved understanding of the film clip for blind and partially sighted people,with people reporting a greater grasp of location, characters, expressions and theplot.

People wanted AD during songs as well as in the standard story in order to followwhat was happening on the screen.

The majority of the interviewees preferred AD in Hindi, compared with description inEnglish. People commented that this was the language of the film, hence makingthe ‘flow’ simpler and easier to understand and enjoy.

Findings from the trials in the UK and India were similar in nature, with the onlydifferentiating factor being that people in India asked for fewer details, such as detailsof the clothes that the characters were wearing in the film clip and their significance,in the description. This could be because of increased familiarity with Bollywood filmsand their overall set-up. The study showed that there is a huge unmet need for audiodescribed Bollywood films in the UK and India with a clear preference for thedescription to be in Hindi. This provision has the potential to have a significantemotional impact on the lives of blind and partially sighted people who love films andview them as an all-encompassing experience providing a blissful escape from the dailyhumdrum of ordinary existence.

5.2. Introduction to AD and the relevant film industryWatching films and visiting the cinema are popular activities for many people, includingblind and partially sighted people. Major UK distributors for Hollywood films such asWarner Bros Distributors, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures UK, Twentieth CenturyFox Film Corporation, Paramount Pictures UK, Universal Pictures UK, PathéDistribution and Sony Pictures Releasing increase the accessibility of their films by pro-viding subtitling for deaf and hearing impaired audiences and audio description (AD)for blind and partially sighted people on almost one hundred per cent of their UKreleases.

As per the information available on www.yourlocalcinema.com, more than 300 cinemasof the total 727 cinemas across the UK are now equipped with a system that providesan AD service. AD is delivered through a special headset that is collected from the boxoffice and worn in the cinema during the screening. In addition, the majority ofHollywood DVD distributors include AD on their UK mainstream DVD releases.

The Indian film industry, popularly known as Bollywood, produces close to 800 filmsper year, making it not only the dominant national film industry, but perhaps the


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largest in the world. Adlabs Films, Studio 18, Eros International, Yash Raj Films andUTV distribute the lion’s share of Bollywood and Indian film releases. Key territoriesinclude the UK, the US, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates, aside from thehome ground distribution. For the Asian diaspora spread across the globe, these filmsperhaps act as an important cultural connection to their roots. The Indian Film Industrytoo, is equally keen to reach out to its global audience of Indian origin. In 2006, out of53 Bollywood releases in the UK, four grossed more than £1m and the segmentaccounted for almost 2 per cent of the entire UK market. (Factsheet on UK Cinemagoing, 2006, Film Distributor’s Association.)

Bollywood films are released with English language subtitles in the overseas marketswhich primarily target foreign language speakers, but these subtitles also improve theaccessibility for deaf and hard of hearing people. In contrast, AD is not provided onany Bollywood film. As a result, the films continue to remain completely inaccessible toblind and partially sighted people.

Saksham Trust, a voluntary organisation based in New Delhi has experimented with theconcept of audio described Bollywood films. It has produced audio described versionsof popular films such as “Black”, “Munnabhai MBBS”, and “Hanuman”, amongstothers. These films are produced as special products for blind people with a singlemixed audio track which includes the AD. Video CDs of these films are sold at anominal price to members of associations working for blind and partially sightedpeople in India. They can also be ordered over the phone or by email. But despite itspopularity within the associations, the product fails to reach the majority of the targetaudience because of a limited distribution network.

Through this research, RNIB sought to investigate the potential demand for audiodescribed Bollywood films, both in the mainstream cinema and on mainstream DVDs,and make recommendations on how best to provide this service.

While we understand that there is a worldwide audience for Bollywood films, the focusof this research was on establishing whether there was a demand for AD from blindand partially sighted Asian people living in the UK and India only. RNIB, as a UKcharity, is interested in both: improving access to Bollywood films for blind andpartially sighted people living in the UK and in working collaboratively with otherorganisations representing blind and partially sighted people around the world.

As the Bollywood film industry is based in India, the opinions of the Indian domesticaudience were also taken into account to add weight to this research. In reality, anyintroduction of AD on Bollywood films is likely to benefit blind and partially sightedpeople around the world who watch Bollywood films.


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5.2.1. Aims and objectives

The qualitative research aimed to:

Explore Bollywood film viewing habits of blind and partially sighted people withinthe Asian community in the UK and in India.

Investigate their attitude towards AD.

Investigate their specific preferences and needs in relation to AD of Bollywood films.

Investigate response to audio description over songs.

Please note that while 50 interviews were completed, the findings are not necessarilyrepresentative of all those who watch or do not watch Bollywood films. However, theseresults provide valuable insights into people’s viewing habits and attitudes toBollywood films and AD.

In order to establish the existence of a potential market for audio described Bollywoodfilms in the UK, a parallel quantitative study was carried out amongst 260 blind andpartially sighted people from the Asian community who are interested in Bollywoodfilms in the UK. Details of this study can be found in chapter 4 of this report.

5.2.2. Approach

This study involved individual in-depth interviews with a total of 50 blind and partiallysighted Asian people (25 people living in the UK and 25 people living in India). ABollywood film clip with and without AD was played during each interview. All theinterviews were conducted face to face, with the majority lasting between 30-45minutes.

In each case, a semi-structured questionnaire and topic guide were used as reference,with scope to explore other related issues or topics which arose during the interview.Informed consent to participate in the study and for the interview to be recorded fortranscription was obtained from all participants. Respondent demographics were alsoobtained during the interviews.

The topic guide is attached as Appendix 1.

In brief, participants were shown a three-minute clip from a film without AD followedby questions based on the clip, to ascertain their understanding of the clip. The sameclip was then played with AD in the language preferred by the respondent, (thechoices being Hindi or English). This was then followed by the same set of questions,to gauge any change in their understanding of the clip.


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Respondents were then played the clip a third time, this time with the AD in thealternate language (Hindi/English). Respondents were then asked to provide views andinformation on AD language preferences.

The clip was played on a laptop and large headphones were used to listen to the clipto maintain the aural clarity.

The rationale for selecting this method was:

People with visual impairments often suffer from additional disabilities includinghearing impairments; hence a face to face interview was considered appropriate withlarge headphones being used to hear the clip to shut out the surrounding noise.

The semi-structured questioning approach allowed considerable flexibility in thediscussion, allowing the researcher to probe further when required.

This was deemed to be the best method to capture how AD makes a difference inthe viewing of films by blind and partially sighted people.

5.2.3. Sample

The in-depth qualitative research project was completed with participation from 25blind and partially sighted Asians living across the UK, and a further 25 blind andpartially sighted people in India.

The sample consisted of people with varying levels of visual impairment, of differentages and gender, regular and non-regular viewers of Bollywood films, regular oroccasional users of AD and non-users of AD.

UK sampleThree geographical areas within the UK were chosen based on the regional distributionof the Asian community as per the government population census of 2001. (Fig.1)

London

Bradford and Leeds in Yorkshire

Coventry and Birmingham in the West Midlands

Altogether:

4 people in Bradford with varying sight impairments were interviewed at Bradnet, alocal organisation for people with disabilities

9 people in Leeds were interviewed at the annual meeting of the Asian BlindAssociation


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6 people were interviewed in Coventry at the fortnightly gathering of localcommunity-based group

6 people were interviewed in London through referrals by Kiran Talking newspaper.

Figure 1. Regional distribution of Asian communities

Source: Office for National Statistics, April 2001 Census. The Census recorded an Asiancommunity of 733,587 in London; 364,590 in the West Midlands; 215,227 in theNorth West; 210,172 in Yorkshire and the Humber; 163,106 in the South East; 157,035in the East Midlands; 108,281 in the East; 48,805 in Scotland; 30,332 in the NorthEast; 27,971 in the South West; 21,947 in Wales and 2,508 in Northern Ireland.

The participants were found through the RNIB Black and Minority Ethnic supportteam’s networks within the Asian community, opportunistic sampling, and peerreferrals.


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Indian sampleResearch trials in India were conducted with support from the All India Federation ofthe Blind and National Association for the Blind in New Delhi and Blind People’sAssociation in Ahmedabad. The distribution of the respondents was as follows:

11 people were interviewed at All India Federation of the Blind, New Delhi.

7 people were interviewed at the National Association for the Blind, New Delhi

7 people were interviewed at Blind People’s Association, Ahmedabad.

The only differentiating feature between the UK and the Indian sample was theadditional age bracket for respondents in India. Even though their participation waspurely coincidental, respondents between the ages of 8-17 years from India added anextra dimension to the study and made the report even more comprehensive in termsof its sample. Consent to participate was obtained from the parent or guardian forchildren under 16 years.

5.2.4. Film material

A three-minute clip from the Hindi film, “Saawariya” was used in this study. The filmwas released by Sony Pictures Entertainment in November 2007. The AD for thematerial was produced by Independent Television Facilities Centre (ITFC) Limited inassociation with RNIB specifically for the purpose of this study.

The user trial presented the respondents with the audio described clip in twolanguages: Hindi, being the language of Bollywood films, and English, as it would bethe first language of some respondents living in the UK. It should be noted here that,more often than not, a mix of the two languages was used for the interviews so thedominant language used has been specified as the language of the interview.

In the English version, the clip included voiced English subtitles along with the AD sothat a blind or partially sighted non-Hindi speaker who watches Bollywood films couldunderstand the clip. The Hindi version only included a Hindi AD track. This differencewas picked up by respondents, as discussed in the section on language preferences.

In brief, the film is about a free spirited dreamer, who arrives in a surreal town andcharms everyone with his naiveté and innocent charm. It is an anonymous townwashed in blue light, where houses and buildings stand beside wide canals withgondolas floating by.

Essentially, a romantic film, “Saawariya” was overwhelmingly visual, and one of theforemost reasons for choosing this film for use in the research was its heavily visualdramatic presentation, something most often missed by blind and partially sightedpeople.


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A song was deliberately included in the research material to assess how people wouldreact to description over songs. The majority of Bollywood films have a significantamount of musical content and these song and dance routines are woven into thescript. A film’s success often depends on the quality of such musical numbers.

5.3. Results

5.3.1. A summary of characteristics of participants

50 blind or partially sighted people were interviewed in total; 25 people in India and25 people in the UK.

41 people were interviewed in Hindi and 9 were interviewed in English

The respondents were between the ages of 8 to 87 years. The sample wasintentionally kept diverse in age as it could potentially influence the choice that therespondent would make with regards to style, format and language of AD. (Fig. 2,Fig. 3)

Figure 2. Age spread of the 25 respondents in the UK

Two people were aged 18-24; one was aged 25-34; six were aged 35-44; one wasaged 45-54; six were aged 55-64; four were aged 65-74; four were aged 75-84; andone was aged 85+.


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Figure 3. Age spread of the 25 respondents in India

Four people were aged 8-17; two were aged 18-24; six were aged 25-34; two wereaged 35-44; two were aged 45-54; one was aged 55-64; three were aged 65-74; fourwere aged 75-84; and one was aged 85+.

5.3.2. Level of sight impairment

The second question in the topic guide was included to gather information on whatthe respondents were able to see. The interviewees were asked to select all the optionsthat applied to them.

From the sample in the UK, 11 people were registered blind, 5 registered as partiallysighted and 9 people were not registered in either of the two categories. We wereunable to collect any such data from our sample in India as the method of certificationin the country only mentions the kind of disability, ie visual impairment.


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Table 1. Level of sight impairment

From the sample, only 2 people said they would be able to recognise a friend fromacross a road, 8 said that they would be able to recognise a friend from across theroom, 18 people confirmed that would be able to recognise a friend who is an armslength away and 26 people said that they would be able to recognise a person if theygot really close to his/ her face. 30 people said that they would be able to identifyshapes of furniture in a room; however there were 36 people in the sample who,during daytime could tell by the light where the windows were located. 14 peopleamongst the sample confirmed that they could not see anything at all. (Fig. 5)

This table shows us that overall, the respondents tended to have severe sightproblems, and there was a similar spread of answers amongst the Indian and the UKrespondents.


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I can see well enough to recognise a friend across the road.

2 4%

I can see well enough to recognise a friend across a room

8 16%

I can see well enough to recognise a friend who is at arms length away

18 36%

I can see well enough to recognise a friend if you get close to his or her face

26 52%

I can see the shapes of the furniture in a room 30 60%

In a room during daytime, I can tell by the light where the windows are

36 72%

I cannot see anything at all 14 28%

Prefer not to say 0 0%

Total number of participants 50

5.4. Current viewing habits

5.4.1. Film viewing habits

Most blind and partially sighted people interviewed in the UK watched Bollywood filmsat least twice a week on TV or on DVD with a number of them going to the cinema towatch these films.

Three out of the four biggest cinema chains in the UK – Cineworld, Vue and Odeon,now routinely screen Hindi films. Overseas collections are now the second largestcontributor to the revenues of the industry at 9 per cent. In 2007, the overseascollections were estimated at £8.5 billion, up from £7 billion in 2006, translating into agrowth of 21 per cent from the previous year.

But the proportion of blind and partially sighted people watching Bollywood films inIndia was much higher where these films are obviously more easily available onTV/DVD as well as cinemas, potentially indicating a larger market size. Satellitetelevision has helped cinema reach out to a larger audience. There are more than 15movie channels in India that broadcast movies round the clock. Two of the prominentmovie channels reach 35-40 per cent of the 40 million Cable and Satellite (C&S)households in India each week. The four major general entertainment channels show5-10 movies a week and reach 60-70 per cent of the C&S audience every week. Filmsand film based programming account for 25-30 per cent of programming content andare the key viewership drivers for all general entertainment channels. Films on TV havebecome big business, so much so that newly released films air on TV within six monthsof their debut in cinemas. (Source: WHO study, “‘Bollywood’ Victim or Ally”, 2003.)

5.4.2. Current methods of watching television/films

A series of questions were asked to establish the level of difficulty respondentsexperienced when watching TV. Most respondents reported significant difficulty whenwatching TV.

34 people amongst our sample said that they found it difficult to use the remotecontrol and 36 people had difficulty seeing the picture on the TV screen. 40 peoplesaid that they could not see fine detail on the TV screen and an equal number ofpeople said that they found it difficult to see text on the TV screen. 34 people couldsee the light of the TV screen but 18 people from our sample could not see anythingat all on the TV screen. These findings highlight how sight problems affect people’s TVwatching experience.


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Table 2. When watching TV

5.4.3. Following films/television programmes on television with thecurrent level of vision

Some questions were asked to find out what coping strategies people used forwatching TV. 16 people amongst the sample followed a programme/film on the TVusing their residual vision and an equal number of people used stronger glasses. 24people chose to sit closer to the TV screen and only 2 people said that they used amagnifier to help follow a programme/film on TV.


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I have difficulty seeing the buttons on the remotecontrol

34 68%

I have difficulty seeing the picture on the TV screen 36 72%

I have difficulty seeing the fine detail on the TVscreen

40 80%

I have difficulty seeing text on the TV screen 40 80%

I am able to see the light of the TV screen 34 68%

I cannot see anything on the TV screen 18 36%


Table 3. Following a programme on TV/DVD

6 people changed TV settings and an equal number of people adjusted lighting in theroom to enhance the quality of the image. 8 people used a large screen TV on aregular basis and only 8 people reported ever having used AD to follow aprogramme/film. The majority (38) of people depended on friends/family to help withwhat was happening on the screen. 46 people used audio clues as their primary meansof understanding the plot of the programme/film.

The use of audio clues and description by companions were the most used copingmethods.


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I use my residual sight to watch 16 32%

I wear special stronger glasses 16 32%

I get closer to the TV screen 24 48%

I use a magnifier 2 4%

I adjust the screen settings 6 12%

I adjust the lighting in the room 6 12%

I use a large screen TV 8 16%

I ask my friends or family members to assist me byexplaining what happens on the screen

38 76%

I just try to pick up as much as I can from the soundof the film or programme

46 92%

I use audio description to explain to me what hap-pens on the screen

8 16%


Audio cluesThe majority of respondents chose audio clues as their primary means ofunderstanding the screenplay of the film. Having said that, most respondents alsoagreed that Bollywood films are very hard to follow by sound only with their overexhibited dramatics. It was agreed by all that the films have important visualinformation integral to the plot, action and story being told.

“I couldn’t [can’t] see the picture clearly but I have become accustomed towatching my films like this. Films used to be my favourite hobby but they don’tinterest me much these days. How much can you imagine? I end up frustrated.”Female, 55-64 years, UK

“At times, when I am watching a movie, the sound of the film suddenly goes upwhich is generally an indication for me that something has happened or is about tohappen... I don’t come to know... I wait for someone in the film to say somethingand then a song starts... very tough to follow!” Male, 18-24 years, UK

Description from companionsAfter reliance on audio alone, the second most popular method of understanding orfollowing a Bollywood film was asking family members or their friends to describe whatwas happening on the screen. However, a number of respondents also mentioned thatthey were reluctant to ask their companions as it made them feel dependant on thedescriber.

“My sister, [who is] younger to me, tells me that the scene is set in a hill-stationand the heroine is dressed in a sari, of course, unless someone in the film mentionsthat, I don’t come to know and this is not about one film, it happens in everysecond Hindi film, I hate dream sequences, because I never realise when they startand end. But I don’t want to ask my sister to tell me everything, at all times, I feeleven more dependant, if I don’t understand, then I don’t understand!” Female, 35-44 years, UK

“What is the point... it spoils the film for them and for me...” Male, 45-54 years, UK

One of the reasons reported for not going to the cinema to watch Bollywood films wasthat people found it hard to understand the screenplay without any additionalexplanation. People sitting in the immediate vicinity often complained about thedistraction if a companion attempted to assist them with verbal explanations.Although, they often stopped complaining after realising that the person was blind orpartially sighted. People reported that having to tell people about their sight problemlike this was often embarrassing.


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“See, even if I could see, I will not go and watch every film in the cinema, I will onlygo for those films that I want to watch. But yes, very often, I don’t even go thecinema with my family even for the films I want to watch because many times wehave been asked to keep quiet in the cinema. I feel odd.” Male, 25-34 years, India

It is noteworthy that a few respondents who mentioned during the interview that theywere not keen viewers of television programmes or films were older people with littleor no assistance at home. They reported watching religious and news basedprogrammes on television but no other specific programmes. This pattern mightpotentially be a reflection of their inability to comprehend and enjoy other televisionprogrammes on their own.

The blind and partially sighted people interviewed reported relying heavily on theircompanions for a description of important details, thus highlighting the potentialimpact of description on the way blind and partially sighted people see their moviescurrently.

“I went to see Khamoshi, the one with Manisha Koirala, with my son and daughter-in-law a long time back. I loved the music but had no clue what was going on. Icould not understand why everyone around was snivelling. My son during theintermission explained what was going on... though I broadly knew what wasgoing on, but the sequences of scenes in which a deaf and dumb couple firstrealise that their daughter is normal, made a lot of women cry, I just didn’t get it.Understanding a film is important to feel a part of the crowd.” Female, 45-54years, India

It is clear that for the majority of respondents, using audio clues while watching filmsand depending on companions to tell them what’s happening on the screen, were thetwo most popular ways of watching TV, but both the methods were seen as havingserious drawbacks.

“I don’t watch TV/film... I listen to them.” Male, 65-74 years, India

“I don’t know the difference in watching and listening. It has always been the samefor me. So it’s okay... I manage!” Male, 85+ years, UK

Other coping mechanismsRespondents between the ages of 65-85 years and with a history of health problemsleading to poor vision, were more likely to make adjustments themselves to try andimprove the quality of the picture on the TV/cinema screen. Commonly reported waysof doing this were by using special stronger glasses, sitting closer to the TV screen, insome cases using a large screen TV and if nothing else worked, depended heavily ontheir residual vision and their imagination.


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“I was sighted earlier so I just sit there... trying to imagine... what happened,sometimes I am right, sometimes I am wrong!” Male, 55-64 years, UK

5.4.4. Knowledge of AD

When asked, very few people said that they had either heard about AD or used it on aregular basis either in cinemas or on television. Of the 50 people interviewed, onlyeight people, five in the UK and three in India, said that they had heard about AD orused it on a regular basis. The majority were completely unaware of the concept untilthey had heard the film clip with AD during the research study.

5.5. What difference does AD make?

5.5.1. Initial impressions

After watching the short clip with AD during the trial, the majority of the respondentssaid that if AD was generally introduced, watching television or films could be morerelaxing and enjoyable.

Respondents reported that the addition of AD would mean feeling more independentand less isolated as they would be able to watch a film with their friends and familywithout having to depend on their help.

“It made me feel like a normal person, equal to anyone else around, I don’t need toask!” Female, 25-34 years, India

Participants in the interviews were extremely positive about the prospect of watchingand enjoying a Bollywood film if an AD track was provided with the film. Many feltthat this was the only way for them to have complete access to a film.

“Films for me have always been one dimensional. Suddenly with this, you haveadded so many dimensions; I know there are flowers in the boat, there is a lantern;I know the boy keeps his hand over the girl’s in the song!” Male, 64-75 years, India


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5.5.2. Objective measures of understanding

This study aimed to get an objective measure of the difference that AD made to theunderstanding of a film for a blind or partially sighted person.

Interviews revealed that the addition of AD improved the objective understanding ofthe film with regards to plot, characters and location.

In order to obtain this measurement, the interviews included a 3-minute clip whichincluded part of a song from a Bollywood film. The clip was played at three differentstages; the trial started with the blind and partially sighted person watching the clip inits existing format as it was released in the cinema, without AD. In the followingsection, the clip was played with the AD in English or Hindi, depending on thepreference of the participant; the final section consisted of the clip being played withAD in the alternate language.

Synopsis of the clip from Saawariya

It’s night time and the main lead is beside a canal playing with a football. Henotices a mysterious girl standing alone on a bridge holding an umbrella. As hetries to strike up a conversation, she shies away. She runs into a dark alley anddisappears.

We see the girl in the alley being followed by a drunken man from whom she isdesperately trying to hide. Finally, the main lead spots her and tries to woo her bysinging to her.

Each clip was followed by the following questions,

What can you tell me about what happened in the clip?

How many people do you think there were in the clip? (Fig. 4, Fig.5)

What can you tell me about the location? (Fig. 6, Fig. 7)

What is Raj carrying? (Fig. 8, Fig. 9)

What is Raj doing? (Fig. 10, Fig. 11)

What is the woman carrying? (Fig. 12, Fig. 13)

How enjoyable did you find it? (Fig. 14, Fig. 15)

Initially, without AD there was poor understanding of the film and many respondentswere confused about the plot, setting and even the type of film.


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“Was the clip from a horror film? I thought so because the background music wassuch. Yes, I think, it was a horror film.” Female, 35-44 years, UK

“Somewhere near a cemetery because the clip was eerie but then it all changes inthe end when he starts singing!” Male, 45-55 years, UK

“I got a hazy impression that there was a lady and that she came to somewhere,either she is searching for somebody or waiting for somebody... there were a lot ofonlookers in another area... she came to a big building and there was a train thatwas passing by... could be a steam engine... the onlookers were doing somethingelse but they were attracted to her by her scream... so something happened toher... the chap offered her help but she did not want his help. That was it really.”Male, 35-44 years, UK

Responses indicated that for all respondents, despite variances between their sightimpairments, needed additional help to gain a complete understanding of the clip.

Simple questions like how many people were there in the clip, were incorrectlyanswered by 84 per cent of the respondents. The fact that there were only two voicesled most people to believe that there were only two people in the scene and they weresurprised when the clip with AD mentioned the presence of a third character makingthe events of the scene more logical. Even though the third character was silent duringthe scene, his presence was crucial to the plot and what followed after it.


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How many people do you think there were in the clip? (Fig .4, Fig. 5) (OpenQuestion)

Three people (2 correct answers without AD; 44 correct answers with AD)

Other answers:

Two people (32 answers without AD; 4 with AD)Two or three people (8 answers without AD)Three or four people (4 answers without AD)Six people (2 answers without AD)Not sure of the number of people (2 answers without AD)About four people (2 answers with AD)

Correct answer: Three people

Almost correct answers: Two people, two or three people, three or four people,about four people

Without AD: Two people (four per cent of the total number of people interviewed)got the answer right

With AD: 44 people (88 per cent of the total number of people interviewed) got theanswer right


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People were also asked what they know from the clip about the location of the scene.

What do you think the location was? (Fig. 6, Fig. 7) (Open question)

Canal, bridge and alleyway (0 correct answers without AD; 42 correct answerswith AD)

Other answers (50 without AD; 8 with AD):

Tall buildings/street (16 without AD)River (8 without AD)Inside a building or a warehouse (2 without AD)Cemetery (2 without AD)Railway station/railway line (6 without AD)Temple/palace (4 without AD)Around tall buildings (2 with AD)Somewhere outside (6 with AD) Not sure (12 without AD)

Correct answer: A bridge, a canal and then an alleyway

Almost correct answers: tall buildings, around tall buildings, river, somewhereoutside)

Without AD: no one got the answer right

With AD: 42 people (84 per cent of the total number of people) got the answerright.


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What is Raj (male lead) carrying when the clip starts? (Fig. 8, Fig. 9) (Openquestion)

A football (10 correct answers without AD; 48 correct answers with AD)


Maybe a camera (2 without AD)A suitcase (2 without AD)Nothing (2 without AD)Not sure (34 without AD; 2 with AD)

Correct answer: A football

Without AD: 10 people (20 per cent of the total number of people) got the answerright



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What is Raj doing? (Fig. 10, Fig. 11) (Open question)

Playing with the ball (12 correct answers without AD; 36 correct answers withAD)


Helping or following the girl (10 without AD)Following the girl (10 without AD)Not sure (18 without AD; 14 with AD)

Correct answer: Playing/bouncing the ball




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What is the woman carrying when the clip starts? (Fig. 12, Fig. 13) (Openquestion)

Umbrella (12 correct answers without AD; 38 correct answers with AD)


Bangles (2 without AD)Shawl (6 with AD)Don’t remember (6 AD)Not sure (36 without AD)

Correct answer: An umbrella




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Almost a hundred percent of the people were confident answering questions afterhaving seen the clip with AD and got almost all the answers right. Some of theparticipants were also eager to offer details that they had picked up which were notpart of the research questions.

“I know, she is wearing a black skirt, they are in a flower laden gondola.” Female, 13years, India

“The woman is covering her head with a shawl because she is feeling shy.” Female,25-34 years, India

5.5.3. Does better understanding also translate into increasedenjoyment?

Interestingly, while most respondents stated they had enjoyed the film “just a little” or“a fair amount” without AD, almost a hundred per cent of participants rated theirviewing pleasure as “a great deal” when the clip was played with AD. Aside frombenefits such as understanding the film on their own and forming their own opinion,respondents described emotional benefits such as, “feeling part of a group” and “lessalienated”. They also talked about the joy of watching the film and being completelyaware of what was going on without having to seek assistance.

“I understood everything this time. I did not have to concentrate too much so therewas no strain. For me watching a movie is pretty strenuous because I am partiallysighted, I can see quite a bit but then I can’t see a lot. If I don’t want to missanything I have [to] constantly look [peer] at the screen and I don’t enjoy that.This was easier... I did not feel any strain at all.” Female, 25-34 years, UK

“It made all the difference to me because I got everything wrong in the first go...but then in the described version, I even found out what the girl is wearing... whatis happening in the song... the choreography was explained to me... I felt like aregular person.” Female, 45-54 years, UK


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How enjoyable did you find it? (Fig. 14, Fig. 15)

A great deal (0 without AD; 46 with AD)

Just a little (22 without AD; 0 with AD)

A fair amount (18 without AD; 4 with AD)

Not at all (10 without AD; 0 with AD)

Without AD, majority of the people 22 people (44 per cent of the total number ofpeople interviewed) said they enjoyed the clip just a little

With AD, 46 people ( 92 per cent of the total number of people) said they enjoyedthe clip a great deal

Some of the respondents enjoyed little details, which had no relevance to the plot assuch but were part of the props that the director had used to set the scene, such as awall mural from the Mughal period, the elaborate head dress that the woman wore inthe mural, the woman standing beside a tall glass window in front of the canal. A quickmention of these details gave an idea of the atmosphere that the director had createdfor the film.


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18

10

22

46

4

“This is the main bit that people miss... I did not know that there was a bridge...shewas trying to hide when [she] saw another person, a drunken man. These are theimportant bits that make everything so interesting. You end up missing out oneverything if you are like me ...I enjoyed it much more this time... “ Female, 55-64,India

“[The description] makes my life simpler! [ I ] did not understand the story the firsttime... why did she scream... did someone attack her... is he hurting her?” Male,55-64 years, UK

“I did not know what was going on earlier... I thought that there was ghost wherethere was no ghost... nothing of the sort!” Female, 35-44 years, UK

“My favourite film, Gandhi, I want to watch that with audio description. Afterhearing this, I am thinking about all the things that I must have missed from it!”Male, 85+ years, UK

5.5.4. Initial indication of the demand for AD

Of the 50 people interviewed, only eight people, five in the UK and three in India said,that they had heard about AD or use it on a regular basis. The majority werecompletely unaware of the concept until they had heard the film clip with AD duringour research study.

The twenty people within the UK sample, who had never experienced or heard aboutAD, consequently had no knowledge of the features it had to offer and its availabilityon most digital TV channels and in many UK cinemas. One possible reason for thiscould be the large percentage of older people in our sample. Many older peopleseemed resigned to the current state and said that they were used to coping with theirunmet needs. On further probing, it became quite apparent that the reluctance to tryout a new concept stemmed from their fear of dealing with complicated technology.They mentioned that if the process to access AD was simple and easy to follow, theywould be more than willing to go the extra mile, as it meant watching TV with noexternal assistance. When advised that once the TV set top box at their home had beenset up to deliver AD on every programme that has AD, it was only a matter ofswitching the box on and off with no extra buttons to press, respondents were morethan happy to try out the concept. The process of accessing AD on a DVD and incinema was also explained to them; most respondents mentioned that they normallyasked someone in the family to help with their DVD player. It was explained that it wasa single step process to access AD in the cinemas, where they would be given aheadset at the box office which would enable them to receive AD and all they wouldneed to do is switch the headset on.


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However, respondents between the age of 18-44 years, who had never heard of ADand watched TV/films on a regular basis, did not seem concerned about the possiblecomplications that the process might entail, and were keen to pick up furtherinformation on how to access AD in the immediate future. This could relate to theirlevel of comfort with technology.

The situation about awareness of AD was similar in India with twenty-two people beingcompletely unaware of AD. However, currently there are only a few films available inIndia with AD and these are specialist products for blind people, hence availability isvery restricted.

5.5.5. Preferred method for accessing described content

Respondents were asked if they would prefer to watch audio described Bollywood filmson television, on DVD at home or at the cinema. Participant’s first reaction was moreor less unanimous that the medium was not that important and they would watch thefilm nevertheless. With further questioning it emerged that there was a split, with theyounger participants opting for the cinema.

“I would like them in the cinemas because that would mean that I can go with myfriends to watch the film and not keep pulling on their sleeve asking them what’shappening.” Male, 25-34 years, UK

Older respondents, in some cases with additional mobility issues, wished to have it ontelevision or DVD, which they could watch at home.

“I don’t like going out when it’s cold, and I am always cold, so I would rather watchit at home with a cup of tea.” Male, 65-74 years, UK

“I am a little scared now that I can’t see very well, that I will trip and fall. And also, Iget tired by the time I come back.” Female, 45-54 years, India

Responses from the sample in the UK and India were very similar in nature; youngerrespondents between the age of 18-34 opting to watch audio described content in thecinemas and the older respondents wishing to have audio described content onDVD/TV. This was despite the fact that most cinemas in India are not easy to navigatefor blind and partially sighted people.


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5.6. Optimising AD for Bollywood filmsDespite low awareness about the concept of AD, a few respondents were forthcomingwith their suggestions on how to improve the current description. Most responses weresimilar in nature – description over songs, details about plot, characters, props,location described in order of their significance to the understanding of the film shouldbe included in the description.

“Tell me more about what the boy was wearing... settings... ” Male, 18-24 years, UK

“Can you tell me more about their clothes and what the characters look like... howyoung or old are they... what are they wearing... what colours?” Male, 14 years, India

“I think the voice of the film should be lower because at times I could not hear thelady describing everything.” Male, 35-44 years, UK

5.6.1. Language preferences

Research showed that the majority of participants preferred Hindi description to theEnglish description. The reason stated most often was that as it is the language of thefilm, it made the flow simpler and more enjoyable. It also meant that people would notneed to alternate between English and Hindi and hence would not have to concentratethat much.

Perhaps surprisingly, choice for the language of AD was not influenced by age andthere was a clear preference for AD in Hindi.

“Hindi, I can understand English but when you have your own language... it is mucheasier and better. I prefer Hindi/Urdu.” Male, 55-64 years, UK

“Hindi, it is a better one. It integrated better with the film. I can’t speak Hindi but Ican speak Urdu and Punjabi so I can connect better with that. I prefer the Hindione. English version was too intrusive because it was [voicing the] subtitles as wellas [giving audio] description.” Female, 34-44 years, UK

“Hindi – it’s a Hindi film so miss out the real sense of the Hindi film if people speakover it in English... ” Male, 55-64 years, India

One of the factors for people not opting for the English version was the spokensubtitles in English. A majority of respondents mentioned that they were straining tohear the actor’s voices over the spoken subtitles.


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“I don’t think there is any need to have spoke subs[subtitles]... it takes all theenjoyment out of the film... I don’t speak Hindi at home, English is my firstlanguage but I do watch all my Bollywood films in Hindi.” Female, 35-44 years, UK

“English was not as descriptive. It was wrong in places I thought... Hindi was betterin terms of description. Hindi gave me an idea of the surroundings. The Englishone could not get the same essence, the poetry that the Hindi one had.” Male, 45-55 years, UK

In India, virtually all participants expressed a preference for AD in Hindi. Similarly, inthe UK, only 4 of the 25 people interviewed expressed their preference for the Englishversion.

5.6.2. Describing over songs

Bollywood movies are generally melodramatic, with lengthy extravaganzas containing anumber of elements, including foot-tapping song and dance numbers, hapless loversand infuriated parents, love triangles, corrupt politicians, kidnappers, extended familyand siblings separated by fate, themes of sacrifice, dramatic reversals of fortune andconvenient coincidences.

Songs may be worked into the plot so that a character has a reason to sing. It may bea manifestation of a character’s thoughts or predicting an event such as falling in love.Song and dance sequences are often used as a tool for fantasy and often allowcharacters to do things and to go to places that would not be realistic in a traditionalplot line.

As mentioned earlier in the report, music in a Bollywood film is considered a hugeselling point for the film. The songs, in most cases, dominate the promotional material.Film makers spend a significant amount of budget and time on the making of thesesongs and they are widely shown on all music channels in India such as MTV India,B4U and Channel V.

This emphasises the importance of understanding a blind and partially sighted person’sperspective on the significance of providing description over songs in a Bollywood film.

During interviews, a short audio described clip which included a couple of stanzas fromthe song, was included, to explore respondents’ views on AD of songs. To put it mildly,the reaction from the respondents was one of pure joy.

“Oh, the gondola and the flowers and the lantern, I know they were there in thesong. There was a mural of a queen from the Mughal period.” Female, 64-74 years, UK


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“You have explained the song... oh my god! Even my family wouldn’t do that forme!” Female, 25-34 years, UK

The provision of AD over a song was extremely popular and people reported that itgave them an image of things that they wanted to see, rather than what they neededto see in a film. When asked if the description disturbed their enjoyment of the music,it was remarked that music could be enjoyed on the radio and if someone particularlyliked the music then they could buy a music CD, but nothing could replaceexperiencing the songs during the film with complete knowledge of the choreography.

5.6.3. What to include in AD

There was a difference of opinion between the two samples.

Participants in India were more critical of the description than those from the UK. Theywanted fewer details to be mentioned in the description and seemed to deduce moreinformation from the audio clues than their counterparts in the UK.

“I could have done without your telling that the girl is beautiful and she coveringher head with the shawl. I know that from the song, already. But the rest is great.”Female, 24-35 years, India

A possible reason for this is the greater familiarity with the genre of Bollywood films,with these films being easily available on television and being an inherent part of theirdaily lives in India.

The following chapter discusses and sets standards/guidelines for writing audiodescription for Bollywood films.


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6. Proposed AD guidelines for BollywoodfilmsThis chapter outlines proposed guidelines for the production and presentation of ADon Bollywood films.

They are based on the standards provided by Ofcom for broadcasters within the UKwho provide description on a percentage of their programming. The standards havebeen provided in Ofcom’s Code on Television Access Services. They have been slightlyamended based on the findings from this research study on the preference of languagefor audio description and description over musical content.

6.1. What is Audio Description (AD)?AD is a service primarily aimed at blind or visually-impaired people. It comprises acommentary woven around the soundtrack, exploiting pauses to explain on-screenaction, describe characters, locations, costumes, body language and facial expressionsto enhance meaning and enjoyment for blind or visually-impaired viewers.

6.2. UsersWhile people with visual impairments are drawn from all age ranges, a majority willexperience loss of some or all of their vision later in life, for example, as a result ofMacular Degeneration. Accordingly, audio describers should take account of the factthat most potential users of AD will have some sight, or will have had sight at somestage.

6.3 Best practice

6.3.1. What to describe

To the extent relevant to the storyline, AD should describe characters, locations, timeand circumstances, any sounds that are not readily identifiable, on-screen action, andon-screen information.

6.3.2. Characters

Identifying and describing characters is vital to effective AD. Key features (eg “the tallman”, “district attorney Lopez”) should be identified as soon as practicable, to helpidentify the person and avoid the need for long-winded and confusing descriptions.

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But do not give the name away if the plot requires the character’s identity to berevealed at a later date. When describing characters, aspects such as dress, physicalcharacteristics, facial expression, body language, ethnicity and age may be significant.Don’t shy away from using colours or describing a character as pretty, or handsome,where relevant to the story. Generally names (rather than “he” or “she”) are used moreoften than in normal speech, so as to avoid confusing the audience, particularly whenthere are several people taking part in a dialogue.

6.3.3. On-screen action

Wherever possible try to describe at the same time as the action occurs. This isparticularly important with regard to comic situations, where the audience, sighted andvisually impaired, should be able to laugh at the same time. Wherever relevant, keyback-references can be included. It may be necessary to set up the next scene duringthe current description.

6.3.4. Settings

When describing locations, try to cover scene changes where possible; the locations;the time of day/season/date setting where appropriate; on-screen action; any soundsthat are not readily identifiable; and onscreen information (eg signs, hieroglyphics,open subtitles for foreign languages, captions, and opening and closing credits).Thedescription should not censor what is on screen. However, it should not be necessaryto use offensive language, unless (for example) when referring to content that isintegral to understanding the programme, such as graffiti scrawled on a wall.

6.3.5. What not to describe

The description should only provide information about what can be seen on thescreen. Information unavailable to the sighted viewer should not be added thoughdiscretion is always necessary. “A turreted bridge over a city river” would fall short ifthe sighted audience sees London’s Tower Bridge, even without an identifying caption.Generally, ‘filmic’ terms such as camera angles should not be used.

6.3.6. When to describe

AD should not encroach on dialogue, important or complementary sound effects, orcritical sound effects unless really necessary. Even then, AD should only be used toimpart relevant information when the dialogue or other sound is inconsequential or toread subtitles or on-screen captions. To differentiate between subtitles and descriptionthe describer should do this by either the use of their voice (eg stating the obvious,“He says in Russian... ” or “A caption reads”’) or a second voice.

6. Proposed AD guidelines for Bollywood films

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During opening titles and end credits, care should be taken to avoid clumsy overlapswith song lyrics.

6.3.7. Language

AD provides a real-time commentary, so should generally be in the present tense (hesits), the continuous present (he is sitting) or the present participle (“Standing at thewindow, he lets out a deep sigh”), as appropriate. Variety is important, particularly withverbs. “She scuttles into the room” rather than the simple fact “She enters the room”creates a clearer image for the viewer (a thesaurus is always useful).

Adverbs are a useful shorthand to describing emotions and actions, but should not besubjective. Vocabulary should be matched to the genre of the film/programme. Itshould be accurate, easily understood and succinct.

6.3.8. Delivery

Delivery should be steady, unobtrusive and impersonal in style (but not monotonous),so that the personality and views of the describer do not colour the programme. Avoidthe term “we see”. However, it can be important to add emotion, excitement, lightnessof touch at different points in different films/programmes to suit the mood and theplot development – the style should be matched to the genre of the film/programme.

Diction should be clear and not hurried – every word should be clear, audible andtimed carefully so that it does not overrun subsequent dialogue. The aim should be toenhance the enjoyment of the film/programme not to distract from it.

6.3.9. Balance

Judgement is needed in striking an appropriate balance between the amount of detailthat is conveyed, and the risk of overburdening the audience with detail and detractingfrom the enjoyment of the film/programme. Too much description, even where there isa lot of space for description, can make it difficult for viewers to absorb information.The film/programme should be allowed ‘to breathe’. On the other hand, long gaps inthe dialogue may need to be explained if the viewer is not to be left confused, eg “thecowboy rides across the prairie into the distance”. If the ‘space’ for AD is short, it isbetter to focus on key moments and dynamics rather to rush the description or fillevery available moment. For example, it may be distracting in dance or fight scenes todescribe every piece of action. A consistent approach is important: if a descriptionstarts out as detailed, it should not suddenly become scant.


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6.3.10. Describers

Describers should be chosen to fit the genre, the nature of the film/programme andthe intended audience. Ideally, the same people should be used to describe a series offilms/programmes, both to ensure a consistent style (eg in terms of level of detail) andbecause the description forms a part of the film/programme for users.

6.3.11. Children’s programmes/films

Language and pace of delivery for children’s film/ television need particular care. Amore intimate style may be appropriate than would be the case for films/programmesaimed at adults.

6.3.12. Language and songs in Bollywood Films

The description for a Bollywood film should be in the language of the film, ie Hindi.The main challenge for the describer working on a Bollywood film is where to place thedescription during songs. The describer must judge carefully when to intervene andwhen to stay silent during a song. AD should ideally take place where there is a repriseof the lyrics. When describing a dance sequence, it is important to convey the look andgeneral movement of the dance rather than a step by step description.


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7. Practical aspects to providing AD onBollywood filmsIn order to gauge the scope for such a project, it is important to gain a clearunderstanding of the practical issues involved in making Bollywood films accessible toblind and partially sighted people using AD. To this end, it becomes crucial to ascertainwhat factors, if any, could have severe implications on further development of thisconcept. A few of the factors are quite apparent to anyone with a basic understandingof the Bollywood film industry and its operational structure. These can be broadlyclassified in the following categories:

Lack of awareness of AD within the target market in the UK and India

Operational barriers for the industry to provide AD on its films

Commercial considerations.

7.1. Lack of awareness of AD within the target marketin the UK and IndiaWithout a doubt, India continues to be the primary market for Bollywood films,contributing over 70 per cent of the total revenue generated from a single release. Theaudience within India is more likely to influence trends within the industry than the UKaudience, which is much smaller in size. In this context, it becomes significant to realisethat currently there is very little awareness about AD amongst related segments ofsociety in India. The relevant segments are: the film industry itself, blind or partiallysighted people and organisations working with blind and partially sighted people whichwould ideally be driving this need in the public domain.

Essentially the demand that would normally drive an industry to embrace a newconcept is almost non-existent in this case. But this does not mean that demand forthe product cannot be created by generating awareness within the target audience foraudio described Bollywood films.

The solution lies in generating awareness about AD amongst blind and partially sightedpeople from the Asian community within the UK and India. This consequently creates ademand for audio described Bollywood films in both countries, which the industry canthen take steps to meet.

7.2. Operational barriers to making audio describedfilms available

7.2.1. Operational barriers to making audio described films available in India

As a consequence of the above, it is no surprise that India currently has no deliverysystems in place for AD either in cinemas or on television. In such a situation, the onlyway to make audio described films available to blind and partially sighted people inIndia would be through the DVD industry.

The solution lies in installation of equipment enabling AD in trial cinemas in the fourmajor cities – Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, and Chennai. These cinemas should be locatedstrategically within each city, ie, in the vicinity of a major association working for/withblind and partially sighted people. In addition, a campaign should be launched,spearheaded by the Government of India, targeting private broadcasters, to considerways of introducing AD on a certain percentage of their programming

7.2.2. Operational barriers to making audio described films available in the UK

It is important to understand that the Bollywood film industry, including all itsproduction studios, is based in Mumbai. Unlike any other film industry, all itsproduction work including even minor production processes such as adding ofsubtitles, mastering of DVDs etc, are handled within the country.

The absence of an AD industry in India makes it difficult to create AD for Bollywoodfilms ‘in house’. The option to outsource this provision to describers within the UKprior to the UK release of a film seems a logical way to get the process of audiodescribed Bollywood films started. This is also because the AD providers’ industrywithin the UK is well established and is aware of the nuances involved in theprocedure. However, the turn-around time for the writing and the recording of AD ismuch longer than is currently available, as Bollywood films often arrive in the UK onlyaround seven days prior to the release date.

Keeping the above in mind, in the longer term, a local Mumbai based set-up forproviding AD to Bollywood films would make the process operationally much simpler.

The film industry will need to carefully consider the issue and make minor changes inits current operational structure to accommodate the time required to produce AD for aBollywood film.

7. Practical aspects to providing AD on Bollywood films

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7.3. Commercial considerationsOne of the significant considerations for the Bollywood film industry, aside frommaking changes in their current operational set-up to include AD in their films, wouldbe to ascertain if the costs involved are offset by the expected sales and consumptionof the service. An alternative would be to adopt the UK model where commercialconsiderations were not the main driver. Instead, the UK distributors for Hollywoodfilms took on the task of providing AD on their films as a moral obligation to fulfil theneeds of their blind and partially sighted viewers.

One of the aims of the Bollywood quantitative research study was to give an indicationof the approximate market size for audio described Bollywood films in the UK. Thestudy was able to establish that blind or partially sighted participants were more likelyto watch a Bollywood film with AD than without it. The next question arises from thecurrent level of awareness about AD in this target population. It needs to be decided iffurther campaigns would bridge this gap in awareness.

A previous research study commissioned by Ofcom in 2008 to measure awareness ofthe service both before and after the Ofcom-led Audio Description AwarenessCampaign can be used as an indicative example of the difference that a campaign canmake in creating awareness of AD within the general public.

“Between 1st February and 14th March 2008, a campaign promoting audiodescription awareness was conducted by an alliance of broadcasters and the RNIBand facilitated by Ofcom. Promotional trials were screened across the majority oftelevision channels over a six-week period.

The results of the study revealed that amongst people with visual impairments,awareness levels increased from 43 per cent to 72 per cent following the campaign.Amongst the UK population, awareness increased from 37 per cent to 60 per cent.”[Access Services Audio Description: Research into awareness levels, Ofcom, 2008,Page 13]

A campaign to create awareness of AD amongst blind and partially sighted people fromthe Asian community in the UK could lead to an increase in awareness levels about AD.The target audience would then be aware of the feature when a Bollywood film isreleased with description.

The quantitative research study was able to establish the preferred methods foraccessing information by blind and partially sighted people from the Asian community.The research revealed that the top five general sources of information were:


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1. Friends and family

2. Radio

3. Television

4. Local community-based organisations

5. Talking newspapers

Further details on each of those sources can be found in the chapter on quantitativeresearch study.

7.4. Conclusion The current RNIB Bollywood Audio Description Project was designed to identify thepotential market for audio described Bollywood films within the blind and partiallysighted Asian community in the UK and India. The results from the quantitative andqualitative Bollywood research studies clearly state that:

Blind and partially sighted people from the Asian community in the UK and Indiawho participated in the studies are more likely to watch a Bollywood film with ADthan without it. The qualitative study was able to establish that blind and partiallysighted people enjoyed watching a clip with AD significantly more than theyenjoyed watching the same clip without AD.

There was a clear preference for AD to be in the language of the film, ie Hindi,amongst the respondents who participated in the qualitative research study.

Respondents asked for description over songs as well as the standard storyline as ithelped them understand what was happening on the screen without any externalassistance.

The qualitative and quantitative research studies were unable to establish preferencefor any specific medium, such as television/DVD/cinema, to watch audio describedBollywood films. The younger respondents tended to prefer cinema viewing whileolder respondents clearly showed a preference for television/DVD viewing.

7.5. RecommendationsBased on the conclusion and the barriers outlined above we propose the followingrecommendations:


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Recommendation 1: Initiate partnership working with the Indian film industry

RNIB to work closely with the Indian film industry, sharing the expertise and theexperience, it has built up while working with the UK distributors of the Hollywoodfilm industry. The aim being, to support the setting up of a system in the UK and Indiathat can produce AD for Bollywood films.

The uptake of a new concept is bound to be slow in the face of the barriers mentionedabove. But in the past, RNIB has successfully established AD as a norm for allHollywood films being released in the UK through vigorous campaigning andcollaborating with the industry at each step. Taking this as a benchmark, the RNIBBollywood Project should aim to continue being the contact point for the Bollywoodfilm industry until all UK based distributors of Bollywood films have embraced theconcept on one hundred per cent of their film releases in the UK and a major part ofthe key target audience is familiar with the concept of AD.

The level of input could vary during this period, with RNIB taking a more pro-activeapproach for the first two years. This could be until AD is accepted as a norm by atleast one of the key distributors in the UK, with others giving it serious consideration.It could be another 2-3 years before the entire industry comes on board. By the end ofthis five-year period, the target audience for audio described Bollywood films would bewell aware of the concept of AD, not only through RNIB campaigns, but also throughthe wide availability of Bollywood titles with AD in UK cinemas and the homeentertainment market.

Recommendation 2: UK pilot of audio described Bollywood films

Keeping in mind that all systems and infrastructures enabling the provision anddelivery of AD in films are in place within the UK, it would be operationally simpler topilot the product in the UK first, and then share the experience and expertise with theindustry in India. If the AD track was available for UK cinema release, the track couldthen be utilised on the DVD and tested in the Indian DVD market.

Recommendation 3: AD for all mediums

The research study was unable to bring out a clear preference for any particularmedium for accessing Bollywood films in the UK or India. A split between preferenceswas evident amongst younger cinema goers (18-44 years) and older homeentertainment enthusiasts. This could potentially reflect possible mobility issues facedby older people in addition to sight problems. Therefore, the Bollywood film industry


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should be encouraged to make AD tracks available across diverse film viewingplatforms – cinema, DVD and eventually television.

Making a specialist product available targeted solely at the blind and partially sightedcommunity, would impede the progress of making AD widely available. As always, therewill be operational barriers for specialist products such as gathering funds forproduction and distribution and poor acceptance in a wider market because of thestigma attached to disability. We therefore recommend that AD be made available onthe mainstream DVD release of a film.

If AD was to be made available as an optional audio track on the regular DVD release,it would not only increase the availability of accessible Bollywood films but also lead toa greater acceptance of AD amongst the general population in both India and the UK.

Recommendation 4: Raising awareness amongst the target populationin the UK

4(a) RNIB to plan awareness campaigns with the aim of familiarising the UK Asianblind community with concept of AD. These promotional activities should be plannedbearing in mind the specific characteristics of the Asian community such as languagepreference of the target audience and their knowledge of Hindi.

4(b) RNIB to share findings of this research with the UK distributors of Hollywoodfilms who are forming alliances with the Indian film industry and distributing Bollywoodfilms in the UK, including Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures.

4(c) RNIB to create awareness within the UK cinema exhibitors about the possiblearrival of audio described Bollywood films. This would enable cinemas to appropriatelyassign films to the specific screens that are equipped to handle AD.

4 (d) RNIB should work in partnership with organisations providing services to thedifferent Asian communities in the UK to raise the level of awareness about AD forblind and partially sighted people. The evidence from the research indicates that thereis a high demand for uptake of other specialist services like ‘talking newspapers’ forblind and partially sighted people within the different South Asian communities whichprovides a favourable context for the introduction of AD aimed at Asian communitiesvia Bollywood films.

These activities and campaigns would need to be planned and organised in conjunctionwith the relevant industries.


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Recommendation 5: Raising awareness amongst the target population in India

5 (a) RNIB and associations working for/with blind and partially sighted people inIndia to work collaboratively with the specific sectors within the Government of India,with the Indian counterparts taking a lead role in creating awareness about AD and itseventual availability on Bollywood films in India. As AD is a medium for moving images,cinemas and television could play an instrumental role in creating this awareness. Aspecific media plan would be needed after a thorough analysis of various factors suchas television ratings; suitable time slots for the target group and focus geographicalregions in terms of demographics enabling efficient and effective communication withthe potential users.

Recommendation 6: Engage with the Bollywood film industry

6 (a) RNIB could participate in conferences and discussions relevant to the Indian filmindustry, non-profit organisations working in the field of visual impairment and accesstechnologies in India. This would enable wider awareness and discussion on the subjectwith a larger audience. Once the discussion gathers momentum, it should be steeredtowards practical solutions to making the AD technology widely available.

6 (b) RNIB may wish to think about working in partnership with selected Bollywoodfilm producers to set up a pilot project using AD in Bollywood films. Such adevelopment would not only benefit blind and partially sighted people in the UK andIndia but others living across the globe. This could be done by organising workshopsfor selected Bollywood film producers to provide them with practical advice andsupport for implementing the ‘Bollywood Audio Description Initiative’.

Recommendation 7: Possible introduction of a legislation in the UK

RNIB may wish to explore with Ofcom the possibility of achieving a quota for AD onBollywood channels broadcast in the UK.

Recommendation 8: Accessible technology in the UK

The evidence from the survey suggests that many blind and partially sighted peoplehave difficulty operating current electronic devices providing access to AD. It isrecommended that RNIB continues to work with electronics manufacturers and TVplatform operators to ensure that they implement a ‘shortcut’ button on the remotecontrol so people can more easily access AD.


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ReferencesBose, M. (2007). Bollywood a History. Gloucestershire: Tempus Publishing Ltd.

Communications Act (2003) (c. 21) Part 3 – Television and Radio Services, Chapter 4 –Regulatory provisions. Available online:http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2003/pdf/ukpga_20030021_en.pdf [Accessed: 13 May 2009]

FICCI – Pricewaterhouse Coopers (2007) – Indian entertainment and Media Industry.Available online: http://www.pwc.com/en_IN/in/assets/pdfs/indian-entertainment-media-industry-growth-story-unfolds.pdf [Accessed date 14 August 2009]

FICCI and Pricewaterhouse Coopers (2008) Indian entertainment and Media Industry:Sustaining growth report 2008. Available online:http://www.pwc.com/en_IN/in/assets/pdfs/indian-entertainment-media-industry-sustaining-growth.pdf [accessed 14 August 2009]

International Indian Film Academy (2007) The Indian Film Industry [online]. Availableonline: http://www.iifa.com/web07/cntnt/theindianfilmindustry.htm [Accessed 13 May 2009]

Information Centre, The (2006). Registered Blind and Partially Sighted People Yearending 31 March 2006. Available online:http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/blindeng06/RegisteredBlindPartiallySighted311006_PDF.pdf [Accessed: 13 May 2009]

ITC Guidance on Standards for Audio Description (May 2000)Available online: ITC Guidance on Standards for Audio Description (May 2000)htttp://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/uploads/ITC_Guidance_On_Standards_for_Audio_Description.doc [accessed 14 August 2009]

Leicester City Council (2009) Area Profile for the City of Leicester: Demographic andCultural. Available online: http://www.leicester.gov.uk/index.asp?pgid=1009#Eth[Accessed 13 May 2009]

Ofcom, Code on Television Access Services (2006)

Guidelines on the Provision of Television Access Services. available online:http://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv/ifi/guidance/tv_access_serv/guidelines/. [Accessed 14 August 2009]http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/uploads/ITC_Guidance_On_Standards_for_Audio_Description.doc [accessed 14 August 2009]

Ofcom (2008) – Access Services Audio Description: Research into awareness levels[Accessed 14 August 2009]

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Office for National Statistics (2004) Ethnic group KS06. Available online:http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=3&b=276772&c=tower+hamlets&d=13&e=13&g=346968&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1243701148545&enc=1&dsFamilyId=47 [Accessed: 13 May 2009]

Pokharel, G.P and Marriotti, S.P (2004). Global data on visual impairment in the year2002, Bulletin of the World Health Organization: 82 (11), 844 - 851.

Sefton, T., Baker, M. and Praat, A. (2005). Ethnic minorities, disability and the labourmarket: A review of the data. Available online:http://www.rnib.org.uk/xpedio/groups/public/documents/publicwebsite/public_datareview1.doc [Accessed: 13 May 2009]

Tate, R., Smeeth, L., Evans, J., Fletcher, A., Owen, C., and Rudnicka, A. (2005), Theprevalence of visual impairment in the UK: A review of the literature. London: RNIB

UK Film Council (2007), Statistical Year Book. London, UK: UK FC

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References

Appendix 1: Questionnaire for qualitativestudy

InstructionsRNIB through this study seeks to establish whether there is a potential market foraudio described Bollywood films in the UK. It also aims to establish preferences inrelation to AD guidelines for Bollywood films, in order to increase viewing andviewing pleasure.

It is a detailed interview on one to one basis.

I will be completing the questionnaire based on your responses to the questions.

I will be recording this interview solely for the purpose of transcribing the interviewat a later date.

The information I gather through this study will be treated as confidential andanonymous. It will be used solely for RNIB’s Bollywood Audio Description Project.If we use your quotes, they will not be attributed to your name.

The interview will not take more than 35 mins to finish.

If you would like to get in touch with me with regards to the Bollywood Projectresearch study, I can provide you with my contact mail ID and my direct telephonenumber at RNIB:

Sonali RaiBollywood Project OfficerMedia and Culture DepartmentRNIB

Email: [email protected]: 020 7391 3270

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Bollywood Audio Description Project: Qualitative one-to-one interviews

Appendix 1: Questionnaire for qualitative study

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1. Which of the following age bands are you in:

A. 18 - 24 B. 25 - 34 C. 35 - 44D. 45 - 54 E. 55 - 64 F. 65-74 G. 75-84H. 85+

2. Which of the following describe what you are able to see? (Choose allthe options that apply to you)

A. I can see well enough to recognise a friend across the road.B. I can see well enough to recognise a friend across a roomC. I can see well enough to recognise a friend who is at arms length awayD. I can see well enough to recognise a friend if you get close to his or her

face. E. I can see the shapes of the furniture in a roomF. In a room during daytime, I can tell by the light where the windows areG. I cannot see anything at all. H. Prefer not to say

Notes:


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3. Are you a registered blind or registered partially sighted? (Choose oneoption)

A. Severely sight impaired (Blind)B. Sight impaired (Partially sighted)C. NeitherD. Don’t know

Notes:

4. When watching TV: (Choose all the options that apply to you)

A. I have difficulty seeing the buttons on the remote controlB. I have difficulty seeing the picture on the TV screenC. I have difficulty seeing the fine detail on the TV screenD. I have difficulty seeing text on the TV screenE. I am able to see the light of the TV screenF. I cannot see anything on the TV screenG. I do not find that I have any difficulty following what is going on the screenH. Other...

5. When you currently watch or follow a programme or film on DVD or ontelevision (Choose all the options that apply to you)

A. I use my residual sight to watchB. I wear special stronger glassesC. I get closer to the TV screenD. I use a magnifierE. I adjust the screen settingsF. I adjust the lighting in the roomG. I use a large screen TVH. I ask my friends or family members to assist me by explaining what hap-pens on the screenI. I just try to pick up as much as I can from the sound of the film or pro-grammeJ. I use audio description to explain to me what happens on the screenK. I make none of these adjustmentsL. I never watch TV/ DVD(s) M. Other

View 1st user material

3 minute clip without AD

6. What can you tell me about what happened in that clip?

1. How many people do you think there were in the clip?2. What can you tell me about the location?3. What is Raj carrying?4. What is Raj doing?5. What is the woman carrying?6. What is the woman doing?

7. How enjoyable did you find it?

- just a little- a fair amount- a great deal- not at all- don’t know

Why?

8. Any other comments

View 2nd user material

3 minute clip with English AD


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- just a little - a fair amount- a great deal- not at all- don’t know

Why?

11 How did the addition of audio description affect your experience of thefilm clip?


View 3rd user material

3 minute clip with Hindi AD


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- just a little - a fair amount- a great deal- not at all- don’t know

Why?

15. How did the addition of audio description affect your experience of thefilm clip?

- Was there too much talking and information/ verbose- Was it more relaxing?

16. What additional items did you understand with the second audiodescribed clip?

- Location- Detailed information- Characters- Story/ Plot


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17. How did the addition of audio description affect your experience of thesong in the film clip?

Did you feel the description interfered with your enjoyment of the music?

Did you feel enjoy the song more because you were aware of what happenedon the screen?

18. Which of the audio described clips did you prefer:

- Hindi- English- no preference- did not prefer either of the audio clips

Why?

General questions

19. Are there any ways the audio description could be improved to makeyour experience of the film better?

20. If a Bollywood film was shown with AD on TV, do you think you wouldwatch it?

What factors would influence your decision to watch it? ie:A. Language of the AD - Hindi / EnglishB. Level of description (too wordy, not descriptive enough)C. Accessibility to AD(ed) Bollywood films

A. Yes

B. No

Notes:


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21. If a Bollywood film was available with AD on DVDs would you watch it?

What factors would influence your decision to watch it? ie:A. Language of the AD - Hindi / EnglishB. Level of description (too wordy, not descriptive enough)C. Accessibility to AD(ed) Bollywood films

A. Yes

B. No

Notes:

22. What is your source of information for products specially designed forBlind and partially sighted people?

A. Newspapers & MagazinesB. Internet C. RadioD. TelevisionE. From friends or familyF. RNIBG. From my local organisation working for Blind and partially sighted peopleH. Local authority / social service organisationsI. Other local organisationsJ. Specialist magazines i.e. RNIB magazinesK. Talking Newspapers L. Other

Please ask for details of each of the option that the respondent selects,ieRespondent selects talking newspaper; please ask which talking newspaperspecifically.


Appendix 2: Questionnaire for quantitativestudy

RNIB Bollywood Audio Description Project Quantitative survey – January 2009

Questionnaire Number:

Interview Date: (dd) ____: (mm) ____: (yy) ____

Start time: (hh) ____: (mm) ____

End time: (hh) ____: (mm) ____

Interviewer:

City:

Location of interview:

Home (Code 1)

Community centre (Code 2 )

Other (Code X)

Specify:

Type of interview:

Face-to-face (Code1)

Telephone (Code 2)

Introduction

Hello my name is ___________________I am from Agroni, an independent researchorganisation. We are working in partnership with the Royal National Institute of Blindpeople to explore the Bollywood film viewing/watching habits of blind and partiallysighted people within the Asian communities in the UK. The main aim of the research

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is to talk to people like your selves to find your specific needs and preferences inrelation to audio description of Bollywood films. I will appreciate if you could spareapproximately 10 minutes of your time to give us your invaluable opinion.

Everything you say will remain strictly confidential and you will not be identified in anyway in our reports. Furthermore I can assure you that your participation in thisresearch is completely voluntary and you have rights to not answer any questions thatyou feel uncomfortable with and you may ask for termination of interview at any point.

Are you happy to proceed with this interview?Yes (Code 1) Continue No (Code 2) Thank and close

Screening questions

S1: Before starting the interviews, I would like to find out your preferredlanguage for the interview. Would you like this interview to be conducted in? English (Code 1) Continue Bengali (Code 2) ContinueHindi (Code 3) ContinueUrdu (Code 4) Continue

S2: Please tell me how would you describe the present conditions of your sight?Blind (Code 2) Recruit to quotaPartially blind (Code 2) Recruit to quotaNeither (Code 3) Close

S3: How would you describe your ethnicity? Bangladeshi (Code 1) Continue British Bangladeshi (Code 2) Continue Indian (Code3) Continue British Indian (Code 4) Continue Pakistani (Code 5) Continue British Pakistani (Code 6) Continue

S4: Did you take part in any RNIB research in last 6 months? Yes (Code 1) Thank and close No (Code 2) Continue

S5: Gender (Please note and circle) Male (Code 1)Female (Code 2)

Appendix 2: Questionnaire for quantitative study

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About respondents

Q1: Which of the following age bands are you in: (Single code) 18-24 (Code 1) Continue 25-34 (Code 2) Continue35-44 (Code 3) Continue45-54 (Code 4) Continue55-64 (Code 5) Continue65-74 (Code 6) Continue75-84 (Code 7) Continue85+ (Code 8) Continue

Q2: Which of the following describe what you are able to see? (multi code)

Notes/comments if any:

Q3: Are you a registered blind or registered partially sighted?(Single code)Severely sight impaired or blind (Code 2) ContinueSight impaired or partially sighted (Code 2) ContinueNeither (Code 3) ContinueDon’t know (Code 4) Continue

Notes/comments if any:


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Options Code

I can see well enough to recognise a friend across the road 1

I can see well enough to recognise a friend across a room 2

I can see well enough to recognise a friend who is at arms length away 3

I can see well enough to recognise a friend if I get close to his or her face. 4

I can see the shapes of the furniture in a room 5

In a room during daytime, I can tell by the light where the windows are 6

I cannot see anything at all. 7

Prefer not to say 8

About TV/ DVD viewing habits

Q4. When watching TV you have any of the following: (Multi code)

Specify X


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Options Code

Difficulty seeing the buttons on the remote control 1

Difficulty seeing the picture on the TV screen 2

Difficulty seeing the fine detail on the TV screen 3

Difficulty seeing text on the TV screen 4

Able to see the light of the TV screen 5

Cannot see anything on the TV screen 6

Do not find any difficulty following what is going on the screen 7

Other X


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Q5. When you currently watch or follow a programme or film on DVD or ontelevision do you use any of the following: (Multi code)

Specify X

Options Code

Use your residual sight to watch 1

Wear special stronger glasses 2

Get closer to the TV screen 3

Use a magnifier 4

Adjust the screen settings 5

Adjust the lighting in the room 6

Use a large screen TV 7

Ask my friends or family members to assist me by explaining what happens on the screen

8

Just try to pick up as much as I can from the sound of the film orprogramme

9

Use audio description to explain to me what happens on the screen 10

Make none of these adjustments 11

Never watch TV or DVD(s) 12

Others X

Skip to Question number 8, if the respondent chooses option 12 – I neverwatch TV or DVD(s)

Q6. How often do you currently watch Bollywood films on TV? (Single code)About once a day (Code 1)About a couple of times a week (Code 2)About once a week (Code 3)About once a fortnight (Code 4)About once a month (Code 5)About once every 3 months (Code 6)About once a year (Code 7)Never (Code 8)

Q7. How often do you currently watch Bollywood films on DVD? (Single code)About once a day (Code 1)About a couple of times a week (Code 2)About once a week (Code 3)About once a fortnight (Code 4)About once a month (Code 5)About once every 3 months (Code 6)About once a year (Code 7)Never (Code 8)


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Q8. What, if any, factors stop you from watching Bollywood films on TV or DVD?(Multi code)


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Options Code

I am not interested in watching Bollywood films 1

I am not interested in watching TV or DVDs 2

I do not own a TV 3

I find it too difficult to use a TV 4

I do not own a DVD player 5

I find it too difficult to use a DVD player 6

I have no access to a television 7

I have no access to a DVD player 8

I do not have time to watch TV or DVDs 9

I find it difficult to follow Bollywood films because of my sight problem 10

Nothing stops me from watching Bollywood Films on TV or DVD 11

Other X

About cinema viewing habits

Q9. How do you currently watch or follow a film in the cinema? (Multi code)


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Options Code

I use my residual sight to watch 1

I wear special stronger glasses 2

I get closer to the TV screen 3

I use a magnifier 4

I adjust the screen settings 5

I adjust the lighting in the room 6

I use a large screen TV 7

I ask my friends or family members to assist me by explaining what happenson the screen

8

I just try to pick up as much as I can from the sound of the film orprogramme

9

I use audio description to explain to me what happens on the TV screen 10

I make none of these adjustments 11

I never go to the cinema 12

Other X

Q10. How often do you currently watch Bollywood films on the cinema? (Singlecode)About once a day (Code 1)About once a week (Code 2)About a couple of times a week (Code 3)About once every two weeks (Code 4)About once a month (Code 5)About once every 3 months (Code 6)About twice a year (Code 7)About once a year (Code 8)Never (Code 9)

Q11. What, if any, factors stop you from watching Bollywood films on TV in thecinema? (Multi code)


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Options Code

I am not interested in watching Bollywood films 1

There is no local cinema that plays Bollywood films near where I live 2

I find it difficult to travel to the cinema 3

I have no time to go to the cinema 4

I find it difficult to follow Bollywood films because of my sight problem 5

Nothing stops me from watching Bollywood Films in the cinema 6

Other X

Interviewer gives a short introduction to AD:

Audio Description is like a narrator telling a story. It is an additional commentary thatdescribes body language, expressions and movements between programme dialogues –giving people sight through sound. It ensures that people with a sight problem canfollow the action on screen more easily.

The interviewer then plays an example of an audio described clip

Q12: Had you ever heard of audio description before today? (Single code)Yes, I have heard of it but I don’t know what it is (Code 1)Yes, I have heard of it and I know what it is (Code 2)Yes, I have heard of it and I use it (Code 3)No, I had never heard of it (Code 4)Not sure (Code 5)

Q13: What is the likelihood of your watching an audio described Bollywoodmovie in comparison to watching a non-audio described Bollywood movie?(Single code)More Likely (Code 1)Not sure (Code 2)


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Q14: What are your sources of information for products specially designed forBlind and partially sighted people? (Multi code)

Please probe for details of each of the option selected by the respondent. Forexample if the respondent selects talking newspaper; please ask which talkingnewspaper specifically.

Any other comments

Respondents’ details

For quality control purposes our office randomly contacts some respondents to ensurethat the interview was conducted accurately and ethically (show thank you leaflets).There is no guarantee that you will be selected for the random checking. However, Iwill appreciate if you could give the following information in case my office would liketo talk to you about my conduct as part of Agroni’s standard “QualityControl/Respondents’ Care” procedures.


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Options Code

Newspapers & Magazines 1

Internet 2

Radio 3

Television 4

From friends or family 5

RNIB 6

From my local organisation working for Blind and partially sighted people 7

Local authority / social service organisations 8

Other local organisations 9

Specialist magazines i.e. RNIB magazines 10

Talking Newspapers 11

Other X

Full name: ________________________________________

Address: _______________________

_______________________

_______________________

Telephone: ____________(Home)______________(Mobile)

Thank you

Further RNIB research

RNIB is occasionally looking for people to participate in future projects. Would you behappy for us to pass your details to RNIB for any future research projects?

Yes (Code 1)

No (Code 2)

Declaration by the interviewer

I certify that this face-to-face/telephone* interview has been personally carried out byme with the respondent above. I further declare that all information is truthful andcorrect as told by the respondent. I understand that any discrepancies discoveredduring the back-checking/quality control of this questionnaire will result in thecancellation of this interview.

Signature of the interviewer

Date

*Delete as appropriate


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RNIB Bollywood Audio Description Report