Salma Sultan

Some Lesser Known Facts About Salma Sultan

• Salma Sultan is a former Indian newsreader of Doordarshan who is best known for her way of news delivery and her appealing looks. She has directed various TV programs after resigning from Doordarshan. She has become a designer and runs a saree label “Saree Sanskriti.”

• When she was pursuing her post-graduation, she gave an audition to be an announcer at Doordarshan. In 1967, she joined Doordarshan.

• There is an interesting story behind Salma becoming a newsreader. In an interview, she revealed that there was a famous newsreader named Gopal Kaul who did not want to continue as a newsreader so one day he came with his head shaved and Salma was asked to read the news instead of Gopal Kaul. Since then she started reading news at Doordarshan.

  

• In an interview, she said in her early years at Doordarshan, she used to earn Rs. 2000 per month. ^[1]The Times of India

• In 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated, it was Salma Sultan who announced the news of her demise to the whole nation through Doordarshan.

• After leaving Doordarshan in 1997, she started directing television shows. She directed some popular shows like “Panchtantra Se” and “Jalte Sawal.” She directed “Doordarshan Kuch Baatein Kuch Yaadein” a documentary to portray the history of  Doordarshan.

• At the age of 72 years, she did her first-ever ramp walk for her business venture “Saree Sanskriti.”

• She became famous for her style of draping a saree and a rose in her hair. In an interview, she disclosed the real reason for her style statement
  

  I used to drape my saree in a V shape because I did not have many blouses to match every saree. So to hide her blouse, she started styling her saree which turned out as a style statement.” ^[2]DD News

• In an interview, she revealed that she did the interior designing of her house as well as her friends.

• During an interview, she portrays her skills in writing poems by reciting some lines
  

  खुली आंखों से देखें ख्वाब, तो तबीरें उबरती हैं, जुसतजू की लाउ जलाएं रखें, तो तबीरें उबरती हैं” ^[3]DD News