Spice Radio, and its trailblazing host and owner, have sold the station, and it has Swift-ly been replaced.<\/p>\n
A new radio station has launched in Surrey as a longtime Metro Vancouver broadcaster steps back from the mic.<\/p>\n
Shushma\u00a0Datt, owner of and host on Spice Radio<\/a> (1200 AM), and her son Sudhir Datta have stepped away from the station. Datt has been a prominent figure in B.C.’s broadcast world and South Asian community for decades, including launching Radio Rimjhim and Spice Radio.<\/p>\n \u201cNow feels like the right time,\u201d Datt said in a press release. \u201cI want to return to my original love\u2014programming for seniors and elders in our community via Rimjhim. Sudhir is ready to follow his own dreams. We\u2019re proud of what we\u2019ve built, and it\u2019s time to let the next chapter unfold\u2014for the station, for our community, and for us.\u201d<\/p>\n When Datt launched Spice Radio in 2005 she became the first Canadian woman to receive a broadcasting license from the CRTC. She’s also been named Broadcaster of the Year by the British Columbia Association of Broadcasters and is a\u00a0Member\u00a0of the Order of British Columbia.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen our community had no television content of its own, I created it,” says Datt in the release.\u00a0“When there was no radio that truly reflected the evolving identity of our youth, I launched Rim Jhim and later RJ1200\u2014what became\u00a0Spice\u00a0Radio.\u201d<\/p>\n Spice Radio signed off permanently on\u00a0July 25, 2025, but the airwaves didn’t go silent as the broadcasting license was sold. Now, a new station, Radio Swift, has launched<\/a>, serving the same community of Metro Vancouver listeners.<\/p>\n “Radio Swift 1200 AM delivers a dynamic mix of news, talk shows, music, current affairs, and community programming in a variety of South Asian languages\u2014including Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, and more,” reads the new station’s website.<\/p>\n The new station is being led by CEO Devinder Singh Benipal, with hosts including<\/a> former\u00a0Sher-E-Punjab Radio Nimmi Daula<\/a>, former MP Jinny Sims, and Sameer Kaushal, who’s worked for Red FM and Sher-E-Punjab previously.<\/p>\n