They posed a big threat to family dramas. Advertisers had bet big on them and every television channel ensured it had at least one such show on its menu. Backed by youngsters and families, their popularity soared at a scorching pace and was next to cricket and movies.
This was Indian reality show market in the early 2000, after the stupendous success of Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) in the first year of the millennium. Adapted from the UK game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, KBC was arguably the pioneer and the most successful reality show in India.
Prominent reality shows like Boogie Woogie and Antakshari (started in 1993), though carved a niche for themselves, remained mere mortals among the saas-bahu dramas that ruled the roost. KBC, hosted by legendary superstar Amitabh Bachchan, attracted one and all, changing the reality show landscape in India. A number of KBC clones were started by rival channels, but none could match the might of KBC, Amitabh Bachchan, and the oodles of revenues generated by it.
The boom
What followed was an unprecedented boom in the number of reality shows. The format of the shows varied from money-based quiz shows to celebrity-based talent shows, comedy, and game shows. The stakes were high and the winners became overnight stars and household names.
Indian Idol, remake of UK’s Pop Idol, on Sony television took the country by storm with its first episode in 2004-05. The show, which finished its fourth edition in 2009, was been a great platform for commoners to present their singing talent. Singers Abhijeet Sawanth, Sandip Acharya and Karunya are a few names that the show introduced to the world.
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, Nach Baliye, Fame Gurukul, Star Voice of India, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, MTV Roadies, Jhalak Dikhlaaja and others grabbed the attention of one and all. A number of budding singers, actors, and musicians have made it big through these shows.
The biggest beneficiaries, however, have been the common viewers. There was suddenly a new form of entertainment which was interactive and real. The shows gave them a perfect alternative to the never-ending family dramas and umpteen movie-based shows as people related to the characters on screen.
In 2007, reality TV shows attracted advertisements worth more than Rs.2.2 billion, a 168% increase from the previous year, and accounted for about 9% of total programming content on entertainment channels, a MindShare Insight report states.
The fact that film industry’s big names including Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Shankar Mahadevan, and Rani Mukherji have descended to be a part of these shows stood as testimony to the growing clout of reality shows as the next big thing to happen on television after mythological epics Ramayan and Mahabharat.
Saviors
While being a lending hand for the common public, the shows were catalysts for artists who are in twilight of their careers. KBC gave a fresh lease of life to Mr.Bachchan who was in deep financial crisis by the end of 90s. Shilpa Shetty made it big through Big Boss, the Indian version of the Netherlands-based Endemol’s Big Brother. The iconic status achieved by Shilpa post Big Boss comfortably dwarfed the image she gained as a leading film actress.
It is worth taking note of the marketing aspect of Endemol who played the game very smartly. They first aroused curiosity among the Indian audience by including Shilpa, who was fading away by then, in the UK version of Celebrity Big Brother 2007. A few confrontation scenes (involving racial abuse) with another contestant Jade Goody made Shilpa an overnight celebrity in the UK. It also made India take note of the show hitherto unknown. Shilpa won that edition of Big Brother, bagged a couple of prestigious Hindi movie projects, and is now a well-known personality in the UK. Endemol replicated the show in India and met with instant success. The show finished its third edition and was presented by Amitabh Bachchan.
Monica Bedi, Javed Jaffrey, Kashmira Shah, Negar Khan and Rakhi Sawanth are just a few names who found a new career opportunity with reality shows. The reality shows also presented soap opera stars, whose acting skills are limitedly utilized, in new avatars through specially designed programs.
Focus shifts
All is fair in love and war. By late 2000s, as competition heated up, channels vied with each other in a mad race for advertisements and higher TRP ratings. Broadcasters grew greedy and started airing shows that were poor imitations of their foreign counterparts or the existing popular reality show.
The reality quotient in the shows was diluted as drama took center stage. The onus shifted to creating suspense and drama by dragging the shows through lengthy and inane discussions between the participants and judges, intermittent commercial breaks, and anchors’ tearjerkers. It is also opined by many media analysts that some shows are rehearsed like typical soap operas, and deliberate attempts are made to keep the audience hooked by inserting a few surprises.
The channels roped in popular film stars paying huge sums and tried to force mindless, scripted themes as real. The Govinda-hosted game show Jeeto Chappar Phaad Ke on Sony television was a huge disaster despite offering a huge kitty. Same was the case with KBC’s rivals Sawaal Dus Crore Ka (hosted by Anupam Kher and Manisha Koirala) and Kam Ya Zyaada (hosted by Manoj Bajpai) on Zee TV.
Another popular gimmick is requesting public to vote from their mobile phones (sms voting) to decide the winners. It isn’t State elections, so there is no limit on the number of votes a person can send. The channels motivate while the participants emotionally blackmail viewers for sms votes. According to 2006 figures, average popular reality shows attracted close to 7 million sms per episode. Each sms is charged anywhere between Rs.4 and 6. Now imagine how much a channel will earn through a 52-week show, around Rs.1.5 billion.
Another tacky feature has been the addition of yesteryear’s lesser-known actresses, or should I say seducers, to add the oomph factor. Kashmira Shah was shown bathing semi-nude in Iss Jungle se Mujhe Bachao. The 10-minute bathing scene was the talk of the town among netizens, giving much needed fillip to the show as well as the actress’ career. Kashmira pocketed a few more reality show offers and is back to acting. Similarly, some reality dance shows featuring television celebrities have drawn flak for obscene content.
Conclusion
Viewers today are suffering from overdose of reality content. They are greeted with a sense of déjà vu every time they watch a dance or comedy show; blame the creativity-sapped channels. This is the reason why even popular shows such as KBC and Indian Idol registered a dip in the viewership during their subsequent season.
The trend, however, neither deters broadcasters from churning out such shows nor advertisers from promoting them. They simply brush aside the fluctuations in viewership ratings saying “all is part of the game”. Reality shows are here to stay and are the way forward. At least, that’s what the pundits say.
