WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD/WORLD OF REALITY

[anupam123]

So, I’m back home after a tiring day of work, grabbing the remote, pulling up my new velvet coated couch in front of the mammoth plasma screen (which I’ve bought through EMI’s) just to have some real entertainment for the few hours left in the day that I have to kill.

The above statement that I made was total imaginary which I have been drawing up in my mind from the time I sat in the 6.36 Badlapur(in Central Mumbai) bound local heading towards my home.

The reality I found out after entering my comfort paradise zone was very much predictable. My entire joint family, right from my Grand Ma to newly born 5 year old nuisance- my nephew comfortably glued to the only idiot box in the paradise & dancing some weird steps to the tune of just crowned Indian Idol 3 winner Prashant Tamang, someone anonymous (to me at least) till yet!!!

So the possibility of my imaginary statement coming true does not seem to be real any more. Who bothers after all?? Dreams are dreams until someone fights (which I’m not good at!!!) to make it a stark reality.


As I jumped to my soothing bed after having some typical Bengali gastronomical dishes (as part of my daily dinner), I wonder what makes these shows so special that everyone I know is talking about them? What’s so uniquely special in shows like Big Brother, Roadies, Saregamapa, Jodi No.1, The Great Indian Laughter Show that gives everyone a spine chilling sensation with their airing on primetime slots??

Everyone, right from my 86 year old grandma, to my emotion struck mother, rebellious brother, dad (who otherwise rarely does see anything on television other than the news channels), the house-maid even, and my nuisance nephew glued to the television screen during these shows, passing comments & sharing views on the capabilities & shortcomings of each contestant.

Is it just that everyone's so happy to see ordinary people (mostly from lower middle classes) like them getting the desired platform to display their potential (or showcasing unique talents)? Or, is it that we believe a country like our’s is facing an acute shortage in the quality of talented people coming to the forefront? Do we really believe that these reality shows are the only means that can change all that? Do we think that the common middle class household buys all the crap that the script writers & television channels throw their way? Do we really think the common man doesn't know that he is being tricked by the creative honchos of these shows by adding a tinge of drama, some masala &plethora of suspense to these shows?


Well, the answer to all the questions brought up above is, NO. It's quite as simple as that. We, the common man or the end consumer (because the shows are being sold to us & by watching it, we’re buying them) has evolved more than expected. We cannot be tricked into doing something we don't want to do. They can persuade us all they want but its up to us if we want to be persuaded & if we don't like the idea, we put up our iron clad resistance & if we are keen on trying out what is shown to us, we give in& accept it with a warm heart. (That’s the common Indian; sometimes full of sentiments, sometime full of emotion & often showing BIG B type aggression, like in Zanjeer!!!)

You, by now, might be wondering what the heck I’m talking about & it may sound like some ubiquitous marketing strategy to you .Well, you are right, the bottom-line is at the end of the day what the television channel basically does is marketing, isn’t it? Lemme get it straight to you, how many of us think that a General Entertainment channel's (GEC’s) real motive is to promote or showcase talent??? None, because a well informed layman knows the ulterior motive is to boost TRP's. Then eventually, how do these channels gets us to watch their shows?


EMOTION --- THAT’S THE BUZZ WORD FOR THEM. The other variants for the buzzword are emotional bonding, emotional attachment, emotional touch, sympathy, sentimental etc etc etc.

All the channels have to do is to strike an emotional cord with the viewer, like any marketer would say. Sounds easy, doesn't it, but it's not!!!!


The creative honchos work hard day in & day out, exercising their grey areas & brainstorming to decide on the exact content for these shows. After all, these shows are aired at least 3 times a week. Yes, the contestants are chosen on the basis of their talent, but the question to be asked is how do they choose the right & the best one's among the ocean of talented people who audition for these shows? There’s a simple logic to this dilemma. Here it is!!!

The channels look for people who have sensationalism written all over their face (one who can express these sensations), they look for small town success stories, they look for people who have the power& potential to attract a large chunk of the society to support them, they look for attractive & expressive faces, they look for people who hail from backward communities & more. In a nutshell, they are on the look out for those who manage to derive empathy, sympathy & support from the ever expressing Indian viewers who will then lobby for these contestants. The viewers tend to find a mirror image of themselves in these contestants; they believe that if people like those contestants can do it, so can they. Some of us are just proud that our state or town is being represented on National Stage (which now is turning worldwide!!!). One may find many such logical explanations when one think about it, but (as I mentioned earlier) the bottom-line is that an emotional cord is struck.

But that’s not the end of it all. Apparently, the creative people also cooks up some masala as the show progresses like, the scuffles (mostly verbal abuses when it goes backstage!!) between the judges or the parents of the contestant rampaging onto the stage etc although most of the dialogues & remarks made by the judges & the hosts are nicely and carefully scripted beforehand (Not always though, the Salman-Himesh rift was for real!). The Results? What about them? In some cases, results are tampered with on these shows because each show has its stars who hold majority of the people's support. Emasculate pre-calculations are continuously done by the creative minds of the team & implemented in the better interests of the show. All this, just to keep us we, the viewers interested & hooked to these shows for long & long. At last, viewership & TRP's stand testimony to caliber of these creative minds!



Some of us might be still wondering as to how these reality shows manage to simply survive on TRP's?? Let me give you a brief clarification!!! Script writers (the originators) take their ideas for reality shows (just like soap-operas & serials) to the channel. If the head honchos of the channel are in approval of the idea, they get production houses to produce the show & then air it at prime-time slots on the channel. Subsequently, the marketing team hunts to get sponsors for the show. The money eventually received by way of sponsorship ultimately covers the cost of production & also the handsome prizes that are given away on these shows. The sponsors get spots in between these shows to air their ads, plus, the title sponsor gets mentions by the host of the show, sign boards & signage’s on the sets of the show & their name will appear in all communications made with the public. It’s a simple logic that the more the shows are successful, the more sponsors are willing to spend in advertising on these shows. Believe me, the money that these sponsors shell-out is huge! The other vital source of revenue is the SMS'es (the cheapest way it seems to us!!!) that loyal viewers like us send. The telecom operators share a pre-fixed percentage of the revenue with the channel. The revenue thus generated is shared between the channel & the production houses. SMS, as a popular mean of communication among viewers can definitely act as a brand building tool for the channel also.

Finally everything said & done in the long story, what's in it for us? I mean what’s in there for we the viewers?? Well, to be honest, we simply have to admit that we do enjoy watching it (No matter, how much tears are being shed by my mother & sister or to worsen it more, how many innumerable SMSes have been sent behind my back by my so called “Nuisance Nephew”). At the end of the day, we need some form of entertainment that gives us relief from our otherwise mundane lives & these reality shows provide us with just that. In the process, if we are helping some one talented to make it big, then what’s the harm? At least we are helping someone, isn't it? Anyways, we never know what’s the next big trend that’s going to hit our television screens(and also my family!!!). Until then, we'll have to stay contented with what’s on display from these reality shows & pleaseeeeeeeee don't forget to keep sending in your votes! Coz at least you are helping someone in need!!!