One of the very first
reality shows which created a stir in the Indian Television Industry was
Roadies season one, “one-of-its-kind” adventure show, according to me. Where
death-defying stunts, money tasks, eliminations just to win were performed by
the contestants just to win cash prizes and a Karizma bike...Totally worth it,
eh?
How can we forget INDIAN IDOL season one? This
happened in the early 2000s’.The prize of this show was tempting, indeed. The
voting systems, emotional drama, totally hooking up the audience to their idiot
boxes for one hour of pure masala entertainment. Abhijeet Sawant had become a
household name. His journey into an overnight star was on everyone’s’ lips.
Then, there was no
stopping for reality shows. They just took off. There were sequels to the
existing shows, and new shows came up. Some became a huge hit, some didn’t even
see the light of the day and some...Some just vanished into thin air.
Earlier, people did not
pay much attention to the reality shows, since they were soap operas which went
on and on and on, and took their time.
In the year 2007-2008,
because of the indecent behaviour of the contestants, abusive language, too
much of skin-show, shows like Roadies, Big Boss, Splitsvilla, etc ; were sent
notices by the Supreme Court which really worked in the favour of these shows.
People who did not even watch such shows and were hooked to their saas-bahu
serials, started taking note of such shows, just to see what the controversies
were all about. CURIOSITY certainly killed the CAT!!!! J
The target audiences of
such shows are the youth. The shows’
definitely hit the bull’s eye! Youth were hooked on to the shows, and it
clearly became a trend. The way people spoke in the above shows, their opinions,
beliefs were blatantly copied just to have that “COOL” attitude. Politics, Back-Biting,
etc all looked glamorous. Another reason, for the shows’ earning TRPs’ was that,
it broke the monotony of the saas-bahu serials. There was no shor-sharaba or
maybe less of it and definitely no rona-dhona. It looked and appeared more
real.
They made use of a simple concept -- “Jo Dikhta hai, wohi Bikta hai” (What is
real, is indeed appealing to the eyes). Whatever, they showed; they exaggerated
it to the core. Be it rakhi sawant’s washing of clothes in Big Boss, Abhijeet
Sawant’s story – Journey into an overnight star, Raghu’s (MTV producer and
judge) on-screen electrifying presence and foul mouth.
Watching reality shows
has become like a style statement now. I watch three shows and you??? Another
reason was that -- who doesn’t like to see people making fun of other people on
the National Television?? Be it Raghu belittling some contestant’s self-confidence,
or Nikhil Chinappa making fun of some bimbette on Splitsvilla. Everyone has and
will continue having a good laugh.
Another reason for the
rising TRPs’ would be, whatever they sold, they sensationalized it. The content
would be more “In Your Face” kind.
Then, there are
LOYALISTS present almost everywhere. They back the shows, no matter what!
So, THIS IS IT!! The reasons for reality shows
like MTV Roadies, Splitsvilla in spite of being criticized, still earn good
TRPs’ are – 1.Loyalists backing such shows, no matter!
2. Young guns of the
country. 3. Style symbol
4. Breaking the
monotony of the saas-bahu serials.
5. Voyeurism
– main reason for success of reality shows.