'KBC has become a household name spawning jokes'

Sometimes we are prophetic. In a cover story in July, we showcased Star TV'sKaun Banega Crorepati (KBC)within a week of its launch, calling it "India's biggest ever show" and saying it stood a good chance of capturing the lucrative Hindi entertainment market.But even we could not imagine the frenzy it would create among viewers and other TV channels three months later. Star TV is raking in the moolah as advertisers queue up for slots. Meanwhile, KBC has become a household name spawning jokes and even advertising based on it. But in a free marketplace, rich pickings always attract competitors.This week's cover story deals with how the rest of the Hindi channel brigade is re-inventing itself to hit back in the cut-throat market. First off the starting block is Zee TV's Sawaal Dus Crore Ka with a prize-money budget of Rs 20 crore. Others to follow are Sun TV's Koteeswaran (Rs 10 crore), SABe TV's Jab Khelo Sab Khelo (Rs 8 crore) and Sony TV's as yet untitled game show (Rs 30 crore). There is also much debate on the battle of the hosts. How does a combination of Anupam Kher and Manisha Koirala beat the Big B? Will Sony TV's host be Govinda? And so on.But what the success of KBC has really done is to transform game shows into flagship programmes of every channel. Today, the total prize booty of all game shows on Indian TV adds up to Rs 80 crore a year. What makes these programmes so alluring? One quick explanation is nothing sells like raw greed. But there is another more plausible reason. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}The participants of these shows are ordinary people, not some super IQ eggheads. The level of the questions makes most viewers feel, "This could be me." As Assistant Editor Ashok Malik, who wrote the story and used to quiz in school and college says, "The most I've won is Rs 1,500. I'm jealous." Malik, join the queue.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Nov 6, 2000--- ENDS ---

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'KBC has become a household name spawning jokes'

Sometimes we are prophetic. In a cover story in July, we showcased Star TV's Kaun Banega Crorepati within a week of its launch, calling it "India's biggest ever show" and saying it stood a good chance of capturing the lucrative Hindi entertainment market.

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