Reality of reality shows - part 2

What is really fascinating about reality shows is the sense of power it gives to the viewers. Whether its KBC or Indian Idol it is the power of feeling superior which drives the viewers. How many of us feel elated when we see contestant in KBC not able to answer a question which we can easily answer? We feel the same when the contestant we predicted wins in Indian Idol voting. And the list goes on, i think to a certain extent Indian Cricket also is more like a reality show. We know the players personally and we take interest in their personal lives also, we like discussing about them and it makes us feel we are patriotic and know so much about who will play how. Its not the sheer pleasure of watching a game but the pleasure of predicting and commenting which satisfies us. Tell me how many of the viewers understand the nuances of the game, certainly not more than 50% of the total viewers but we all know the name of the players,which city the person belongs and it is not unusual to hear comments on one's region and other characteristics which don't have any relation with the game. Cricket in India is another show like Indian Idol but just has vast reach, may be because of the simpleness of the game. And without any voting power we gladly take the role of selection committee when it comes to cricket.

And this is what brings TRPs to any show, the more we get to discuss and more the predictions and comments more is the number of eye balls a show gets. So it seems a viable strategy by reality show producers like Indian Idol and Fame Gurukul to bring contestants with which the viewers can identify. Remember Qazi Taqueer(Fame Gurukul), he won just because of his never say die attitude and because he could express it(his attitude) quite comfortably. This explains why shows like Deal or No Deal don't seem to take off, just because the format is not interactive. Gone are the days when people would watch a soap opera with a predicable story pattern, as it does not bring any excitement. Formats like Idol and Gurukul give people something to talk about and bring more than committed viewership, yes Indian Idol was a kind of addiction which made Abhijeet Sawant, the singer with largest selling Indian album.

I know a person who likes Qazi so much that he bought the Fame Jodi album even without hearing the songs. So is there anything wrong with these reality shows? No nothing wrong with this, if The Times of India becomes largest selling newspaper selling gossips and articles with no head or tails but on topics which are of immense interest to people. And if Aaj Tak,Star News and India TV capitalize on the sensational news using sex scandals, scams and hidden cameras pouncing on soft targets like Film Stars, then may be SONY should definitely bring in the desi version of Big Brother.

Reality of reality shows - part 1

Talent hunt shows and reality shows are ruling the TV channels now. Sony's highest TRP gainer is Indian Idol and so is Zee's Saregama Challenge 2005 and Star One's Great Indian Laughter Challenge. As Industry estimates tell Sony invested around 50 crores for promoting Indian Idol and Fame Gurukul when it launched them but the total investment for Indian Idol 2 is only 20 to 22 crores. Does that mean the cost of promotion is more than producing the show, one reason could be Sony goes overboard in promoting the shows and may be its needed also as families which are glued to Star Plus would find it difficult to tune to Sony. As mostly mothers watch the Ekta Kapoor soaps on Star Plus and in a joint family system no one dares to change the channel and it is true for other small families also as the wife gets to decide the channel if there is no cricket on show. But still Star One has managed to create a new space for itself without any major marketing strategy other than promos on the No.1 channel, Star Plus. Though Star One had tough time buying frequency on the prime band by greasing cable owners as no one really thought there is space for yet another mass entertainment channel in Hindi. May be comedy(Great Indian Laughter Challenge) and new ideas(Nach Baliye) worked in its favor. But still its Great Indian Comedy Show(poor & stale content) does not have as much popularity and nor does shows like Bluff Master which are unique and have great content also. The bottom line is good shows gain popularity even without huge publicity and marketing tricks. Much of Great Indian Laughter Challenge's popularity can be attributed to word of mouth publicity through MMS forwards or email forwards containing clips of Sunil Pal's and Raju Srivastava's performances. And sometimes even the best coverage and publicity does not work as was the case with Channel V's Superhit Singer which was simulcasted on all the Star Channels but it never clicked and it could never create stir which Sony managed to create with Indian Idol.

Welcome to Yahoo Chat!

Chatting has become a special part of my life, all my old friends i was scared of missing are close to me because of Yahoo Messenger. Yahoo brought the concept in a popular way through the Yahoo Messenger long ago(in last century) which remains unchallenged even today, yes Google has added a very powerful voice chat feature but the Smileys of Yahoo, the Buzz (Ctrl+G), the changeable font size and the invisible status message are too nice to forget and move on to Gtalk.

Chatting has left an indelible impression on my mind, even when i can talk directly i prefer to chat, partly because i can write anything i want, but in office or other public places i cant say everything

loudly. And this led to newer ways of chatting other than the Yahoo, Gtalk or IP Messenger. Yes when i want to see the expressions of the person i am chatting with i go to his seat, open a notepad then i type one line and he types the other, then we laugh, smile or smirk looking at each other. This all started when in my previous company me and my friend always had something to tell about our colleagues and project manager, so as soon as i sensed something funny or fishy, i jumped to his seat and typed the same. And this continues till date and this gives me immense relief as i am able to express myself without any censorship.

And i have seen as we grow up we are told to control our emotions, this leads to accumulation of feelings which needs a vent to escape. Its makes sense to say less when you are saying something which can hurt others but more often than not it hurts you the more. And it is quite possible people who talk in a calculated manner are more successful in professional life, but i personally find it very difficult making a rapport with someone who talks diplomatically. All this comes from the family you belong to, if your parents are white collar professionals chances are more that you know when to talk what and how to be politically correct, but for those coming from family backgrounds with blue collar jobs, it is difficult to accept that many a times truth is unacceptable in corporate world.

Mandira Bedi aur Sony

It seems Mandira Bedi brings good luck to Sony, starting with the EXTRA INNINGS which brought a shift in Sports/Cricket commentary towards Glamor, to Fame Gurukul and now in Deal or No Deal. All have been trend setters, every channel puts a lady in the commentary box in every sports now a days be it football or WWF. And now Madhavan is being replaced by Mandira Bedi to bring more eyeballs to Deal or No Deal. Sony has been trying very hard to the right node and who knows may be it has been successful but the current system of TRP ratings shows it in poor light. I have been a die hard fan of SONY's marketing strategies. No one comes near to Sony when it comes to promoting the channel. And it has always been the front runner when it comes to implementing new ideas. Even today Indian Idol or Deal or No deal has the best IN PROGRAM ad placement, barring the Nokia ad all other placements are quite well fitted into the script and effective also. Look for instance at the idea to have every leaving participant leave a message on the Asian Paint wall or Chloro-Mint representing Re.1 in Deal or No Deal. As Sony is busy promoting itself during the AD breaks it makes perfect sense to find new innovative ways to sell the in program ad spots. Look the way Fame Gurukul was promoted across channels using tie ups with MTV and AAJTAK, Star and Zee have all the channels in their bouquet but they have not been able to create the BUZZ Sony has done with its perfect execution of 360 degree marketing tactics. It has tried to sell the channel as a whole and has reacted very swiftly to he viewers choice by scrapping poor shows, but it has been quite unlucky as the Media Planners go by the TAM ratings which are very much tilted towards Star. Sony lacks a distribution channel, it does not have the Rahejas or Siticable with it so it becomes difficult for it convince the buyers of having a stable and secured viewership. But hope this year will prove to be a milestone year for Sony as it is launching all the hit international formats in a Indian Avatar may be starting with Cadbury's Bournvita Confidence Challenge. Viewers are looking for a change and it has been proved with Star One's success. The old weepy shows on Star Plus must die soon. And one more urgent need is that of a more metro like English Channel which shows Indian shows, otherwise all these viewers have to tune to lifestyle cum News channels like NDTV Profit. Zee Cafe has created a sort of sluggish image for itself otherwise it would have hit the jackpot, but no wants to switch to Zee Cafe for entertainment. We can surely and safely have the Indianised versions of Desperate Housewives and Sex and the City.

Chameli ki Shaadi

This January many people i know will get heart aches as she ties knot with her boyfriend. I am not talking about a TV or Film Star but she is someone who has broken several hearts. I know her since my +2 days and wherever she has been, guys have been there to fall in love with her. May be its not love but when you see everyone competing for the same girl you tend to believe she is precious. When i saw her for the first time i knew this is the girl i always wanted to marry, her short hair, her dressing sense, the colors she wore(blue and red), everything made me feel i want her, but the problem is everyone feels so. And there is the catch she can chose whoever she wants from may be over 200 shortlisted guys. I am not sure what my position is in the waiting list to marry her, but after having a crush on her for 8 odd years or so i still wonder if she was a right choice for me. After all marriages are made in heaven so if i was to marry her, we would have met in some way or other. But we never talked apart from the usual Hi or Bye. Does that mean she is not suitable for me, atleast that is what i would conclude as God has been very generous in giving me good people around me.

When you choose your soul mate there are many things you should look at, your hobbies should match,otherwise there would be very few things for you two to share. And all of us have something in our life which could be our purpose of living or our aim in life, your partner should be able to appreciate that, if that is not the case i am afraid your marriage will turn out to be a mere agreement and mostly this is what happens in India as everyone but the couple should feel good about the marriage. In order to keep parents and relatives happy the basic reason behind getting married diluted. And the need for a partner is different for different people. Some want a caring partner, some want a dependable partner and some look for someone they can care for. If the roles are complimentary its fine but if both are say dominating it leads to fights and quarrels. It takes time to realize what we want from our partner, may be after you settle in job the need arises, as during college days we look for a partner to hang out or just to make everyone jealous. This explains why many of the love marriages are not successful and many a times by luck you get a wife through arranged marriage who suits you perfectly. There is a nice way to know if the girl or boy you are dating right now is good for you. Just think have you been able to tell him/her everything about you? If the answer is yes its great as if the hearts are not connected and if you are not exactly comfortable with her the chances are you cannot express yourself properly. It does not matter if you are a introvert or extrovert because if only two people are talking you should be able to pour out your heart to her. So keep your search on and may be i will soon have a crush which materializes into love and then to a marriage.

News you can Enjoy

Times Group has finally joined the battle for supremacy in the English TV News channel market with TIMES NOW, the second offering from by Times Group after Zoom established itself as a lifestyle and gossip channel. The channel has already lured the cable operators and booked a prime frequency slot for itself and promos featuring well known personalities from Movies,Sports,Politics are there on the air much before the official launch of the channel on 26^th

of January. The channel like its other sister brands( indiatimes.com & Zoom) will piggyback on The Times of India, so be prepared to see reports in Times asking you to tune to the channel. I think it will be more like English version of Aaj Tak/Star News and it may succeed also. The reason is we watch News much like we watch dramas and reality shows. One example is Star Ananda the Bangla news channel which rose to No.1 position within few weeks of its launch,like Star News it also served news as a drama. Go to any house,you will see people enjoying news which criticizes politicians or Ganguly for that matter. We don't want to see the serious issues but we like to see anything which makes us feel that we are not the only wrong doers but everyone in this country is.

This is what Times of India does, it gives everyone the power to criticize the government or cricket players. And till now channels like NDTV 24*7 or the new one CNN-IBN haven't been able to create a image like that. They are more upmarket and NDTV Profit is more like celebrity lifestyle channel with shows on bikes, golf and gadgets. CNBC TV18 is a great news channel and it gives loads of information. Headlines Today is not sharp as it claims but has good coverage on sports. But still the battle could turn out to be difficult as CNN-IBN also looks ready to tap the same audience with India TV styled stings. What i expect from these news channels is more international news as both(CNN-IBN & TIMES NOW(Reuters) have international partners and there is no focus on international news by news channels these days.

It may take some time to take the share away from NDTV but if NDTV is hearing please reduce the ad break duration for your news programs otherwise the long breaks will force the viewers to tune to other No.1 wannabes.

Dare to think beyond the IIMs

Rashmi Bansal's blog points to the actual situation of placements in IIMs. It is true that as always grass look greener on the other side and B-School salary packages are there to debate upon, but is it the responsibility of the B-Schools to provide Big Salary packages during placements, many international B-Schools don't give campus placements and it seems that IIMs don't want to give admission to grads whose real aim is to get a big salary package, all my friends who are in IIMs had to give to some other funda of life to make the interviewers understand why they want to do a MBA, the point is IIMs never acknowledge directly that campus placements is what they offer,which may not be the truth as the press releases by IIMs talk a lot about the campus placements to establish their superiority over others. But still the bottom line it is not fair to expect from the IIMs to provide exact salary details of companies and ensure they are correct. Because the people who go to IIMs are learning so much about how businesses run, about finance, about HR and they have access to all kind of media(both MSM & non-MSM) and valuable suggestions from seniors. They are expected to do impossible things so finding true details about salary of a company is like a child's play for them.

But there are people who need to be informed!!!

There are thousands of people in coaching institutions preparing for IITs and IIMs. You can easily guess the situation by remembering the uproar when IITs restricted JEE to 2 attempts only. There are many in states like Bihar who prepare for JEE for years on stretch, i have even met people who have dropped 5 years after 12^th to go to IIT. And there are many engineering and other graduates who leave their jobs to prepare for IIMs. For these people the career itself is spoiled if they dont get into IIT even after years of work and thousands of rupees. A typical school student has access to main stream media only and they are forced by parents to prepare for IIT. A friend of mine who was very good in Maths was getting top engineering branches in colleges other than IITs, but as IIT K was the top college(according to India Today) he joined a dual degree M.Sc. course in IIT K. What i mean to say he can never achieve what he could have had he joined Comp. Sc. or a branch which suited his aptitude and moreover now he is in software industry where his 5 year specialized branch knowledge has no use. This is story of many who joined IITs in search of education and now are left only with a superiority complex that they are the best as once they topped the JEE. Not to talk of the students who could not join IIT and are paying for the years wasted in preparation.

What is needed?

One good step taken by IIT council is that of limiting the number of attempts to 2. It should be limited to 1 attempt for those don't have any genuine medical or other reason for a drop. The next step should be that of scrapping off the obsolete branches and introduce branches for undergraduate courses which are relevant to the Indian economy. It wont be wrong if i say that private colleges contribute more to the economy of India by producing computer science engineers in big numbers, which is in fact today's need. And next step is to create awareness that IIT is not the only thing and the IITians and IIM grads about whom we get to hear so much are the ones who would have done so even without the tag they are carrying,for they are talented and motivated people.

Life is not a big deal

Whenever i feel low i remember the story i read in The Times of India's spirituality column, it goes like this.

A small kid used to watch his mother busy with threads of different colors but he never understood what his mother is trying to make. Once when his mother was putting embroidery into a Salwar Kameez, he looked at some long-some short threads hanging from the lower side of the cloth. It didn't look nice at all, with no clear design and all kind of knots it looked ugly. He asked his mother why she has made a dirty looking dress after all that hard work. His mother replied “You are looking at a incomplete work and from the bottom side, once i finish making it take a look at it from the top and you will see the beautiful flowers.”

The flowers of our life are also being made by God, but since we are looking from the wrong side we cannot see the beautiful flower it will become once it is complete. There are good and bad events in life like the long and short threads but once all the dots in your life connect, the final picture is perfect.

So never think why something which you wished didn't happen, only God has the perspective to see the events of our life in right way.