Kaun Banega Crorepati

KBC, I guess was launched way back in 2000. It's been 11 years now and it's good to see a show that has been going for such a long time . Those who have been following it reminisce about old contestants. They still remember Harshwardhan Nawathe (first person to win 1 crore Rupees). They talk about the guy who had won Rs 50 lakh and came crashing down to Rs 3,20,000 because he attempted the Rs 1 crore question.

They go back in time when Amitabh Bachchan did his Vijay Dinanath Chauhan gig for Vinod Kambli and Sachin Tendulkar (yes!! I can't help but bring him back to this blog again and again :P ).

In between came Shahrukh Khan, who brought his charisma and style to the show. It was said that he won't be able to fill Amitabh Bachchan's shoes and would be soon written off. But he held his own. He was funny, spontaneous, witty and created his own fan following of the show. He got better when contestants tried to undermine him. I remember the episode in which the teacher who tried to insult him ended up making up a fool of herself. Too bad, he did not return as the host and instead did "Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas se Tez hai", a very crappy show indeed.

And I saw the show today after a long long time and disappointment would be a small word to describe my feelings. Amitabh Bachchan is as good as ever, and it's always a delight to listen Hindi in his deep baritone voice. But has he hired Bappi Lahiri as his fashion designer??? or probably his designer is inspired by Mithun Chakraborti and Govinda's movies of the '80s.

There's too much emotional drama that goes on the show. It looks more like the irritating Indian Idol minus the voting. Probably they will introduce that too...who knows?? Why the hell should I care if the person sitting on hot seat earns only Rs 115 per day, or that he lost his limbs in an accident, or that there is only Rs 100 in the savings account of the contestant. The number of questions have reduced, their quality deteriorated, and strange life lines have been introduced. Worse, they have introduced the fake laughter and applause from the audience. Similar to the kind that we used to have in crappy comedy shows of the yore. That was the last thing one could have done to the game show.

Today, Ranbeer Kapoor came on the show for the promotion of his movie and for some shitty charity campaign which basically aimed at endorsing Pepsi...PEPSI for Charity???? Sounds like an oxymoron or an irony...which ever way you want to look at it.The 45 second clock that keeps ticking has hardly succeeded in making the show exciting. And who designed the sets of the show???? I am losing respect for Siddhartha Basu with each passing episode.....

Watching TV, especially Indian entertainment channels like Sony, Zee etc. has become an ordeal now. Where are the great quiz shows like (BQC, India Child Genius, University Challenge etc.), programmes like Chitrahaar, a decent half an hour news bulletin like Aaj Tak (remember Surendra Pratap Singh...Ye thi khabrein aaj tak; Intezaar kijiye kal tak?????).Males comprises at least 50% of Indian population.Have these entertainment channels (Sony, Zee, Star Plus)stopped making shows for them???? I seriously hope that some day I'll enjoy watching a TV show with family. I look forward to that day...And my heart keeps on singing the song..

Aaj bhi hai baandhe ummeed ki dori...don't lose hope is the moral of the story... :)