The lure of the small screen

“In the future, everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes”. Andy Warhol And what better way to achieve this 15 minutes of fame than via TV. It’s like a magnet and it attracts one and all. The list includes actors, politicians, businessmen, activists, dacoits, chefs, and even yoga gurus and spiritual leaders. No one can stay away from it. From Anna Hazare to Baba Ramdev, all have succumbed at some time or the other. And as time goes by more and more unlikely faces are popping up. Some time back it was called the idiot box. Whoever named it is sure eating his words now. Because this medium is one of the smartest and most efficient communication tools we have today. And the power it yields is phenomenal. Last week saw an unprecedented number of celebs use this medium to promote either themselves or their upcoming films. When Chef Vikas Khanna replaced Akshay Kumar on Master Chef 2 as host cum judge it was an interesting turn of events. The highly acclaimed chef has come down all the way from New York for the show. The show will go on air from October 15 and will also have many other celebs making appearances. When Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal at the peak of their battle against corruption came as guests on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li’l Champs on Zee there was no doubt in the mind that TV has indeed grown very powerful in the past few years. And what better testimony to this fact than the recent music launch of one of the biggest films of our times. When Shahrukh decided to launch the music of his upcoming film Ra.One he collaborated with Star Plus. It is the first time that the rights of a music launch have been sold to a TV channel. And saluting the power of the medium SRK wooed TV bahus Ragini Khanna, Pooja Gor, Sanaya Irani, Giaa Maanek and Deepika Singh. He shared the stage with them and even danced with them as Ragini Khanna and Vivan Bhatena hosted the event. It is no secret that it was KBC season 1 that helped Amitabh Bachchan get out of the financial mess he had landed in after floating his company ABCL. The show not only helped him sail through his financial woes but also helped him repackage his image which had taken a beating. And today the legend is back with season 5 of the show. More and more people understand the influence of this medium. From small towns to the dream city of Mumbai everyone is ready to go out on a limb to be seen on the small screen. Some use it for political gains whilst some for personal gains and many for commercial gains. This is amply evident when a film is due for release and everybody from the director to the actor to the producer make appearances on reality shows or even soaps to promote their product. It’s ironical that many of those whom we now see on TV were the same people who at one time thumbed their nose at it. Television has resurrected many and given them a new lease of life. Actors who were completely down and out are back in the business after making appearances on shows. In fact many have even used the medium to whitewash their old images. One-time dacoit Seema Parihar was seen in Bigg Boss after which she is now back on TV on a show called Prayaschit on Sony. The reformed criminal has used this medium to her complete advantage. Even controversy’s favourite children Rakhi Sawant, Mika, Dolly Bindra, Kashmira Shah, Raja Chaudhary, Sambhavana Seth and now Poonam Pandey have done bizarre things to make it to TV headlines. There have been many cases wherein people have used chat shows, talk shows and other such forums to make a point or to say something. Apart from these celebs even wannabes are now using this medium to find life partners (Swayamvars) and even to get married. Some even use it to find dates and some as a detective to spy on cheating partners (Emotional Atyachar). The lure of television is proving hard to resist even for the likes of Aamir Khan. We hear that he’s now ready to jump onto the bandwagon with a chat show based on social issues. The lure of the small screen has even ensnared Hrithik Roshan who now sits as judge on the dance reality show Just Dance. Sanjay Dutt too will debut as host on Bigg Boss this year. Such is the power of TV and the dreams it sells. Read more...