KBC - Articles & News

General Info!! Edited by Princess - 18 years ago

Star Plans weekend bonanza led by KBC2...

Chaya Unnikrishnan
Posted online: Friday, July 15, 2005 at 0000 hours IST

A special crossover episode between Kkavyanjali and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii in July ... KBC 2 launching on August 5 alongwith a new sitcom by J D Majethia and Aatish Kapadia ... Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kaahin To Hoga going five days a week ... More shows lined up for the weekend ... There's plenty happening at STAR Plus. And one can't but help get caught in the frenzy ... Three years ago, STAR Plus set a trend of crossover episodes with a marriage between two diverse serials. Aroona Irani's Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand, a weekly, and Ekta Kapoor's Kasauti Zindagi Kay, a daily, completed a year on the same day and the channel celebrated it with a one-and-half-hour merger that netted 14-plus on the TRP chart. Next, Sujal and Kashish of Kaahin To Hoga arrived for the launch of K Street Pali Hill in the latter's first episode. More recently, i.e on July 12, the channel combined two other dailies of different genres obviously looking for another chart-topper. The family drama Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii and the romantic thriller Kkavyanjali were united in an hour-long episode. STAR had zeroed in on Kkavyanjali and Kahaani ... this time because both are on a similar track at the moment. While in Kkavyanjali Anjali(Natassha) is being persecuted by her mother-in-law Nitya (Amrita Singh), in Kahaani ... Pallavi (Achint Kaur) is hell-bent on taking Parvati's (Saakshi Tanwar) life. "We thought it would be a good idea to bring both the protagonists and antagonists together with one of them ultimately saving the other," informs Shailaja Kejriwal, Creative Head, STAR Plus. "Usually specials have stars or celebrities coming in and making it colourful. We, however, decided to create a special by combining two back-to-back shows. Parvati came into Nanda house because it was her mother's friend's house," points out Ekta Kapoor, the dynamic young producer of both shows.

The last two times STAR Plus had orchestrated a crossover, the reasons were a celebration and a serial launch. This time though they was no such occasion. "We are looking at the crossovers as tent poles to generate interest. Both the soaps have a different audience. By bringing them together we are aiming to broaden their base and bring about a cross-pollination of viewership," explains Kejriwal. You wonder how many of the new viewers will stay with the soaps after the marriage? "There is a jump of 10 - 15 per cent," Kejriwal asserts. "And for a channel that looks for maximum eyeballs even that is welcome."

For Ekta Kapoor who's more concerned with the logistics of producing the show, this "union" has been a back-breaking effort. "We had to reschedule the shoot twice and the episode was finally shot last Thursday," she sighs. The rising TRPs, however, are enough of a compensation.

There's another battle ahead for Ekta. She has to stretch the mother of all soaps, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and the Sujal-Kashish saga Kaahin To Hoga to five-days a week beginning from August 5. Kasautii Zindagi Kay has paved the way with Monday to Friday telecasts at 8.30 pm. According to Kejriwal, the first time an episode of Kasauti ... was aired on Friday, it garnered a whopping 11.97 TRP, higher than what it registers on other week days. "This establihed the fact that drama is so popular that viewers are eager to watch it even on Fridays," the Creative Head says proudly. Not surprisingly, this has egged the channel onto stretching its other popular dailies by an extra day. But the decision means the wheels at the production house have to work overtime. It also means more casualties in terms of actors and directors. Dropouts and replacements will be the order of the day. With actors fainting on sets and suffering stress-related ailments due to gruelling schedules, such an eventuality is hardly surprising. Actor fatigue is a problem producers and channels have to be prepared for. Recently, Ekta had to reschedule the shoot of Kasautii.. because lead actor Cezanne Khan had suffered a bout of food poisoning. He was off the sets for four days. Overnight a new script was written and the schedule progressed without Anurag Basu."Sometimes one can't shoot because the light is not right or the camera's developed a snag," points out Ekta. Her problems have just been compounded. An extra four episodes a month means that while they earlier had to shoot 22-25 days, now they will have to hang around on the sets 30 days a month. "We have started making conscious efforts to build other characters in Kasautii ... . As it is we were working against time, now we will have to be on our toes 24/7," avers the queen of soaps tiredly. "But whatever Kejriwal and Sameer Nair, (COO, STAR Plus) say I will do. They just have to order," she says spiritedly. Those speculations about whether Ronit Roy will continue to be the charismatic Mr Bajaj can rest, as he will be a part of Balaji soaps despite his involvement with rival soap on Zee, Sarkar. He, however, will be shown going into coma in Kasauti ... But it will be adieu for Om soon. Though Kahaani ... will continue to be a four-day affair for the time being, Kiran Karmarkar who plays Om has requested to be relieved from the show after a four-year stint pleading physical and mental fatigue. So, over the next few episodes, he will be slowly eased out of the show. It will be an 'accidental' death and Kejriwal stresses that "he won't be back". The story will proceed with Parvati being shown as a woman of substance and the issues she has to deal with as a widow. When asked why Kahaani ... was left out of the "five-day extension", Kejriwal informs that a new show is being introduced in the 10 pm slot. Produced by the makers of the popular Saarabhai Vs Saarabhai and Instant Khichdi, the new as yet undisclosed title, will be a light-hearted, slice of life serial. Going by their track record, on STAR specially, the new show by Aatish Kapadia and J D Majethia promises to be loads of fun. STAR is also planning to introduce a plethora of new shows over the weekend alongwith KBC 2 which launches on August 5. KBC 2 is the first step towards building a weekend band. KBC in its earlier innings had completely changed the channel's fortune. And at the time, Amitabh Bachchan was not the best-seller he is today. With four back-to-back hits in Black, Waqt, Bunty Aur Babli and Sarkar this year, Bachchan is returning to the small-screen's hot seat at an opportune moment for STAR with people clamouring for more of the superstar. There, however, is also a fear of the show having a feel of deja vu as viewers have seen its highs and lows earlier. "KBC is a tried and tested product. It's very difficult to predict the outcome but we know it is our best bet to tackle the weekend programming slot. People are liking Bachchan more and hopefully this will rub off on the show," smiles Kejriwal.

In its first round, it was KBC that brought in the fragmented viewership and led them towards Kyunki ... . This time around, it will be Ekta's Kasautii ... which will lead on to KBC2. "It is a role reversal," agrees Ekta. Lock kiya jaye?

 

Edited by priya - 18 years ago

Marketing KBC 2

Posted online: Friday, July 15, 2005 at 0000 hours IST

Umeed Se Dugna is the theme around which the campaign of KBC 2 centres. So far, from May onwards the channel has spent 15,000 GRPs on the camapign which is five times more than that of any other product launch. Closer to the date of the launch, a couple of crores more will be spent on the promotional campaign. There will be high intensity on-air promos with Amitabh Bachchan giving the countdown in an innovative manner, "which can't be revealed because it will lose its fun element," says Ajay Vidyasagar, Senior VP, Mktg and Communication. Off air activities include mock KBC shows held at malls and multiplexes in various cities. Promoters posted at key places will stop passersby and ask questions. Those who give the right answers will win exciting prizes. The print media and the radio will be used extensively to announce the show's arrival. "Unlike last time when STAR Plus was a relatively an unknown channel, this time we are a dominant player and every housewife is aware that KBC 2 will be aired on August 5," says Vidyasagar. The excitment is already built, one only has to 'cash' in on it. The channel with its marketing blitzerkeig will make sure they do.

MSN India join hands with KBC

MSN India on Wednesday announced its online partnership with Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) to provide the KBC Question of the day.

To get on to KBC, users would need to figure out the answer to the question posted on the site and call KBC with the right answer, the same question will be shown on Star Plus. However MSN India will provide a link from the question to MSN Search ( url : http://www.msn.co.in ) where users could use it to get the right answer. MSN Search with its ability to allow users to get responses to their questions in the shortest possible time, will provide the correct answer so they could call in the hotline and get through the first round.

Krishna Prasad, Head Programming and ISMP Lead, MSN India said, "MSN India is always committed to providing its users the best, Our aim is to see help every user get past the first tricky question that KBC throws at them!."

This partnership between KBC and MSN India reflects how MSN India is constantly looking at providing the best in entertainment to all its users. MSN India has many more plans to build more entertainment opportunities for its users.

All KBC questions will be put up on the site http://www.msn.co.in This also gives viewers of the program an advantage, as they no longer have to keep watching the TV to wait for the question to appear but they could just log on to the site and get the question as well as the answer.

Amitabh begins KBC 2 shoot tomorrow
   By: Shaheen Parkar
   July 22, 2005

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Shaheen Parkar After three-and-a-half years, Amitabh Bachchan begins shooting for the second season of Kaun Banega Crorepati on Saturday. Floor No 7 at Film City, Goregaon, has seen hectic activity for the last few months. As the countdown begins to what was, inarguably, the biggest show on Indian television, producer-director Siddhartha Basu says, "We are ready to roll. KBC 2 is finally happening." Basu and his team were "on their marks" waiting for the green signal for the show to restart ever since it took a season's break in 2002. Set appeal The set, designed by Bollywood designer Nitin Desai, is basically the same as KBC1. "We have to conform to the international licensed adaptation of the show. There are only value additions this time," says Basu, on the eve of the first schedule. "Our production and creative teams have been working in total synergy. Everything looks extremely encouraging as we wait for the camera to roll." Humbling experience Interestingly, Bachchan's make-up room, along with his waxwork, is intact. Earlier, the Big B had said that he found the entire KBC experience humbling and the logistics mind-boggling. "As usual I am scared, frightened and nervous," says Bachchan. Season's break KBC 2 will run for 85 episodes, from August 2005 to February 2006. To herald the arrival of their biggest show, Star has revamped their entire weekend line-up. Incidentally, Basu's other game show, Bluff Master (Star One) anchored by Vinod Sherawat, is shot on Floor 5 at Film City.

What's new in KBC 2

1. The prize money is ummeed se dugna — Rs 2 crore.
2. It airs at 9 pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, from August 5. 
3. Host Amitabh Bachchan has been rehearsing for KBC 2's new lingo which is under wraps.
4. Bachchan's wardrobe is by New Delhi-based designers Shantanu and Nikhil.

How comeback of KBC helped Airtel rake it in

(Saturday, Jul 23, 2005 - 03:00 am)

The Times of India Even before Kaun Banega Crorepati 2 saw light, Airtel, the sole service provider to tie up with it, has already become a crorepati. About seven lakh SMSs and 14 lakh call-ins per day, aggregating three crore responses during its first phase of a two-week ad campaign pole-vaulted KBC2 into the record books of Indian television. In comparison, Indian Idol, the show with made text-based SMSs popular, received a total of four crore SMSs over four months and Fame Gurukul has logged in about 40 lakh SMS in two weeks. A single SMS costs Rs 6 for the subscriber. This translates into earnings of around Rs 5 per SMS, totalling Rs 35 lakh per day. Of this, Re 1 goes to the government in form of tax. A sequel to the famed show Kaun Banega Crorepati starring Amitabh Bachchan, KBC2 has been enticing viewers to SMS answers to the questions aired on TV. Those hitting the right buttons are chosen for the lucky draw, from where the winner gets to the 'Fastest Finger First' round of the game. "We have seen a tremendous response to the show, with lakhs of mobile subscribers sending in their SMSs," said a Star TV spokesperson. Text-based messaging is being utilised by private TV channels to interact with their viewers, as it is cheaper than voice-based services and allows faster access without bogging network capacities. However, the channel specific short codes and keywords involved in the process impede viewer retention. This despite the huge costs incurred in brand building. The question that everyone's asking is whether the airtime spent by Star TV in promotions for enticing viewers to actually hit their mobile buttons is worth the revenue it is making. "Star doesn't earn as much revenue from the SMSs as Airtel. However, Star said that it already has a revenue-sharing agreement with Airtel, which is one of their biggest sponsors," said industry insiders. Text-based mobile services, which includes information services, such as news, cricket and chat, is currently a Rs 1 billion industry, or approximately 30% of the value-added services market. Over the next five years, observers estimate textbased services to grow at a CAGR of 47% to reach Rs 7.2 billion in 2010.

We're off to see the quizzer

Nanditta Chibber / New Delhi July 23, 2005

Designers Shantanu & Nikhil The hit quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepati is set to make waves all over the country — again. Keep August 5, Friday, 9 pm free. Millions of Indians across the country, from metros to the smallest of towns, have already kept it slotted to be spent glued to their television sets, to watch the premier show of television history's greatest quiz-come-reality show in its second innings — Kaun Banega Crorepati. Fifteen million have already registered to participate, on lines open for only 10 days. Despite the prize money doubling to Rs 2 crore, it's not just the money that the millions want — the sheer thrill of sitting on that hotseat across from India's biggest star, Amitabh Bachchan, is enough of a high. And, of course, the entire nation's watching and playing along in their TV rooms with cries of, "Oh, option A was the answer, not C," or "Come on, this one's so easy," or "Choose a lifeline — quick!" "Globally, KBC 1 was a huge success. The essentials in KBC 2 are the same but with slight value additions," says Siddhartha Basu, director, Synergy Communications, and producer and director of the mega show along with Anita Kaul Basu and Karun Prabhakaran. As KBC is a copyright show, the basic sets and format have not been changed. The 85-episode new KBC, though, has additions like a fourth lifeline and an incentive contest called 'jump the queue', where people can leap ahead of others on the waiting list by answering questions correctly. Also, as opposed to KBC 1, where television audiences were just audiences, KBC 2 is much more viewer interactive. There is a 'play along option' where prizes upto Rs 1 lakh can be won. With promotions for KBC 2 starting almost three months before its launch, the enormity of the show is apparent. Star Plus has even reorganised its schedules around KBC 2 — popular serials like Kyunkii Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki will also be aired on Fridays to grab primetime television viewership. KBC 2's eight sponsors have shelled out Rs 195 lakh each and there are ad logo opportunities during a lifeline or other game options. If those who wanted to participate in KBC 1 complained that the 30 million landlines available were unable to handle the amount of calls, they can take heart from the fact that the biggest change in KBC 2 lies in the technology and capability to handle calls. Whereas STD rates were to be paid in KBC 1, now a standard rate of Rs 2.40 per minute will be charged. "This makes the show more accessible," says Viren Popli, senior vice president, Interactive Services, the company that manages the mammoth selection process. BSNL and Airtel have revamped their connectivity lines, providing 45 million televoting connections, 49 million mobile connections and 7 million internet connections. "This surely is a test of telephone connectivity in the country," adds Viren. The interesting trend is that almost 52 per cent of the calls for show participation are being dialled from places other than the 26 major cities of India. "The sheer geographical spread of the response in terms of depth of volume is immense," says Viren who feels like he's in a geography lesson when he sees the locations people have registered from. Women, in particular, have been very active while trying their luck for that hotseat — the participation of women is almost 40-45 per cent, a high figure for a quiz show in India. As for Amitabh Bachchan, host for the show, he seems to be looking younger by the day — literally. His formal suits and ties, as seen on KBC 1, have been exchanged for a younger and more sporty look, courtesy designers Shantanu and Nikhil, who have given him the '70s Great Gambler look. "We did not want the classic look for Amitabh and when we proposed the idea of a younger look, everyone was excited," says Nikhil. Bachchan's new wardrobe will include leather and denim finish jackets with big notch collars, patch pockets with geometric embroidery, and striped shirts . Of Bachchan, says Nikhil, "He is a perfectionist and a man of few words. Nothing said means he approves." The Rakshabandhan special will have the Big B in a Jodhpuri with a contemporary twist — a leather patch. So much for television's most awaited — and most democratic — quiz show. It truly is not about winning the Rs 2 crore.

KBC 1 Vs 2
Prize money	1 crore	Rs 2 crore
Lifelines	Three	Four
Interaction	Non-interactive for TV viewers	Interactive with a 'play along option'
Entry calls	Entry calls through only landline phones	Landline, mobile and internet
Dressed	Amitabh dressed formally	Sports a younger look

You are eligible for KBC if above 18 years old Indian national, resident of India have no criminal record How the entry calls are managed Collected data of the registered calls from Airtel's 30 locations and BSNL's 30,000 telephone exchanges is pooled in Bangalore and Hyderabad respectively at 6 pm, when the lines are closed. Data from these two centres is forwarded to two locations in Mumbai. The software randomly runs on the data and chooses 500 numbers (which are evenly distributed across marked 10 regions). Then the 500 selected numbers are called back, usually between 4 pm and 9 pm, and questions are posed in two rounds to ultimately get 100 numbers and then the 10 finalists compete for the hotseat. Auditors from KPMG monitor each stage for complete fair play.

Govt owned telecom companies too ride on KBC

(Sunday, Jul 24, 2005 - 07:00 am)

The Times of India It's raining revenues for telecom incumbents - MTNL and BSNL. Even before Kaun Banega Crorepati 2 (KBC2) could go on air, telecom companies have already struck the jackpot. It turns out that it's not only private service provider Airtel, that's earning a pretty penny. Government owned telecom companies, it seems are faring even better. BSNL officials said that they have already raked in over Rs 4 crore or 32 lakh per day, just by routing KBC2's tele-voting calls from across the country. MTNL's revenues, in comparison was a modest Rs 45,000, during the first phase of KBC2's promotions. BSNL received 14-18 lakh calls daily which netted them Rs 32 lakh at Rs 2 per call. While MTNL received 50,000 calls or an average of 5,000 calls per day, which earned it 90 paise per call, as per its revenue-sharing agreement with BSNL. So while MTNL made Rs 45,000, BSNL earned Rs 75,000 as rental for its infrastructure backbone to MTNL. In fact, when compared with private player Airtel, the state-owned telcos have got a better deal. Airtel, had to pay Star TV a certain fixed fee in exchange for the free publicity it gets during the KBC2 promos, a charge the telcos do not have to bear. Not surprising then that BSNL has already invested Rs 150 crore and upgraded to intelligent networks, which enables it to handle traffic volumes as large as 18 million votes per hour, with ease. The next step is investing in an intelligent network that would be able it to handle 50 million calls an hour. The intelligent networks which route tele-voting, and other such facilities, providing value added services to the existing networks have been installed by BSNL in seven cities - Hyderabad, Banglore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Eranakulam. Small towns and cities are the main source of the revenue for the telco, said observers.