Prime-time Confessions
A new channel, a new reality show and a new concept. Sunaina Kumar explores how Life OK aims to be different
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Retuned Life OK wants to cash in on the new trend of airing more believable stories |
ENTERTAINMENT CHANNELS,
more specifically, Hindi General Entertainment Channels (GECs), try to
stay as far from reality as possible, unless it is reality television,
which is actually a wholly concocted version of reality, often stranger
than fiction. But a new show on a new channel is set to change that. Sach Ka Saamna: Bhrashtachaar Ke Khilaaf, Sach Se Nayi Shuruat
is not technically a new show, but in its second season, it has been
repackaged as a show that takes into account the overwhelming
anti-corruption sentiment in India. It made its debut on Life OK, the
new GEC by the Star TV network.
Participants are encouraged to take the "sach ki shapath"
pledge of honesty, and confess to their participation in corruption.
Like the man, from a small town in north India, who rebels against his
family and exposes their corruption. To the camera, he unburdens the
sins of his family as the lie detector validates his honesty. The host,
Rajeev Khandelwal, says that even though it's a game show, it makes you
introspect about the choices you make. "We have doctors, lawyers and
people from all walks of life troubled with their conscience and
choosing to confess on television. I wonder how they gather courage to
do that. Is it for money? Sometimes it is, but often it is about
experiments with truth," he says.
Gaurav
Banerjee, programming head, Life OK, expands on this: "Though we are an
entertainment channel, we want to be part of the debate that has
galvanised the country this whole year and do something about it."
Star
TV network, after ruling the cluttered Hindi GEC space for nearly a
decade with Star Plus, has launched Life OK this month, and put to bed
its other less successful sister channel, Star One. Though, the network
refutes that the demise of one is linked with the launch of the other,
in the end it comes down to TRPs. Star One, the seven-year-old channel
oriented towards the urban youth, failed to garner TRPs, despite recent
successes like the romcom Geet Hui Sabse Parayi and the medical drama Dill Mill Gayee. Television
Measurement Audience Ratings, for January to November 2011, put Star
One on No 7 amongst Hindi GECs, trailing behind Star Plus, Colors,
Sony, Zee TV, Sab and Imagine TV.
The
new entertainment channel, Life OK, has been so named to differentiate
it from Star Plus, and to express its philosophy about appreciating
life's little moments in a society in transition. Take for example, the
daily soap, Tum Dena Saath Mera, a show that delves into the
lives of a young couple that comes to Mumbai from Bhopal and their
struggle to make it big. Sanjay Gupta, COO, Star India, says, "In the
rat race that is life in India, we are trying to get ahead, fixed on a
better tomorrow, and disconnected from today. We tend to celebrate
success and achievement, and in that rut, we're letting go of our
traditional beliefs. Through this channel, we want to celebrate the
small joys of life, that make life okay."
The
Hindi GEC space, which commands nearly 40 percent of the total TV
viewership in India, has become increasingly competitive inx the past
couple of years, with an overcrowding of channels offering much of the
same content to the estimated 150 million viewers of Hindi television.
Hindi GECs, with their set of loyal viewers who tune in to the daily
soaps, are the most lucrative for advertisers and claim the largest
portion of the total advertising revenue at 30 percent. With more
players vying for the same audience base, there has been a decline in
the segment, the main beneficiaries of which have been regional and
Hindi movie channels. And they have consolidated their TRPs and eaten
into a significant share of advertising dedicated to the entertainment
channels. In the dog-eat-dog world of Hindi entertainment, reinvention
is the only option. Life OK is looking to differentiate itself from
other GECs. The most obvious difference is in scheduling, as the
channel airs three shows in one hour for 20 minutes each. All shows
will air seven days a week, against the general norm of separate
weekday and weekend programming, as TRPs tend to drop for the weekend
programmes. With a seven-day package, the channel hopes to keep the
audience hooked through the week.
The
new channel is also hoping to cash in on India's newest NRI returnee
and popular screen idol Madhuri Dixit. Madhuri, as the face of the
channel, will constantly interact with the audience through the
different shows and provide a context to the story. "Through our
narration and intent, we want to stand out. Yet, the audience base for
the channel is universal. It is not aimed at housewives of a certain
age group, or any specific target audience. It is television for
everyone," says Ajit Thakur, general manager, Life OK.
This
'massification' has worked well for Star's flagship channel Star Plus,
so far. While other GECs have made niche appeal their strength ' Sony
caters modern content, Colors explores social issues, Sab TV does
family comedies ' Star continues to experiment with multiple formats
and cater to a wide mass of audience. Divya Radhakrishnan, media buyer
and founder of media company Helios Media, says, "India already has
more than 500 channels, and the next six months will see the launch of
more than 100 channels. With many households having multiple TV sets,
entertainment needs to become niche, just like cricket, which has
divided itself into three categories ' Test cricket, ODIs and T20. In
the days to come, we will see niches getting further defined in Hindi
entertainment."
Participants are encouraged to take the 'sach ki shapath' and confess to their participation in corruption |
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Life
OK's agenda is entertainment for all, but will it work the way Star
Plus has, is a question that will be answered only after a few months
as the audience gets attuned to a new channel. The focus of the fiction
shows on the channel is on gritty reality, and everyday issues and
challenges of the middle class. Saubhagyawati Bhavah, a daily
soap, tackles domestic violence through the story of a woman in an
ideal marriage whose rich and good-looking husband harbours extreme
possessiveness and jealousy. Sapno Ke Bhanwar Mein, the story
of a young girl from Panchmarhi in Madhya Pradesh, who moves to Bhopal
and gets enmeshed in the quagmire of power and politics, may be
inspired by the Madhumita Shukla case, but could have been the story of
any young girl with stars in her eyes. The channel's strategy is in
keeping with the recent shift in Indian TV towards more relatable
shows, after beating to death the saas-bahu formula and soaps exploring social issues.
And even as Life OK seeks to break the mould, it toes the line with its primetime show, Devon Ke Dev Mahadev, proving that mythology is the one way of reassuring the Indian audience that life is okay.
Sunaina Kumar is a Special Correspondent with Tehelka.com.
[email protected]
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Edited by Surya.Ravi - 12 years ago
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