Reality TV gives small town wannabe a shot at stardom

A NEW LIFE: Life for Rakhi Sawant changed after she took part in a reality show.

      

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She began with a reality show Big Boss and soon became the toast of Reality TV. And the show goes on with yet another reality talent show

Life for Rakhi has turned into a reality show 24x7. She knows what people want and delivers.

Reality shows invite people to lay their talents, their emotions and their life bare in front of the camera. That is what makes their stories arresting for the millions of viewers to stop and watch and stay hooked.

Viewers like Amita Luv and her friends meet, watch and talk reality TV.

"We voted for Abhijeet Sawant, the first Indian Idol," Amita proudly says.

"Some of them were not working, jobless. They needed the money. Earlier I was known only in Bihar and UP. But now people across the country were watching me, finding me entertaining. This is what I was doing all my life. I would cry when I missed my children. I even got attracted. It tests human nature" Bhojpuri film actor and another participant of Big Boss Ravi Kishen says.

While 80 per cent of an entertainment channel's programming still comes from saas bahu sagas, the slice of Reality TV has gone up to a 20 per cent.

Their popularity and rage is such that even the mighty Bollywood can't ignore it.

The biggest names in Bollywood - musicians, singers, actors, directors, entire star cast of films, out of work starlets - they are all here cashing in.

Ready to come on as judges, guests, contestants; shake a leg at the drop of a hat, these shows have everything to piggyback on the success of reality genre.

Stars apart Reality TV is essentially about regular people with no sugar daddies, who will go to any lengths for their share of stardom.

And why wouldn't they for their 15 seconds of fame.

"The reason why they work is because we as humans love negativity. We are cynical, look at the soaps. How many women are crying in them? They die, they get reborn but people still watch. We love seeing jealousy, hatred, piss off, that's what we want. That's our idea of entertainment. I don't get actors to do this. If I can get the same reactions out of real people, nothing like it. Reality comes from a real reaction of a real person, as opposed to an actor to a situation," Raghu Ram, Senior Supervising Producer, MTV, explains.