'Big B' gets ready for TV comeback

After nearly four years off the small screen, Bollywood’s biggest icon, Amitabh Bachchan, is ready to return, this time as anchor for the third edition of Hindi general entertainment channel Colors’ reality show, Bigg Boss.

In Bigg Boss-3, Bachchan has been given a role of what Colors calls a “Pop-Philosopher”.

“Amitabh Bachchan will bridge the gap between Bigg Boss participants and viewers by contextualising events, simplifying emotions and, most importantly, analysing developments that happen within the ‘Bigg Boss’ house,” Rajesh Kamat, CEO, Colors, told Business Standard from Singapore, where the contract between Bachchan and Colors was signed today.

The details of the contract are still being worked out, Kamat said. “Big B will surely appear every Friday night. We are working out his on-air appearance-schedule,” he added.

Commenting on his association with Colors, Bachchan said: “This is one show that has intrigued me immensely as a viewer. I am looking forward to my role that gives me the unique opportunity to help viewers decode emotions and comprehend simple philosophies of life.”

The show, modelled on the popular English reality show Big Brother, is expected to go on air around Diwali.

Colors is run by Viacom 18, a 50:50 joint venture between Network18 (which also runs channels like CNBC TV 18 and CNBC Aawaz) and US media company Viacom Inc.

The Bigg Boss format requires over a dozen celebrities to spend three months locked in a house and monitored round-the-clock thorough 35-television cameras.

The second edition was anchored by film actor Shilpa Shetty, who won the UK edition of Big Brother following a controversy over a racial slur by fellow participant, the late Jade Goody. It is not clear whether Shetty will be a part of Bigg Boss-3.

Bachchan was last seen on the small screen in 2005, hosting Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC)-II on STAR Plus, the famous reality show adapted from the international hit-series Who wants to be a Millionaire? that first aired on the channel in 2000 (Bachchan hosted it till 2005).

In 2007, STAR Plus launched the third series of KBC with film actor Shah Rukh Khan. KBC had helped STAR Plus become a clear genre-leader, based on viewership ratings.

The 100-odd episodes of Bigg Boss-2 had helped Colors reach the top positions among a dozen Hindi general entertainment channels last year. Colors was launched in July 2008 and has constantly occupied first or second ranking in its genre for most of this year.

Bigg Boss-2, generated average television rating points (TRPs) of 3.5 to 4 which is considered good by the media planners who buy on-air time on behalf of the advertisers.

“Last year Bigg Boss helped us sustain the momentum and inch closer to the category leaders. This year, Bigg Boss is a part of our effort to strengthen our leadership and widen the gap with other players,” Kamat said.

Bigg Boss is said to be one of the most expensive reality shows when it aired on Colors last year with a per-episode cost of Rs 50 lakh to Rs 55 lakh. The per-episode cost for Bigg Boss-3 is expected to increase 50 to 70 per centon account of celebrity fees and the entry of Amitabh Bachchan, say industry insiders.