Formula Programming - Reality Talent Shows

Why I don’t like watching X-Factor? Simply because I feel that I have seen it many times over. It feels like watching the same movie with different actors playing the same roles. I find it boring just as I find the other shows boring such as: Sa Re Ga Ma, Dance India Dance, Indian Idol, Kaun Banega Crorepati, etc. have. Each of them had a successful first season while and some had more than that. The interest levels dwindled with every subsequent season. While some of these are successful international formulas which have been copy pasted in India, others are indigenous. However, each of them seems to have passed their prime and now require an age lift solution. Unfortunately, there are MANY with contrary opinion, as the television audience in India keeps increasing in volumes much faster than it matures. Thus the admission that the opinions stated in this article are mine. Also, my rants are not limited to X-Factor alone but extend other similar reality shows as well. The only reason I began this article with X-Factor is because it was the last show I saw on air before I penned my thoughts.

Some of the reasons for my ranting above are:

1) The channels become greedy: There needs to be an end to a success story. A happy ending and not one in which all characters take a second life and again have a happy end. And again, and again. Once a formula works for a channel, they turn greedy and keep on pushing it till the last possible limit.

2) They all look the same: A singer can participate in three to four reality shows easily without innovating anything new at all. If he knows how to move his legs, he can add another two three to this list. If not on this show, there is always another one to waiting to be tried out. They are all the same after-all.

3) Huge amount of emotional drama: There is always one participant in each episode who is either an orphan, has some physical disability, has a widowed mother, sleeps on the pavement, drives an auto, is a vendor at the station, sells newspapers, has gone to jail, has never had a teacher, god’s gift in terms of talent but not in terms of monetary benefits, etc. You can predict that after every three contestants, there will be one for whom they would play an AV about the participant showing the inhuman living conditions, the leaking roofs in their houses, the aluminium vessels to eat, the weeping mother, the bed-ridden father, the sister who is of marriageable age, the village which does not even have electricity, etc.

4) Same judges: Might not be the same people each time but again it’s the same formula. Get a woman who will bring in the emotions, a young man to talk the rational bits and an experienced contender to do the summing up. Make the woman cry first, then the young dude and save the tears of the experienced fellow till the elimination rounds later.

5) Humour is from people making a fool of themselves: Most importantly, every episode in the eliminations (and the eliminations go on for a really long time considering the size of Indian population) has this one idiot hell-bent on making a fool of himself. Try as hard as you might, he will ensure that nothing comes in way of his two minutes to fame and your irritation.

6) At the end of it all, nothing happens: Most of the winners, participate in the subsequent champions episodes, become coaches, become judges for the kids season, release their first album, get offers for live shows from across the world, and after some time, are lost in oblivion. They are replaced by new ones, with just as much talent, just as much energy, similar emotionally traumatic upbringing and hopes of millions of viewers who have laughed with them, cried with them, sung and danced with them, sent messages for them, etc.

Nothing remains constant. The channels are wealthier, the brand recalls healthier, the winners popular and the viewers, happier (empathy induced joy I would say).

This is when we (as viewers) start relishing those fond memories of something that just got over. This is when we begin to feel the pangs of separation. This is when we are just about to start missing those participants who entertained us for a couple of months. And this is when we hit the power button to switch on the television craving for more of them.

But what we see is a new promo. From a different channel with the same show. From the same channel of the next season.

A new story begins and develops just like a new relationship would. Unfortunately, it tends to end much faster than what a relationship would. What is left with the audience is the feeling of being heart-broken. Is that what we want?