Reality TV shows are big these days, worldwide and in India. You get to see the so-called real life TV in various forms, from cooking and dance shows to talent hunts. This mode of television made famous by shows like “Dancing with the Stars” and “American Idol” have given rise to desi versions like “Nach Baliye” and “Indian Idol”.
It’s great as it gives a platform to millions of youngsters in the country to showcase their talent and become stars overnight. The question is, are the judges chosen according to their contribution to that particular field or due to their fame? Read on to find out more about some judges who knew nothing about the genre they were judging:
Nach Baliye – Chetan Bhagat
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Chetan Bhagat is well-known for his books which have been made into slick Hindi movies as well. Many find his books entertaining and he is one of India’s bestselling authors. Which is why it came as a shock to most people to find him judging a dance show like “Nach Baliye”. Nobody even knows whether he had shaken a leg prior to landing the prestigious role of judge in the reputed dance show.
The Twitterati immediately went into action and a little sweet and sour fight also broke out between the witty actress Twinkle Khanna and Bhagat, which provided extra entertainment to people, apart from his comments on the show. Maybe he was selected as a judge just to get the TRPs which the producers knew would be generated due to this confusing decisions. It will remain a mystery why Bhagat was chosen as judge on a dance show, when he did not have any expertise in the field of dancing.
Indian Idol – Farah Khan
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Farah Khan’s list of achievements as a choreographer is impressive. She is a self-made film director and choreographer who has worked in over 80 films. She has worked with most Indian superstars. She trained Shakira and Kylie Minogue too, the two global singing sensations. And she was the judge of the talent hunt show “Indian Idol”, for not one but two seasons.
Since she has never publicly displayed any knowledge about singing, choosing her to judge singers, was strange. There are many reputed singers who could have been perfect to judge the show, but the producers chose Ms. Khan just because of her celebrity status and not for her knowledge about music.
MTV Roadies – EshaDeol
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MTV Roadie is a reality show with a massive fan following. The latest season of the show had the Bollywood actress EshaDeol on the panel of judges. Roadies is a show which has four teams which are mentored by their respective judges to bring out the best out of the contestants, to prove their mettle by performing various tasks.
EshaDeol’s selection as a judge on this show is another case of producers choosing a celebrity from a totally different field. She may be a good actress but as she herself said, talking tough seemed to be her only qualification to be on the show.
Indian Idol Junior – Sonakshi Sinha
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Sonakshi Sinha’s beauty and good acting skills catapulted her to fame almost overnight. Most of her films have been superhits and she has a fan following of millions of Indians. She made her television debut as a judge on the show “Indian Idol Junior”, which is a music-based reality show featuring children as contestants. Her presence on the show was not based on merit as she herself confessed to being a “bathroom singer”.
KirronKher- India’s Got Talent
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KirronKher has been part of the commercial film scene for ages. She does good work in her supporting roles but does that qualify her as a judge on a talent show in which the majority of the acts are dance and music based? She became famous for another reason during the show – the “pallu” act when she lifted her sari “pallu” to cover her eyes, whenever any daredevil acts were on stage! Certainly another judge who did not know what she was doing.
These Reality TV judges were a complete mismatch to the shows they judged as they knew next to nothing about the genre they judged. But the shows got what they wanted, the much-needed TRP either due to the controversy surrounding their selection or just the fan following they brought with them.
