| The programming team at Zee is probably congratulating itself for trouncing the rival Antakshari on Star One in the ratings game thus far, with its own version made sans the guiding hand of Gajendrra Singh. Although the refurbished Zee Antakshari made its entry a few weeks before the one launched on Star One (produced by Gajendrra Singh, who recently defected from Zee), the comparisions are becoming apparent now. Zee has gone the celeb way, getting its soap stars to compete against each other, a sure fire way of ensuring eyeballs in these times of consuming viewer interest in all kinds of tinsel stars. Star One has shrewdly gone in for the classic Antakshari touch, and has four strong teams from various regions of the country, all well versed in Hindi films and music. Thus far, the ratings have favoured Zee, which has been synonymous with the Antakshari brand for a decade. But what Zee does not have this time round, is ace host Annu Kapoor. Cocky to the point of often being labelled arrogant, Annu is nevertheless the soul that lifted the show above a mere song n dance routine. Zee's new host Sunil Pal may be an ace comedian, but as the host of a music show, he has miles to go. The Sa Re Ga Ma finalist Himani is competent enough to provide the tunes when the show needs it, but Pal's obvious lack of knowledge in that direction strikes a discordant note. More so, when the viewer has been used to years of Annu Kapoor breaking into song at the least provocation and coming armed to the contest with formidable knowledge of Hindi films, songs and their components. Although Annu, as always, overshadows his female co host (this time, actor Juhi Parmar, spritely and willing to march in step with Annu) he is brilliant when it comes to what he knows best. Both shows have tried innovations this time, like allowing the competing teams to raise objections to songs sung, which keeps the proceedings lively. Still, it is segments like Loose Control in the Star One show, where Annu fires impromptu rapid fire questions based on the participant's last answer, that make you want to applaud Annu's capabilities as much as the participant's knowledge of film music. On the other hand, Zee has been running an ad this week saying that the Kolkata auditions for Antakshari have been postponed for unnamed reasons. Not very auspicious, is that? **** |
Hindi TV Shows
