Are you a serial victim?
Tired of movie re-runs or soap repeats on weekend TV? Watch out for new shows and non-fiction series coming up soon
Ideal situation: on weekends you have the luxury of flying down to Phuket or Goa, or partying hard. Grim reality: you've had to stay put at home, and guess what, even the active soapbox offers you re-runs of weekday soaps or films you've already seen on your DVD. In India weekend television has traditionally meant non-fiction shows and blockbuster movies. All that just might change. For starters, general entertainment channels (GEC) seem to be taking the battle for eyeballs seriously and are revamping and repackaging their weekend with a vengeance this year.
Typically, Star India did attempt redefining weekend programming by launching a bouquet of shows alongwith KBC2, followed by Sony repackaging Friday night shows, calling it the Shukr Hai Shukravar Hai band. Then there was Star One, which launched Fantastic Friday with a re-run of Detective Onkar Nath (D.O.N) and Naya Office Office, while Zee's mega reality shows, Business Baazigar and Sa Re Ga Ma, are the only non-fiction shows that jostle for screenspace with the channel's regular weekday soaps on Fridays. Saturdays and Sundays for most GECs still mean movietime. While Star Plus does have the odd Shanno Ki Shaadi, Sai Baba and Baa Bahoo Aur Baby, Star One has Exotica and Cook Na Kaho, and Zee has a decade-old cookery show, Khana Khazana, on Sunday mornings.
But all this is going to change soon. Ekta Kapoor and Smriti Irani's Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Sa Aasman goes on air every Saturday-Sundays at 10.30 pm, starting August 19. Says Irani: "Star Plus has been making an effort to build up its weekend slot and we are the first drama series to be part of the slot. Thodi Si.. is a reality series with an Ekta Kapoor twist. People at the end of the day need good content to watch even on weekends whether the format is non-fiction or fiction doesn't matter."
Says Satya Raghavan from Star India: "On weekends, the viewer dabbles with other entertainment options — from malls and multiplexes to restaurants and family outings. The viewership available on weekends is just as much as that on weekdays. What is required is a compelling proposition for the viewer to switch on the TV. We are launching Thodi Si Zameen, Thoda sa Aasman on August 19, followed by an adventure show, Lucky, in the next couple of months to further strengthen our leadership position on the week ends." Ashish Kaul, senior V-P, Zee, says: "People usually go out of town or have social obligations during weekends. This consumer behaviour causes a break in continuity and hence non-fiction/events/movies take precedence over fiction. Movies offer flexibility to a viewer to move in and out as usually most of these are repeats and hence you find them less stressing." Sahara One is planning to launch a new chat show, Mrs Punjabi, this month. The half-hour show will be aired on Saturdays and Sundays at 7.30 pm, just before the 8 pm movie on the channel. In the first episode, the show (the anchor's name is still a secret) will have Shahrukh Khan, Mallika Sherawat and Mahesh Bhatt together on Indian television for the first time. "Humour makes friends, wins enemies and this show will make viewers unwind and laugh at issues that would otherwise end up as stressful experiences," feels Purnendu Bose, COO, Sahara One Television. Some celebrity viewers also have different demands from TV shows on weekend. Says filmmaker Karan Johar, "The best piece of TV action for me is when I can grab some popcorn and watch films. I don't crave for soaps on weekends. Films are a great way to relax." T-Series CEO, Bhusan Kumar, tends to disagree saying that while he doesn't mind "watching movies on TV during weekends, it would be nice to have some good episodic non-fiction shows. I liked game shows at one point, and even smart chat shows." Adman Prasoon Joshi chooses niche channels when he's switched on: "I like niche channels but I am not much of a follower. Anything good works for me. I check out music channels also." For actress Bipasha Basu weekend TV means movies and "the chance to flip through channels without being bored. I also like watching fitness and cookery shows on Sundays." Channels seem to be keeping the viewer's demand in mind too. "We've brought back Boogie Woogie on popular demand and by the year end, there should be some more reality shows on weekends as well," says Anupama Mandloi, head, programming, Sony.So brace yourself for the action.
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