Comedy Mirch Masala

MUMBAI: Sony Entertainment Television (SET) is geared to turn up the laughter quotient on the channel with the launch of Comedy Circus on 16 June. This is Sony's second attempt at comedy, after introducing the genre with Comedy ka Badshaah.

Slotted for Saturdays, the show will air at 9:30 pm, which is preceded by the musical reality show Indian Idol 3 at 9 pm. The channel's attempt is to beef up the channel's weekend offering.

As reality seems to dominate the television landscape, Comedy Circus is another reality based comedy format that pairs celebrities with professional comedians. The show will see seven TV actors teaming up to train under seven well known stand up comedians and together they will compete before studio audiences.

Says SET EVP and business head Albert Almeida, "Comedy is an upcoming genre and holds a lot of potential."

So what will differentiate Comedy Circus from other shows of the same genre currently on-air? "We have brought in comedians and celebrities which is a unique format in itself. This will take comedy to a new level of entertainment," adds Almeida.

As a tool to draw in audiences, several small screen celebrities have been roped in including Urvashi Dholakia, Ketake Dave, Karishma Tanna, Ali Asgar, Kiran Karmakar, Swapnil Joshi, and Varun Badola.

In much the same way as Jhalak Dikhla Ja which had paired eminent people from different professions with professional dance choreographers, Comedy Circus will see the celebrities paired alongside stand up comedians like Shakeel Ahmed, VIP, Annu Mudgal, Pratap Faujdar, Khayali Saharan, Kaashif Khan and Sunil Sawra.

The jodis will compete for over 13 weeks to emerge as the funniest pair. Every week the judges and the studio audiences will nominate two of the weakest jodis, one of whom will be voted out by remaining participants, until the winner is declared.

Says Almeida, "The show has a lot of surprises which will be unfolded as it proceeds ahead. We will have wild card entries as well so that every team gets a fair chance."

The competition will be judged by Archana Puran Singh and Umar Sharif and hosted by Shruti Sheth.

Comedy Circus is being produced by Optimystix which had also created Comedy ka Badshaah. Currently, the show is on air with repeat episodes titled Best Of Comedy ka Badshaah.