https://www.dailypioneer.com/vivacity/dinner-and-danceerrraunchy-naach.html Fake love affairs and kisses on the camera are pass now, the new reality trick is to be explicit and erotic under the guise of innovation. Divya Kaushik finds out if such content really works for dance and comedy shows
MNC professional Vandana Wasan was hosting a family dinner on a Saturday night, taking up the living room and drawing area of her tony apartment to accommodate a motley crowd of her own parents, in-laws, cousins and kids. The giant LED TV was tuned into a safe, popular family channel that was beaming a celebrity dance reality show at prime time when starters and conversations were just warming up. But then Vandana's eight-year-old daughter asked a pertinent question: "Ma, why is the man on top of the woman and moving that way?" Nobody was really watching but the girl's question made them stare at the screen where performers were enacting a particularly erotic number in a suggestive fashion. Vandana wondered whether the moment to explain the birds and the bees and "hadh se zyaadaromance" to her daughter had come a tad too soon. And her grandparents looked at each other in colossal embarrassment.
Says Wasan, who had stayed and worked in the US for quite a few years, "I am adult and liberal enough to understand the artistry of erotic dances. Las Vegas nightclubs sell such shows, which attract the adult audience. But are they meant to be dumped on a family audience indiscriminately? That too in India, where sexual repression is at an all time high, discussions on sex are taboo because of misogynist prejudice, skewered gender relations lead to harassment and rapes? What is the hypocrisy in an open celebration of the physicality of a couple dance rather than its cadence? In the US, you wouldn't find such cheap enactments in the family hour. And the professionalism in dance shows is so high there that the sleaze doesn't come through. Here an awkward society is equally reflected in the in-your-face emphasis on sex. I mean you mimic copulation in the name of art. And what are you telling people, the need to rekindle passion in a relationship? Then why push sexologist shows to the late hour?" Needless to say, her dinner was ruined. Watching the same dance show, three-year-old Navya recently asked her father, "Papa, why is the man and woman clutching each other so tightly and jumping around?" He told her that's because they were friends. Her reply: "Good, I will do this with my friends at school, the boys only then."
So we asked experts their views on what is clearly a lopsided evolution of popular psychology and whether the purveyors of entertainment are going too far and resorting to titillation and shock value to boost TVTs.
THE IMPACT ON CHILDREN
Samir Parikh, psychiatrist
Have you ever wondered why kids experiment with premature sex so much and you have reports of juvenile rapes? They grow up in a popular environment which is encouraging promiscuity and unhealthy curiosity before their brains are mature enough to absorb the rationale of sex and sexuality. Previously, it was an odd item number in a film. Now day in day out you are exposed to such content round the clock. Dance reality shows are not so much about variety anymore but how sensuous each can get, week after week, episode after episode. Sadly, parents find it difficult to prevent this exposure. Such explicit content tends to de-sensitise our kids. In a reality show, the vulgarity gets extended for months and gradually spills over. It is called "mere-exposure effect", when people start accepting things and alter their preferences. The young are great observers and needless to say the entertainment industry has a huge impact on formative minds because they are the prime resource of image associations.
The sweetness of romance, which used to be about flowers on TV, has taken the shape of profanity. What a 16-year-old boy used to say has become casual for even younger kids. Then there's the issue of skimpy clothing which they imitate even before developing the adolescent psychology. It's high time the entertainment sector imposes some censorship itself and works out bands and slots.
What many do not realise is that most average families, particularly in middle India, still share one TV set and follow GECs together. They cannot afford separate sets or segmented viewership. So you cannot have a social message drama and the opposite excess on the same platform. Such shows also take hold of the imagination of many in closeted societies in small towns across India. You provide them the fodder without direction or knowledge and further feed odd sexual fantasies.
THE PLAYERS THEMSELVES
Sudhir Sharma, producer of shows like Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha
I admit that I cannot watch reality shows, be it dance or comedy, with my son. The content has become so explicit that as a parent I do think twice. Dance and comedy reality shows have been a favourite with the youth and if they are the target audience, the producers and the channel should keep in mind certain limits and follow certain guidelines. We all have a responsibility towards our audience as producers and performers.
Sambhavna seth, former bigg boss contestant
Drama and shock value are somewhat required for shows like Bigg Boss and may be Bachelorette Indiaas the audience knows the format and expects some sensationalism. But I don't think dance or comedy shows, which draw in the regular viewers for their wider appeal, need sexual or explicit content or even suggestiveness. Sometimes the contestants feel that getting intimate onscreen or enacting mock sexual encounters will help them grab eyeballs and increase their tenure in the show. They certainly get discussed and it is tough for the channel to oust them if they are pulling in the ratings. It is indeed sad that at times provocateurs even win the crown. If you watch Bigg Boss, you will realise what all contestants come up with to get popular. I never understand how they can fall in and out of love so easily and get intimate on screen."
Ranjeet Thakur, creative director, frames production house
To get couples more intimate, we are using international styles of dancing like waltz and jive, hoping to widen the bouquet of appreciation.
Prateek, choreographer, nach baliye 6
We were briefed to give a new definition to passion and were told that the chemistry between the couple and romance will not only get them popularity but also brownie points from the judges. To highlight chemistry between the couples, we have to think of new themes but we keep in mind that our performances do not end up looking vulgar or obscene. But since it is romance, sometimes the expressions and conceptualisation are such that the act appears explicit. It completely depends on the choreographers and contestants to keep in mind the limits.
THE MONITOR
Shailesh Shah, secretary general, Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF)
There should be a clear line between what is vulgar and sensuous. Though I believe that in the last few years the small screen content, especially that of reality shows, has improved considerably, there should be control. Most importantly, the audience should interact and complain. It is one thing to discuss, another thing to report. The BCCC is fully equipped to take steps.
