Well there are good shows and there are bad shows, but then there are ugly and non-sense shows too! Yes, I’m talking about Bigg Boss which is already in trouble due to the scenes where inmates are making out in front of Camera, there is a ‘Suhaag Raat’ and to top it all now there is (soon to join) Pamela Anderson!
Pamela will be in the show for 3 days for which she has been paid Rs. 2.5 Crore. Many MPs and politicians including Congress MP Jagdambika Pal, I&B ministry and Shiv Sena have strongly criticised the show for it’s vulgarity.
For me Bigg Boss is a failure right from its concept stage to content stage. They can’t defend themselves by giving excuses like people watch the show and love it. It’s not an excuse, people even watch Blue films and (apparently) like it.
It’s like mixing drugs in Cold drinks without making anyone realize and then defending themselves by saying that people are enjoying it even more! Show is addictive because it has vulgarity, infidelity, lies, abuses, back bashing and no, I mean absolutely NO positive qualities!
There are many formats of “Reality Shows”, although all of them have some negative qualities but at least their motive is good and this include shows like “Rakhi Ka Insaaf”[ Must read – The Reality of Reality Shows And Is The Government Interference Justified?]. On other hand in “Bigg Boss” there is no clear goal, there are fake eliminations and inclusions, no one is challenged for any task or anything. It’s like a “Page-3” drama enacted on screen in front of a billion people including small kids. Wonder what are they going to learn from all this?
This season of Bigg Boss started with the elimination of “Bunty- The Chor” who was abusive and defiant and when organizers understood that no one else is abusing on screen any more, they called in Dolly Bindra! Dolly has the ability to make a local mob look Bachha in front of her Gaalis (abuses). This shows their (producers of show) mentality, they need people like Dolly to make the show HOT and including Pamela will literally mean making it hotter. There is also Pakistani Actor Veena Malik flirting with both Ashmit Patel and Hrishant Goswami openly on-screen.
Combining all these elements means a hot (Blue) show on Indian televisions without any cuts and during Prime-time, asking every kid to openly spoil themselves.
Why no one is noticing and doing anything?
Hi,
I just happened to visit this site and closely observed the discussions and thoughts of people who have contributed,
I agree that there are dual view points to the same situation which looks convincing for a logic mind, But some of our Great men in past, Our Scriptures and History gives us a thumb rule.
There should be strict adhearence to the Final revelation by superior authority irrespective of ones liking or not. Now this kind of revelation is in favour of humanity
Example: A child may feel that his/her parents are scolding and yelling at it but in reality its for the own good of the child
Everyone of us are brought up in different circumstances and culture but the basic rules of life is same.Sex is divine and natural but talking about it openly is adultery and not permitted by Authorities (ISLAM,Vedic scripture,Christianity).
We are saved if we follow dharma and its universal..Khajurao and other things are there but at the same time There is also Bhagvad Gita and Great literatures and glorious past which are in large nos then the so called khajurao and etc..,
we are so much used to this things and slowly we have accepted and now we think its part of life.
Example: a person starts smoking and gradually he becomes addict and accepts it as a part of his life
This is what has happened to us as well, We are all so much engaged in our daily income earning process that no one take a bold step to eliminate it at the root level..
Yes Reality shows like BB,RSI Etc should be banned altogether and instead the TV Channels invest some productive time for showing some good entertainment with positive message keeping in mind the cultural aspect..
who says we are slaves no plz rethink we are what we think, English langauge had changed the phase of indian economy, You know what i am saying i need not stress..further if you think we are slaves then why don’t you take a bold step to bring in a revolution..
Its just we are subjected to lot of Trial and error but ultimately we will realize that what our scriptures says is tried and tested and out of deep wisdom..this process is already started and western people i have seen going to Indian temples or organisations just coz they have lost fait in Church, It might be in small nos but soon the crowd will grow..
Today bigg boss included a porn star (very proudly), tomorrow might show porn clips (proudly), next season they bight include only D grade celebrities and porn-star across the world. Keep it up Bigg Boss … one day you will successfully spoil our cultural diversity in the Country.
Things have gotten worse lately, especially since they started bringing pornstars into mainstream media.. I am no conservative, but bringing a pornstar(Sunny Leone) is just way off the chart.. I am not saying people should stick to “conservative,sensible and sometimes practical”(folks here call it Indian culture), nor am I saying that people should follow “crazzy illogical pointless unfruitful culture”(folks here term it as US/Western culture. Its up to the individual to chose whats right for them. But bringing out this filth in public, showing off its gorgeous is definetly not right. I may watch porn, i may enjoy Sunny Leone in my own privacy, but i dont want my younger/innocent ones to know of its existence(call me hypocrite, but my reasons are valid and sensible). Having grown up in places of stringent rules and iron curtains on “Western Media”, i have come to hate lack of freedom. But at the same time, i feel that Indian media is just being shallow with its attractions, over utilising the freedom given, only in all wrong ways. All this to increase only their TRP and lower thier credibility. As, i would say to my 3 month old dog, SHAME SHAME PUPPY SHAME. Please stop this nonsense and give us some meanigful shows, rather than trying to lure brainless teens into the so called “TELEVISONS”(idiot box) by offering empty hopes and false messages. I dont have any hope on our sleepy looty government to bring about a policy change, but I honestly, sincerely and deeply hope that someone tries to stop this act of public ludacris.
veena malik ki choot mein snake.
veena malik ki choot mein snake.
i feel this big boss is scripted, the past of the host is always full of controversy, and i feel to go ahead from KBC that gentleman can do all kind of cheap things, to boost the TRP of show.
hey guys i read some comments here.
I would just like to say that there are various kinds of shows on TV, ranging from dhaarmik programs to english movies that may include all kinds of contents. I just think that changing the time slot is not the answer. If parents cannot control what their kids are and are not allowed to watch how can they expect to control what shows can run on what timings. the kids taht watch this show till 10 at night may watch it even i the time slot is shifted. there is no gurantee tahat this is a solution. it would be better to control your kids and what they watch. And as parenst this is solely your responsibility
all the world is fool.because i am thanda thanda cool cool
This is amazing. Since the discussion is going to the moral lines and even legislators are joining in, here’s what I think.
We Indians somehow always feel we are on a higher moral ground as compared to rest of the world. That our culture is some how better than the culture of “the west”. Can someone please define what exactly is Indian culture? We Indians really live in a dual reality world. We live in a real world but on paper we maintain that we live in a completely different world. A world where people don’t utter MC and BC words, where couples don’t engage in couple like behavior, where people never fight, where ministers don’t take bribe, where everyone is honest.
How exactly does Bigg Boss harm our culture? They show people fighting and abusing each other. Who doesn’t? Show me one kid in this country that hasn’t seen people fighting and using bad words? Bigg Boss is harming our culture because they showed a couple cuddling together? That is harming our culture? How? Is it bad for couples to get cosy? That’s Talibanic thinking.
It is poisoning young minds? Tell me exactly how? Check out any school, any college and listen to the talks of kids. We all have been to these schools and colleges. We KNOW what kids of the age know and do. Even we did it as kids. Denying it and acting as if its not part of our holy culture is akin to a rabbit closing his eyes and thinking the world cant see him the way he cant see the world. At one end we talk about imparting sex education in schools and on the other hand we balk at on screen kissing scene. Do you think by shifting Bigg Boss to 11 pm, kids will not watch it? If parents think shows are corrupting young minds they have to make sure kids don’t watch it. KBC comes at the same time as Bigg Boss. Watch KBC. That’s a show whole family can enjoy during dinner. And it actually increases GK.
And why the fuss about reality shows being scripted? Will we enjoy the fight between Dolly and Sameer less if we knew it was preplanned? Preplanned or spontaneous, who cares? We enjoy the quarrel. When we watch an action movie and see the hero whipping the a** of bad guys, we enjoy knowing fully well that the fight is fake. Then why do we take a different stance while watching a “reality show”? Reality show is a recent name given to such kind of shows. Antakshari was probably one of the first reality shows before Indian idols of the world made their debut as reality shows. We enjoyed Antakshari and we enjoyed Indian Idol. Whats the difference?
Another piece of joke I read on the Times of India article about Colors being sent a notice by court for “cheating” people by showing wedding of an already married couple. Excuse me? Did you say “cheated”? How? Did Colors ask money for Ali and Sara’s wedding from audience? And why do we care if they are already married or not? Its their personal matter. If they are indeed marrying again for money, why should we react? Just because noone is paying us to get married again? Load of BS!
At the end if parents think a show is harming their children, it their duty to make sure kids don’t watch it. Simple. As a parent you are entitled to think what is best for your kids. And that is your right for sure. But forcing one’s idea of morality onto entire nation is dictatorship.
No disrespect meant to anyone. Everyone is entitled to their views and this is my view. It’s a democratic country after all :)
Hi Yash,
Whether I agree with your point of view or not is a different issue, but you have presented you side quite convincingly :). I agree with you partially except the “cheating” part. Coz when TV projects a “reality” show, they have to show “reality” and not “staged” drama… that is definitely cheating in my book !
Reality is boring man. Were we watching and discussing Bigg Boss if there wasn’t Dolly Bindra in the house? Reality is everywhere around us. People watch TV to escape from the “real” world.
Hi Yash,
I appreciate the way you put it :)!
Let me put it this way:
Today’s internet generation is somewhat influenced by West. Whoever spends few months in US/UK start thinking that we should be like them :)- very fine! We should be more open to accepting taboo topics- agreed! We should take every action morally and not force our views on anyone- very much agreed! But here is the crux of matter:
Except you, me, Arun, trak.in readers and few other Indians, rest don’t have such high moral grounds to take things the way they are! It has to work both ways- sensible citizens combined with a robust regulatory authority. And what we have today is “some” sensible citizens and pathetic regulations.
In US/UK, before every program begins there is a clear certification shown for at least 15 seconds so that everyone understands what they are watching- that’s robust regulation. Every citizen (and I mean literally, everyone) knows what they are watching and they have a culture where children will not lie to their parents if they are even watching something fishy, in case they are not minors.
Just to give you an example, if you goto my hometown you can find 15 people watching TV from 7-10PM together. This includes small kids, parents, relatives and friends. Now you put Bigg Boss in front of them and see their reaction :). And in all such places (small towns etc) people are asleep by 10, as they don’t have white collar jobs like us! Hence shifting the slot works here.
I hope you understand this, there is still a (huge) gap between what we think we should be and what we actually are :)
Hi Rabi, you actually made a good point there. In the west parents and children are open to each other. That’s their culture. In India kids don’t share their life with parents. That’s Indian culture and many people somehow feel proud about it (That excludes trak.in readers – I hope :) ) And our sarkari babus feel they are gurdians of such a culture.
In the morning I heard this on radio – some teenagers were asked about shifting Bigg Boss to 11 PM. One girl said by that time the parents are asleep, so we can watch the show alone! Ha! :)
@Yash: you got it :)!
And LOL that girl truly sums up the Gen gap we have here. Not sharing things with parents is def ain’t cool and I wish we actually imbibe that culture from US. Everyone like openness but without any rules, regulations, and sense of responsibility, its USELESS :)
Actually,
Bigg Boss is a fake show.
In this show the people to whom can’t we say the people. Even if we are telling them a ‘Dog’ then Dog will also be shy, “I’m not such Bad like them.” That bludy Dolly Bindra who shoulting against all the people everytime and if a gentleman like Samir Soni want’s to go against her. Then he has to go from house…..? What a fuck….? We are just wasting our time after this kind of shows in which a genuin candidate (person) like Samir Soni has to go home and we have to see such a cheap people like Ashmit Patel, Veena Malik, Sara Khan Merchant and Dolly Bindra in the show, and vote for them…..! My foot….! I’m the biggest fan of Bigg Boss show but if Samir Soni will go home for this reason then I’ll never ever will see the bludy fake show.
I also feel parliament need not waste their valuable time over such shows, this is unwarranted and needless. Ministry of broadcasting should have clear guidlines for rating of tv shows, channels.
I think reality shows like big boss which effect the generations thinking should not be aired on normal channel frequency, they should be aired only on separate channels allowing us (parents) to lock them. I think any such programs that corrupts your mind and not good for young minds can affect generations thinking should be on V (violent) rated channels that can be locked. So people who want it can watch it on those channels. This is not about suppression of rights of those who want to watch it rather protection of rights of those who don’t want their kids to watch such programs on PG rated channels.
“Bigg Boss loses prime time slot” Should we call it an after-effect ;) http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tv-/Bigg-Boss-loses-prime-time-slot/articleshow/6941382.cms
wow ! that was quick…Rakhi ka Insaaf also gone from Prime Time…and censor board has advised “parental caution” message at the start…
@Rabi
Brother, the biggest Pain in the A** is undoubtedly the news channels. There was a time when my Dad used to watch Ghoomta Aaina on DD2 for 20 mins a day. Those 20 mins used to cover all the major news. This new concept of 24*7 sucks. Moreover, you have to wait for hours and hours to get to know the headlines. They will be stuck with special reports on Bigg Boss and other silly soaps on TV. I mean common NEWS stands for North East West South, which means information on new developments across the globe which has some relevance to the economy, well being, and interest of the people
Still if the News channels work harder and ignore TRPs they still have so much which they can capture from everyday life. They can have various sections wherein they can volunteer Special Reports on various things which have some meaning and sense and add some value to the Knowledge and Wisdom of the viewer.
Alas!!! What they are busy with is complete nonsense. When Obama was here a renowned media group’s news channel telecasted “Duniya ka Dabangg Bharat mein”. It was the most foolish and senseless headline one can ever think off.
Trust me, its high time we had an independent regulatory body to monitor the contents being showed on TV including News Channels.
i dont see any reason to ban it. You dont want to watch, please switch the channel. Why should your ideas be imposed on someone else who would want to watch it?
Your reasoning is no different from the Thuggerays who got Rohinton Mistry’s book banned from the curriculum.
Today’s kids have easy access to internet p0rn, so will you ban the net too?
Liju,
You are absolutely right – I am from the camp that censorship of any kind does not work. Infact, people have choices whether to access certain material or not and it should be purely their personal choice. As for taking a moral high ground when it comes to students, I think it is important to educate about all things “good” or “bad”, which relies upon parents and society in general.
However, what really irritates me no end is broadcasting reality under the garb of staged performances. This is cheating and in my book it is an criminal act when you are taking masses for a ride under the name of “Reality”.
Comments Welcome…
@Arun
I AGREE with your last paragraph completely. Just the way WWF (World Wrestling Federation) was forced to change the name to World Wrestling Entertainment. Such (supposedly) reality shows must be forced to use some other names too and must not be telecasted under the head “Reality Show”. Any programme claiming to be a reality show must be thoroughly investigated to check if it actually is a reality show.
And for my friends who think Such serials are not hampering our culture, please visit a Tier 2 or Tier 3 city and see for yourself. TV turns out to be a powerful medium of learning. People in small cities and towns do inculcate a lot watching such stuff on TV.
@Dimple you are bang on! There are still people in tear-2,3 cities whose daily life get hampered by these shows since they are not well aware of real world through internet etc. For them whole world is what they see on TV.
That’s why I also believe that more than “Reality Shows” so called news channels should also be checked for authenticity of news before giving them certificate. Or, there should be a provision of cancelling license in case one news/reality channel/show doesn’t adhere to set standards.
Hi Arun,
I mostly agree with you… I enjoyed all the secretly watching cozy scenes late at night when I was in my teens. But as a parent I cannot permit the same for my young ones to be exposed to the same on prime time tv. I have commented above in response to Yash and Dipmple, and don’t want to repeat the same here. I will just suffice to say that as a parent you start thinking that people clad in khadi and sarees, sitting on the censor board, serve some purpose after all! (Reminds me of the scene from ‘Monsoon wedding’ with the imitation of ‘oo bade ladke dede, aur dede’ and the censorship discussion following that :-))
@ Rabi Gupta, Yash and Lost in Time
Talking about the impact of these TV programmes on our Culture. There was a time when a kissing scene was a complete no no in the house n the one holding the remote used to change the channel immediately. People used to avoid such channels during peak hours when the family used to be present in the same room. But now things r changing and that too drastically, Now, noone bothers if there is a kissing scene going on or some character is abusing the other. Its all a part of life.
The impact on children is the worst, imagine a kid 5-6 years old witnessing around 3-4 intimate scenes or abusive dialogue in a day.
Think about this…
It is not the TV programmes and in general media that is changing our culture. It’s the changing culture that is being reflected in media. The value system is changing so rapidly especially in the last decade or so that it becomes difficult to adjust with it. Talking about the impact on children, it’s a part of life and has to be tackled. Parents have to be on their toes. It’s really parents’ responsibility to control the content their kids have access to.
As a parent of 7 and 4 yr olds, I agree with Dimple.
Yash, as parents we have to protect our children from the bully in the neighbourhood, to the kid who use s**t or f**k on the school bus or in school etc., to what shows up on the side bar (suggestions) when our children watch a bollywood song on youtube etc etc are all parents jobs. Why, even when children watch cartoon network/ disney channel – cindrella is smooching, the mermaid is smooching, why even the cartoon dogs and cats are smooching.
There is nothing like ‘safe for kids’ anymore. On the contrary, building brick walls around our children when the world is moving so fast is also crazy! So we as the society have to take some steps while families have to play their role.
Just because s*x is part of life you don’t talk about it on prime tv and expect your children to take it as education for future…its going to impact them for life. If there are parents reading this comment, may be they will understand what I am saying… :-)
Okay, I am going to sing a different tune here.
I don’t find Bigg Boss offensive or vulgar. I find shows like Naa ana is des lado and Utaran more offensive than Bigg Boss. I hate those shows so much that I don’t enter into the room till the channel is changed or the TV turned off! But my wife and mom just LOVE it! I can’t stand the fictitious torture towards women and and absurdity in these shows but ladies of my house love it. There are millions like me but there are many more who like the shows, give them high TRPs and make money for the channels.
Bigg Boss, Rakhi ka Insaaf, Emotional Atyachar, Splitsville, Raaz Peechhle Janam ka are no different. I like Bigg Boss but don’t like Rakhi ka Insaaf. You may not like Bigg Boss but may like Emotional Atyachar. Its a matter of personal choice. Just because some people don’t like a show on TV there’s no reason to ban it.
LostInTime mentioned culture. You think channels are in the business to promote Indian culture? No. Everybody’s in the game for money. You think even the Saas bahu soaps are portraying our true culture? Only Doordarshan is in market for promotion of culture because they have don’t have to earn profits.
And again channels only show what people watch. Star TV spent crores on Akshay Kumar to get him to host Master chef. Who watches the show? No one. Sex sells. Fear sells. Channels will show what brings audience. We cant blame channels for it.
We have to blame the changing mindset of the Indian society. And it is bound to change. As time progresses, people will change. Society will change its views, its preferences. Things that were taboo a decade ago are now acceptable like an onscreen kiss. So no matter how much we dislike a show, it will go on because that is what people want.
And besides no one can force you to watch a show if you don’t like it. I don’t watch the Saas bahu sagas. Nor do I watch Rakhi ka Insaaf or Raaj Pichhle Janam ka kind of stuff. If I find something offensive, I change the channel. Cause what is offensive for me may be acceptable for others. Its relative. And if enough people don’t watch the show the show will not last long.
Hi Yash,
Glad to see a different notion here! See my point is not about liking or disliking, I like Bigg Boss 4 myself. It’s more about moral values, my conscience says that the show is wrong. Emotional Atyachaar is not “always” offensive, that’s why I’m not asking to Ban it. But this season of Bigg boss 4 is continuously crossing the boundaries, and if we still say it’s good and morally correct to watch then every show will start crossing boundaries.
Even Roadies faces some tough disciplinary action for abusive language and they had to put a notice on their screen saying that they are sorry for what happened!
Why you are talking about changing mindset of Indian people sir, people will always love to watch more of crap if its legal and openly available. People will even love to watch porn all the time if it’s freely available as in west! Should we give a nod to even that? It’s your call :)..
Hi Rabi,
Yes if you ask me I don’t have any problem with porn being made legal in India. Porn wasn’t a taboo subject in this part of the world centuries ago. We are the land of Kamasutra and Khajuraho after all. And any way even if porn is not legally allowed, almost everyone has watched it. Even when there was no Internet porn was available and accessible. So merely making something legal or illegal doesn’t prevent or encourage people from doing or not doing that thing. Smoking and drinking is legal but not everybody smokes and drinks. Even if gay marriages were to be made legal I don’t think normal people will suddenly change their orientation.
Morals are again a personal issue and they change with time. I don’t find porn objectionable but there are some who even frown upon Valentines’ day. Those very same people will force their daughters into marriages which I find immoral.
So coming back to the point, I think there is nothing immoral with Bigg Boss. If something is wrong then its with the morals of the society at large who give a nod of acceptance to such shows.
If at all government has to ban something on TV then they should start with all those Telly shopping infomercials that sell cats eye tabeez and Nazar raksha kavach crap to superstitious fools!
Hi Yash, adding to what you said about porn being sold, there are magazines too which are full of sex related stories. I saw many myself. Even their cover pages have those scenes.
We have forgotten our culture of late. I have not seen a single TV Show in States that portray our Indian culture. However, of late I have seen 100s of TV Shows that are trying to be too Western. I have not seen a single guy in US of A changing his name to RajKumar or ShriKant however half of our Indians in India have successful changed their names to likes of foreigners this is our great India dying to be like West.
I just hope our kids in India grow up like the West with all the BS going on in the TV.
@LostInTime: I “Like”d your comment :)!
@Rabi, Change is Good, but not to this degree. Big Boss and few others have just gone to the limit. This TPR thing is driving them crazy, we should stand up and stop this rolling snow ball before it gets too big. Look at Rankhi ka insaaf joke of the year.
Guys!!
As rightly mentioned by somebody above, the biggest shock of the season is that even KBC – the most respected TV show ever is scripted too. I was watching one of the episodes and I realized that every thing was scripted and unfortunately now BIG B is not as spontaneous as he used to be by being his normal self and leaving the hosting part to his wits and charisma.
On Diwali, the producers had invited Akshay Kumar and gang from the movie Action Replay. If you watch the show closely especially the ghadiyal baabu (fuljhadi) thing you will realize that its not a reality show but its actually a play.
Gone are the days when we found some substance on TV, now its only a HYPE-GAME. The best is CARTOON NETWORK at least people know what ever is being showed is unreal.
Regards
Dimple Suhanda
Hi Dimple,
Yes you’re right. In fact there are many other Channels including Fox History, Sab TV, WB movies which have tremendous content but lack of awareness. At iDubba we are trying to solve some of this problem only. Please check it out :)
Thanks,
Rabi,
I agree with you.
This brings to fore one more aspect regrading gradation of TV shows, just like movies are graded as adult movies, and alloting them dedicated time slot for broadcasting during odd hours.
For example, such shows as Bigg Boss should not be allowed during the day time and prime hours. Though, this does not necessarily mean that children will stay away from late night shows, but at least a majority of them would have retired for the day.
Moreover, in my opinion, the show itself has been deliberately conceptualized (eliminations et all) in such a manner that the participants would have to go through grumblings and playing foul game against other participants to survive in the show.
The concept itself is bad in taste; something which can not proceed in a fair and justifiable manner. There is no intellectual or skill-based capacity in the show and is all about making internal groups and pushing other contestants out one by one.
Completely agree Viral :)
Bigg Boss
Rakhi ka insaaf
Emotional Atyachar
Raaj Pichle janam ka (I heard they restarted)
Not only they are crap & vulgar, they are very much scripted to attract false TRP.
From where I see, this year KBC has also joined the bandwagon of scripted screenplays for TRP.
Hi Rabi,
You have echoed my thoughts. It is disgusting to say the least and calling it entertainment is insulting ourselves.
However if we just keep our brains aside for a minute (just like we do when watching movies like Dabanng)…my wife watches it online almost daily, obviously with lots of interetst…so does dozens of her friends in the neighbourhood. Some of their husbands too return from work and look forward to watching it. So with stats like that surely being controversial earns viewers like in a street fight too you would have by-standers- they may despise what’s happening, but they don’t might watching it.
Pamela or Pramila, does not matter. The producers/ directors of the show know (or have stumbled upon) the secret to gaining viewers and advertisers… so they are successful. The government needs to decide whether such ‘reality’ shows are worth being viewed by the public… or should they decide to act in public interest.
Madhav,
That’s a nice point.
There does exist a large audience for the show, without which the show would not have survived to make a comeback for the 3rd or the 4th season (whatever be it).
So, instead of outright banning of the show, it might just be pushed down the line, to say, post-midnight based on some still-to-evolve gradation system. Those really interested can watch the show at such odd hours. And, why not?
Let every body have the freedom in their own right – show producers and viewers both.
Hi Viral,
That’s exactly my point! If you have such content on Fashion TV you can lock the channel for your children, but what if it’s on a Channel which shows “Balika Vadhu” too. And that too during prime time.