Sunday, December 29, 2002		Television

Channel wars: view to a kill!

Never before has the small screen offered such a variety to the viewer. With viewers getting more and more sophisticated in their choice of programmes, channels in 2002 were leaving nothing to chance to grab their attention and the advertiser’s buck, says Mukesh Khosla

BACK in the early eighties, viewers eagerly looked forward to watching Hum Log and then spent the entire week discussing about it. It was Indian television’s first soap and it enthralled the entire nation. Viewers found it hard to believe that such a powerful drama was unfolding week after week in the comfort of their homes.

Now fast forward to the nineties. Little did the enthralled viewers know that they would be transported into a world of quintillion bits of pictures and words. In the new millennium, the viewer is king with channels dishing out eclectic programming — from soaps to thrillers, from comedies to tear-jerkers and from reality shows to news.

Newer technologies, big stars and bigger serials became the norm of the day. Over 60 channels, 1,500 hours of original programming daily and a combined viewership estimated at 85 lakh — and growing, makes Indian television network one of the largest in the world.

In the last two decades, from a single channel the small screen has metamorphosed into a hydra-headed wonder. It has over Rs 10,000 crore riding on it. With so much at stake, no one is surprised at the fierce ratings war. Which is why in 2002, claims and counter-claims flew thick and fast and there were no clear-cut winners as Star, Sony, Zee and others vied for viewer attention.

The war got murky as Star Television alleged that a number of cable operators were fudging their subscription figures. In a fit of rage the channel blipped the signals of defaulting cable operators. On their part, cable operators alleged that Star and other channels were hiking their rates irrationally and viewers were protesting.

Which all strengthened the case for speedy deployment of the Conditional Access System (CAS). The Bill was finally passed on December 10 and now the 55 million cable homes would be able to pick and choose the channels they want to see.

With people getting more and more sophisticated in their choice of programmes, channels were leaving nothing to chance to cater to their tastes and demands in a bid to grab their attention and the advertiser’s buck.

Two years after Kaun Banega Crorepati made Star Plus one of the most watched channels, an aggressive race has erupted between Zee and Sony for the second spot. Throughout 2002, it was a no-holds barred match and a neck-and-neck race for ratings. Despite the fact Star Plus started the year with a slew of new programming, including serials like Sanjivani, Kismey Kitna Hai Dam, Krishna Arjun, Avinash IPS, Gurukul and Yatra, it was still on its toes and had an anxious eye on rival channels.

In fact, game shows catalysed the race for the top. In 2000, when Star Plus set the cat among pigeons with KBC, it started a trend which shows no signs of abating. But things were hunky-dory for the channel in more ways than one, thanks mainly to Ekta Kapoor, who had been ruling the small screen like a queen bee. Her immensely popular middle class serials like Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kasuatti Zindagii Kay were chart-busters throughout the year and her control on prime time was almost Bachchanesque.

Zee put up a semblance of a fight with a rather assorted gaggle of programmes. Though a majority of the shows and serials had poor ratings, some like Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai and the Shobha De scripted Kittie Party were popular. Khana Khazana was an all time favourite and there was the all new Ramayana for the devout.

Interestingly, in the Zee’s bid for supremacy, Sony ran away with the spoils of war. As the year came to a close, Sony was definitely lapping at the heels of Star Plus with Zee a distant third.

Throughout 2002, Sony worked its way up with a number of good serials like Dhadkan, Hubahu, Hum Pardesi Ho Gaye, Tu Naseeb Hai Kisi Aur Ka, Dil Se Dosti, Kutumb and more. Most of the themes were fresh and far removed from the hackneyed saas-bahu stuff.

Even Sahara TV perked up its rather insipid programming. Now a package of new shows has meant more and more remotes flicking on to the channel.

Even outdoor advertising has been specifically designed to capture viewer interest Huge hoardings of shows like Virasaat, Haqeeqat and Bhagyashree’s Kagaz Ki Kashti are up at vantage points in big cities.

However, the surprise pick of the year was neither Star Plus nor Sony but Sab TV. The channel packed a punch in its programming. Though serials like Office Office and Daddy Samjha Karo were very popular, it made news of the other kind.

The channel got instant publicity when it started airing Ramkhilavaan (C.M.) & Family. The serial revolved around a self-serving chief minister who masters the art of manipulating democracy for personal gain. In his nefarious projects he is abetted by his scheming wife Imarti and daughters — Rajneeti, Party, Ghotali and Sarkar — named after important political junctures of their father.

The resemblance to real-life Bihar was too uncanny. And Laloo Prasad Yadav wasted no time in getting a stay order against its airing. But Sab TV was in no mood to let go of a good thing. The result was another satire Public Hai Sab Janti Hai and it instantly caught the imagination of viewers and started raising the heckles of politicians cutting across party lines.

It is the sign of times, says Delhi-based media consultant Shabri Sehgal, "People wanted to go beyond the saas-bahu stuff. They’ve been looking for a change and Sab TV provided that."

Though it still had its ardent admirers, the saas-bahu stuff was seen giving way to younger themes and the baton seemed to be passing. Channels realised that a youthful image guaranteed viewership and ads which both add up to one word — success.

Led by Kyun Hota Hai Pyarrr and Kehta Hai Dil two young-at-heart serials on Star Plus that evaluate youthful relationships, for the later part of 2002 it was teenaged life all over again on TV.

Being a shrewd businesswoman, Ekta Kapoor too realised that her themes couldn’t go on forever. When viewer interest in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi began diminishing, she pushed the story up by a generation adding new characters and giving the serial a fresh look. Kutumb on Sony too was given a similar makeover.

Other serial makers also followed suit. In Virasat on Sahara, a young theme was introduced alongside the older generation. There was romance in the air on Zee with Love Marriage revolving around four girls looking for their respective Mr Rights.

Even Doordarshan got into the act with a young theme like School School which focused on desires, expectations and emotions of school-going girls. But the national broadcaster hardly looked like competing with satellite channels. Though no one doubted DD’s penetration, it still could not decide whether its role was that of an educational or an entertainment channel. It kept treading the middle path.

In music, Channel V set the trend when it selected five girls for an all-girl band, Viva! Pratichee Mohapatra, Seema Ramchandani, Anushka Manchanda, Neha Bhasin and Mahua Kamat, rocked cities ever since they hit the high road to Indipop stardom.

But they were not the only spice girls of TV. In 2002, the picture tube was invaded by a new set of young ladies who not just elbowed out older stars but made them look like a gone generation. Mauli Ganguly, Sangeeta Ghosh, Shweta Tiwari and many more who were nobodys till a year ago became top of the pops in 2002.

If the look was young, the viewership was getting more mature. News was big news in 2002. It competed with popular soaps for viewer attention. Before September 11, 2001, news channels claimed just 1.9 per cent of the total TV viewership. In 2002, it went up to 4.5 per cent and is expected to cross the 6.5 mark by the middle of 2003.

Images of planes flying into building, Osama bin Laden and growing Indo-Pak hostilities figured more in the must-see lists than the mother in law-daughter-in-law strife. News grabbed its piece of the viewer pie.

Leading the race were Star TV, Aaj Tak and NDTV followed by DD, Zee and Sahara News. Global media conglomerates CNN International and BBC World were fast building their own appeal. New equations emerged and dynamic mergers took place. There are some wedding bells and a few funerals in the business.

If news was gaining viewership, there was a surprising fall in the popularity ratings of mythologicals. For years, because of the captive viewership and the advertising they attracted, channels were swamped with a mind-boggling array of godly choices. But not any more.

Star Plus led the race with not one or two but three religious shows every Sunday morning — Gurukul, Jai Mata Ki and Yatra. There was Ramayana on Zee TV, Jai Shree Swaminarayan on Sab TV and Khattu Shyamji on Aastha. Though they attracted good advertising clearly religious serials were not the flavour of 2002.

Times they are a-changing and people at the helm of affairs were getting edgy about the rapidly changing tastes of viewers. Even as we go into the new year, the stakes are high for channels which are sparing no effort in wooing the viewer.