Why Bigg Boss 13 is Promoting Bully Culture on National TV
Gone are the days when Hindi Entertainment channels in most sugar-coated way relayed "Sanskar" through their various programs. Today the pressure for sustainability is so high that they are breaking their own set rules to promote bully culture through their flagship shows on prime time.
Bigg Boss 13 is the live example of the same.
The season is touted as the most popular season of Bigg Boss, and perhaps one of the most violent ones as well. In the desperate bid to make headlines and stay put in the show, the contestants are successfully resorting to tactics like bringing personal lives and displaying a great show of bullying in the reality show.
Surprisingly, the channel is promoting it on all four. To the extent that they are bending all the rules, they themselves created for the show and carried over the past seasons.
As a viewer, I stand very confused and somewhat cheated now. Why?
Being an avid fan of the show, I have been watching all the episodes from day one, often in the loop on the online app- Voot. As a viewer, I often take stand for the contestant whose game I liked most during that week. Only to be proven wrong by the same contestant. The show that once deemed to be a great test of stamina and strength now is testing the strength of the viewer itself by bringing in "on your face-farce" kind of twists, heavily biased towards few contestants and somewhat giving quite an air to undeserved nepotism.
Every season the show brings one of their favorite bahu [from some sanskari serial on the channel] or an MTV Roadies/Splitsville champ [who will further move on to take part in their succeeding reality shows like Khatron Ke Khiladi], or a camp-backed actor/personality, who will be the probable winner.
To give them a company, they will have a foreign/non-Indian Origin/NRI contestant who will sail through a certain number of episodes to give way to the obvious winner of the season. The typical BB show pawns. This season, there are way too many pawns and they have been used quite miserably.
This season the pawn[Shehnaaz Gill], however, took the center stage, racked in more TRPs but Alas will end up mostly to bring forth the probable winner's game in the show. If there is any game at all. Some of the pawns developed an inkling [Paras Chabbra] and are seen changing the camp to reserve some more screen-time in the show. While some do it dignifiedly, while some of them this season chose not to go with the word dignity. Perchance they are so comfortably wrapped inside the warmth of the [bull and the bully] shit that they choose not to move but enjoy!
While they are happily relishing the warmth, their bullshit is unfortunately only spreading around to the extent of extreme bully behavior being idolized on the national television. I need not have to name them cause it is very obvious. You watch any episode, you will find them only screaming, shouting and bullying other contestants. especially the one who refuses/is unworthy to be part of their coterie in the show. Some of them were humiliated by locking them inside a cage in the middle of the house, and a few lucky ones were shown the door after being humiliated on national TV for something that is not even part of the show. And you think the TV industry really cares about reeling depression in the fraternity?
I am talking about the show. cause show is what we are seeing, even if we have no idea about BTS of a house with 100+ cameras and, an equal number of manpower manning them. No that's, not our business. We are the audience and we must not mind the technicality but the show. Fair enough.
As viewers, we also understand the show maker's need to break even and bring TRPs and ROI back on the table. So that another season could be made and no matter how much we can despise a season, a majority of us always go back to watch the next season. Blame it on lack of interesting content on TV or viewer's aversion towards the OTT Sanskari atypical TV shows. Besides, as humans, we all are voyeuristic by nature. Maybe that's the reason why a popular show contestant keeps on kissing a girl on national TV in spite of her constant disapproval. Now that's another question whether this kind of voyeurism we would like to watch on national TV.
The girl [Mahira Sharam] in question's consent or no consent here is no issue here as we are made to believe that she likes and it's more of an interpersonal deal. Like we were made to believe that another popular contestant [Sidharth Shukla] with an anger issue who does technically no work in spite of game format requirement yet always seen meddling with a group of people wolving upon him. Ah, we are such a fan of 80s movies where a responsible angry young man fights with the system. We all cheered for him, only to find him making his own group and taking bullying to next heights on national TV.
Was it the last season when a hooligan contestant once called a fellow woman contestant- 2Rs woman during a fight and was fiercely shown the door by the host? No, it must be Bigg Boss cause this season, one of the most popular contestant and allegedly the finalist from the day one [sic] had been abusing different women in the show, hurling words like- Gadhi [female Donkey], Moti, Aisi ladki, Mein ghar pe nahi leta [a keep outside the house] extra repeatedly every week. When his excuse to redefine some of those words failed, he started weaving them in sarcastic banters. Surprisingly he is winning hearts and safest seats, in the season from day 1. Surprisingly! Even I voted for him multiple times thinking he is the male "Razia amidst the goons". Naah!
I am not surprised when the makers sent Vikas Gupta as his so-called support [ he came as Devoleena's support who was his anti in the house] to play another level dirty game in the house and confuse people with his not mastermind but brainwash tactics. In one of the aired scenes from Saturday episode, he was seen brainwashing a contestant [Shehnaaz Gill] who became another victim of Mr. Popular's abusive behavior. Instead of condemning his abusive behavior, Guptaji is justifying how is an innocent cow who wants people to follow either his way or the highway, else he turns into the raging bull. Aarrgh! Lost case, Lost Boy.
If it were any other show on the channel, such behavior would have been heavily condemned by the same makers, the same set of actors. However, no such boundaries this time. Maybe because it is not a "kid's" show which comes with many "dos" and "don't" for the content.
But is it ok to promote bully at such intensity even on an adult's show which has viewers ranging from 10 years to 40 at least?
In the wake of as many movements against bully culture in west esp in America etc, it is quite condemnable as content. It not just jolt the logic out of viewers but also leaves the viewing experience in bad taste.
I wonder after such a bad display of behavior, how would these top contestants including Sidharth Shukla, Mahira Sharma, Paras Chabbra go back doing any "Sanskari" show on the same channel? Even if they do not mean to do that, tell me is it right to promote bullying at such magnanimity in such a popular show?
Think about it!
And I am not Asim or Rashmi's fan![disclaimer]
And I am not Asim or Rashmi's fan![disclaimer]
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This article is merely an expression of observation and thoughts basis the current showtime. The writer holds no malice or personal favor towards any person or entity. The views are strictly based on the content as displayed in the show. No offense intended,
1 Visitor's Comments:
Hi Folks,
You heard me...now its time for Bouquets and Brickbats!