Imagine all set to bring Intl. singing talent show 'The Voice' to India

Speaking exclusively to Adgully, Nikhil Madhok, Senior Director 'Marketing and Communications, Imagine TV, said, "The show was a late entrant in these markets. But in the first few weeks, but managed to become the No. 1 non-fiction in the first year itself. 25 other countries have already signed up for this show. Thus we are bringing this format in India as well in early 2012."

Speaking about the format of the singing talent hunt show, Madhok said, "The show is about and only about good quality singing talent, but with a little twist. In the primary audition round, the judges / mentors will not be allowed to see the contestant. The contestant will be chosen purely on the basis of the talent the / she has and not how they look, present etc." The judges will not only the show, but they shall be the mentors / coaches for the contestants. "After rounds of selection, each mentor will have a team of 12 -14 singers, who shall be trained for the week ' to ' week competition. The contestants from each team will compete amongst themselves and their mentor shall choose the weakest performer and eliminate him / her. Thus we see, the show is based on pure talent."

The Voice, shall have the largest "talent set' replicated in India, keeping in mind the rise in glamor and scale quotient of the shows of this genre. "We will have about 700 ' 1200 live audience, which we believe will keep a different feel to the show", he added. Though it is very early to talk about the marketing plans, Madhok further added, "The Voice will have a fairly extensive marketing and communication campaign; only because such a concept needs to dealt with care and clarity. The basic pitch will be highlighting the fact that it's not a typical reality show, and the aim will be to communicate this idea and educate the audience that it's not an empty claim we are making!"

Talking about the talent pool in India, Madhok said, "The focus of the show is not only metros but we wish to gather talent from all across the country. The auditions will be held in 12 cities, mostly state capitals only for feasibility reason. This we believe should not be a hindrance in tapping the huge talent pool we have in the country."

The mentors / coached for the same are yet to be finalized, but Madhok says, "They would be stalwarts in the music industry. They are approached and will be chosen only in accordance to experience and willingness and quality of knowledge sharing".

Imagine TV has earlier brought shows like "Dharampatni', "Haar Jeet', "Preeto', "Dwarkadheesh' catering mainly to its women audiences. "With each show we target different geographic and demographic markets and that holds true for The Voice also. The programming strategy aimed with this show is at increasing Imagine TV's reach and ratings in the target group", added Madhok.

Imagine TV has been seated low on the GRP and TVR charts for some time now. But hopes are that The Voice not only discovers true good talent, but pulls the channel up the charts as well. | By Ankita Tanna [ankita(at)adgully.com]