Ke Hobe Bangla r Kotipoti will be about human stories & drama: Ravish Kumar

Colors Bangla is upping its game in weekday prime time viewing with ‘Ke Hobe Bangla r Kotipoti’, the iconic quiz gameshow regionalised in Bangla. Produced by Big Synergy Media, the hugely successful game show popular around the globe as ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’ and best known in India as ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’, in its current rendition in Bangla will premiere on July 16, 2018 and air every Monday to Friday at 9.00 pm. 

Taking the reigns as the host will be National award-winning actor Prosenjit Chatterjee. ‘Ke Hobe Bangla r Kotipoti’ will give a chance to the Bengali speaking audiences residing in Bengal to showcase their awareness, intelligence and judgement. Auditions have been conducted in various cities like Kolkata, Malda, Siliguri, Kharagpur, Durgapur, Howrah. 

The show was successfully adapted previously in Marathi. 

Ravish Kumar, Head – Regional Entertainment, Viacom18, commented, “The regional entertainment market is extremely dynamic in nature and the viewers’ appetite for quality content is fast increasing. ‘KBC Bangla’, with its superior production value, will be a visual treat while the very format allows everyday Bengalis to turn extraordinary by harnessing their aptitude. In Prosenjit, we have the quintessential Bengali host with the right mix of intellectual appeal and grandeur. I am confident of ‘KBC’ working both as a show and dialing up Colors Bangla’s share in the discerning Bengali market.” 

Speaking about the launch and impact, Rahul Chakravarti, Business Head, Colors Bangla & Odia, said, “We are upping the ante on our content line-up this year, and a marquee show like ‘KBC’ is a step in that direction. The show has been a massive hit worldwide and has been widely appreciated for its edutainment content. Bengalis are known for their wealth of knowledge and now is the time for them to showcase their talent to the world. Every question counts and contestants will have to apply strategy and carefully progress, while weighing the risks they’re willing to take. We welcome Prosenjit onboard as the Host and Presenter of the very first season of the show on Colors Bangla. Prosenjit is a phenomenon across Bengal and I’m sure his enthusiasm will make all Bengali viewers believein the opportunity to transform their life through this remarkable show.” 

On his association with the show, Prosenjit Chatterjee said, “‘KBC’ is a reckoned format that has taken India by storm and I have always considered this show as an inspiring platform that drives individuals to relentlessly follow their dreams. This show will give them an opportunity to showcase their intellect while winning sizeable amount of money. As the host and their advisor, I’m looking forward to help viewers play this iconic game and hopefully witness a few Crorepatis during the course of the show.” 

Siddhartha Basu, Creative Producer, Big Synergy Media, added here, “Bengal is fertile ground for a knowledge show with huge human-interest values, and the knowledgeable Bengali, a platform like Colors Bangla and an empathetic star host like Prosenjit make for a great fit for the show. It’s not only a life-changing opportunity for contestants, but also makes for great engagement and interactivity for viewers, as we’ve found in numerous language versions that Big Synergy has produced in different parts of the country. I’m excited about the prospects of the show, and hope that from July 16, wherever they follow Bangla, 9 pm will draw in families before their TV screens to see ‘Ke Hobe Banglar Kotipoti’.”

Building a human connect 

Adgully caught up with Ravish Kumar, Head – Regional Entertainment, Viacom18, at the launch conference in Kolkata to know about Colors’ plans for ‘Ke Hobe Banglar Kotipoti’, strategy to grow in the regional markets and more. 

KBC is returning after a hiatus of 6 years. The show, while aired on Mahuaa, couldn’t gain much traction, do you think Prosenjit will be able to resonate with the audience?
I will answer your question in two parts. The first part is that it is not factually correct to say that the show didn’t work for Mahuaa. When it launched in 2011, it was with Mahuaa for 2-3 years and had picked up very strongly in that market. However, Mahuaa as a channel was an absolute underdog and nobody knew about it, moreover the market was dominated by Star Jalsha and Zee Bangla. 

Secondly, Prosenjit as the show’s host is just one part of the game, a large part depends on the person sitting on the chair in front of him. How you identify the journey of the contestants is the most important thing and that’s where you create connections. The connect will be a human connect, it’s nowhere related to the host or him appealing to the generations. It’s completely about the human story and the drama, and that’s the message that we want to convey. 

Stepping into Amitabh Bachchan’s show is a tough task...
I think no matter which market you go to, the host becomes the face. For instance, we have Salman Khan for ‘Bigg Boss’ in Hindi, and when you go to Kannada, Sudeep has become the face of ‘Bigg Boss’. Each one of them is unique and brings a certain kind of personal touch to the show. According to us, Prosenjit is the best host that we could possibly visualise for ‘KBC Bangla’. He has the same iconic stature and empathy, and in terms in achievements he is right up there. 

Who are the advertisers on board for ‘Ke Hobe Bangla r Kotipoti’?
We have 7-8 advertisers on board for the show. 

Is this the longest prime time in Bengal?
In terms of prime time original programming, yes, it’s the longest prime because in Bengal it usually starts at 4.30 pm in the evening. 

Does that mean that investment in terms of content is much higher here?
Absolutely, in terms on content programming because we have far greater hours of original programming. 

Which time band works for Colors Bangla the most?
I think if you look at the viewership band, we are pretty much hitting every time line. I think content is the king. If your content is good, people will come and sample it. 

Do you also intend to foray into the cookery space with Colors Bangla?
Not right now, because we still have a lot of hardcore fiction for Colors Bangla. And while talking about the cookery genre, it has really worked well for Colors Gujarati, where we have some 2-3 cookery shows that are doing well. We have started a cookery show for our Marathi channel as well. 

In the other GEC markets, the OTT spread is really doing well. What is the scenario like in the Kolkata market?
I honestly believe that OTT helps the content business grow. What is most important to see is what people are consuming. And so far, the learning that we have got from Voot is that people do not differentiate between the content on TV and on Digital. 

Is there any strategy in place to top the charts?
Yes definitely, and ‘KBC Bangla’ is the first step. 

Could you tell us about the shows in the pipeline?
We have many shows lined up – both fiction and non-fiction. We want to keep reinventing ourselves. We shall be disclosing more about them in the days to come. 

While nationally FTA channels have done very well in Rural+Urban markets, how is the FTA market like in Bengal?
It is not big at all. In fact, across regional markets FTA is not performing well.

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