Life after THE REALITY SHOW

Life after THE REALITY SHOW

REMEMBER

Prashant Tamang?

And

remember the millions of messages

you sent to vote for him?

Any idea where he is now?

Incidentally,

Prashant is on a tour,

performing in shows all over the world.

But

how come we have missed out on his show dates?

It's common knowledge that

it's the runner-ups who're stealing the show now.

Right from solo music albums,

roles in TV serials, movies,

hosting shows to winning more reality shows,

runner-ups like

Rahul Vaidya,

Prajakta Shukre,

Amit Tandon,

Amit Sana,

Harshit Saxena,

Toshi Sabri and Abhaas

have been in the limelight more often.

This reversal of equations leaves us puzzled,

no doubt, with the question,

"What happens after reality shows?"

lingering in our minds.

"Reality show khatam ho jaate hai,

aur uske saath log bhi khatam ho jaate hai

(When the reality show is over, the people in it are shut out too),"

Both Amit Sana and winner Abhijeet Sawant

have solo albums to their credit now,

but

neither of them have been able to make

a mark for themselves in the mainstream music industry.

To this,

Amit Sana says,

"Actual playback singing is very different

from singing in these reality shows."

He admits that

he was demoralised till very recently,

and he has been waiting for success to come his way.

"These channels don't prepare us to cope

with life once the show is over,"

he adds.

"For people from small towns,

it's too much exposure too soon."

However,

the channel heads beg to differ.

Niret Alva,

chairman of Miditech

which produces Indian Idol for Sony,

says in an interview that

the participants are given counselling in the show.

"We tell these kids that this is only one facet of life,

and they shouldn't take it seriously.

We also tell them not to fall for the media's attention.

It is very temporary.

We ask them to be the persons they are and

go back home with a lot of confidence," he says.

Amit Tandon,

an Indian Idol season one participant

and a soap star,

has a different story to tell.

"These channels paint such a glamourous picture

of the show's outcome.

You start believing that you'll be a superstar

by the end of the show, but it is not so.

They can only give you confidence," he says.

Amit got out of the show soon,

but was snapped up by

Ekta Kapoor's

Balaji Telefilms to act in various serials.

Now he also participates in reality shows like

Zara Nachke Dikha — basically, he's done it all.

"It's a ticket to the entertainment industry,"

says Ravi Menon,

executive vice president

and general manager of Star One.

"There are so many things that these contestants

learn during their time on the show.
We teach them to be confident and camera savvy.

They also get a music album contract along with money,

so it's a combined deal.

Some participants, even if they don't win,

are signed up as hosts for other shows.

So it gives them great avenues."

Then

why is it that many participants

of these reality shows suffer depression

or even lose their voices?

Remember the recent incident

where a girl apparently lost her voice

after a judge told her that she had no talent?

Anu Malik,

music composer and Indian Idol judge,

seeks to set the record straight.

"These reality shows only give you a platform.

Once you are in the industry, you're on your own.

You have to compete with established

singers from the fraternity."

"Our job is to provide a platform to people

who would otherwise be floundering.

The rest is upto their talent and to them," he adds.

"It depends on how the individual tackles the situation.

The channels have been quite kind to the contestants.

If there have been cases of depression,

it is just to create drama on the screen.

It tells of the character of the contestant."

There seems to be a basic disconnect here.

The producers, on one hand,

are worried about overdoing the reality bit,

and try to keep a clean conscience,

according to Niret Alva.

The contestants, on the other hand,

don't seem to have a clue about their future.

"I'm still waiting for my big break," says Amit Sana.

Whatever be the case,

the reality is that these shows are not only running,

but

are very successful.

And

this is evident in the hope

Akbar Ali,

Junoon contestant on NDTV Imagine,

has for his future.

"I know I can get my big break and access

to Bollywood if I win the show."

And the story continues.