Think quiz shows and Mastermind India will figure among the most critically-acclaimed shows and its host Siddhartha Basu among the favourite quiz masters. That was then, in the late 90s. Today, Siddhartha Basu is the brain behind a host of quiz shows, from the hugely popular Kaun Banega Crorepati series to the more fun Dus Ka Dum . He is testing new ground again with a sports quiz show, Sports Ka Superstar , which will run up to the Commonwealth Games.
Tough game
The format of Big Synergy's Sports ka Superstar, he says,is competitive and lets you spot the best of the best. “Every player in a given round plays every question through an answer pad, which registers the choice selected, and the time in which it is punched. The one who gives the most correct answers in the least time becomes the leader at the end of every round, and goes on to play in pole position for bonus prizes in the next round. But players in the challenger zone play along on each one of the questions too, and at the end of every cycle of quizzing, the top challenger plays off against the leader and can unseat him,” explains Basu.
Participants will be quizzed on 17 sporting categories. Clearly, there's much more than cricket here. “The questions are wide ranging. There are questions on cricket too, which is top of the pops in the country, but it's more of a garnish. The main course is everything else,” he says.
Age is no bar and there are participants from 16 to 60 years, from 34 cities and towns in India. Men outnumber women and Basu discloses how only 21 women qualified for the show. Sports Ka Superstar will span 26 episodes, each comprising 10 contestants.
If you expected a sports personality to be the quiz master, there's a surprise in the form of Mini Mathur as the host. Basu reasons, “ Sports ka Superstar needed a skilled, seasoned, bilingual, Hindi-speaking host, adept at multi-tasking conduct, and you'll find Mini delivers with flair. She's right on top of the content, is highly responsive to the state of play, guiding it adroitly, is contestant friendly, and makes the contest fun. It's a fairly uphill ask for any host, leave alone sports personality. Mini has the experience and aptitude to do it.”
After this show, Siddhartha Basu will get busy with the next season of India's Got Talent . “A few more shows will be announced soon. We've also set up an office in Chennai and hope to roll out shows for regional channels fairly soon,” he adds.
Aamir and Ranbir?
He dispels talks that he approached Aamir Khan and Ranbir Kapoor for new shows. “There's nothing cooking there. As yet,” he maintains.
Finally, the master quizmaster is not sure if he would take the chair of the quizmaster again, any time soon. “I'm happy playing coach or general mentor,” he signs off.
Sports Ka Superstar will be telecast on Doordarshan from mid June as a bi-weekly.
