Or: Why we will never think bigger, better, out-of-the-box on TV.

Simply because there s nothing in it for the Makers or for the Channel Executives.

Rohan Sippy is puzzled. And only Messrs Subhash Chandra, Subroto Roy, Peter Mukerjea, Kunal Dasgupta, Sameer Nair, Purnendu Bose, Pradip Guha and other Channel Heads can help.

Holi. Springtime in India.

The appropriately-titled Rang De Basanti set the tone; we all felt that we were painted with magic and that the spring season had been created as a song specially for us.

Then, there were all those many-splendoured Oscar-nominated/winning movies to see:

The Constant Gardener, a story of despairing humanism, Capote, a biopic of despairing humanism, Walk The Line and Brokeback Mountain a biopic and a story, respectively, celebrating love , Syriana, a story of innocence blossoming in times of political chicanery (a theme similar to Rang De Basanti, but a completely different, gritty-as-a-toothache execution) and Crash, a hard look at racism tempered by touching glimpses of human frailties.

An interesting thing was that none of these was escapist fare; there was none of the fantasy and extravaganza usually associated with movies only very intimate looks at love, life and the human condition.

Have you noticed how movies are becoming like TV asks Rohan Sippy, director of Bluffmaster and producer of Taxi No 9211. First of all the stories and motivations of characters. They are beginning to get closer and closer to real life. Julia Roberts went from the fairy tale, Pretty Woman, to the hard-as-nails Erin Brockovich. Similarly, the lead characters in Bunty Aur Babli, Bluffmaster or Taxi No 9211 were all very identifiable, with very understandable ambitions. The larger-than-life hero is starting to fade away. The characters are more you and me, like you might see on TV.

Then there are the viewing conditions. Multiplexes are all about small groups of people getting entertained in small, intimate surroundings. Almost like a large family watching TV at home!

Yes, filmmakers are thinking differently, adjusting to new market realities, technology, audience tastes and audiences.

The same isn t really true for TV Programming.

To be completely honest, yes, there is fervent thinking in TVLand. The hunt is always on for New Ideas. But the new ideas are rarely out-of-the-box. They are invariably bigger, slicker, slightly upgraded versions of a previous hit.

For example:

Sa Re Ga Ma Pa on Zee is a mutated version of Antakshri on the same Channel.

Sony s Indian Idol is an upgraded, better-trumpeted version of Channel V s Pop Stars.

And after quite a while, Star Plus has commissioned a prime time soap to someone other than Balaji. Guess who Rajshri! The people, whose shaadi-mandap films were the forerunner to the Balaji saas-bahu shows, and whose Woh Rehnewaali Mehelon Ki on Sahara One looks suspiciously like a Balaji soap.

Which is a bit puzzling, muses Rohan, given that the TV Industry now has revenues of Rs. 13000 crores, which is 3-4 times that of the Film Industry!

So, why aren t the people in TV thinking different, bigger, out-of-the- box

Many reasons:

Reason No. 1: Audience Tastes. The commonest excuse is that audiences don t accept anything different. Which doesn t really hold up. As long back as the mid-90s, Doordarshan (Terrestrial TV) viewers (women, in the afternoon!) were riveted to scandalous shows like Shanti and Swabhimaan at the same time that Zee (Satellite TV) viewers were glued to Tara. Ten years later, audiences were enthralled by Jassi Fact is, a well-told story with a strong emotion that audiences can empathize with, will always work, however different it might seem. So, let s throw this excuse out of the window.

Reason No. 2: Scale. Lavish production values on TV means spending crores on a Set (e.g., K Street on Star Plus and Kittuu on Sahara One). Which ends up looking like any other Set. If Film is becoming intimate like TV, can TV ever become larger-than-life like Film Conventional thinking up to now would suggest that TV being an indoor medium, this would not be possible.

But LOST, a recent show in the U.S, and currently on Star World (Sundays, 11 p.m.), with its vast, outdoor locale, has proven otherwise. They have worked within the constraints of TV: they have stuck largely to one Set except that they thought differently, and made it an Island!!! So, let s throw this excuse, too, out of the window!

Reason No. 3: The Mindset. This is peculiar: For TV, Ekta Kapoor rarely strays from the beaten path. But on Film, she has roamed the spectrum: she started with a teenflick, went on to a suspense film, struck gold with a sex comedy, and is now seriously contemplating a collaboration with Sudhir Misra, the man who has made the despairing humanism theme his personal domain!

Reason No. 4: Creative and Budgetary Control are not with Producers. Why this differing mindsets one for Film and one for TV

As one Producer puts it: Ekta, of course, is an exception. But the rest of us have no control. In Film, it is largely one man s vision. The Producer controls the budget, so he knows how far he can go. Then, it is between the Film and the Viewer.

On DD, this was the format they followed. The Maker marketed his product, so he made (or lost) money. The Maker also created and altered his Show according to his gut-feel and TRPs. So, the Maker was always in control. That s why, on DD, you had hits in a variety of genres Mythos, Soaps, Comedies, Love Stories

On Satellite Channels, it is Creativity By Committee. So, well, there is no one single champion. If a Show clicks, no one person gets credit. If it flops, well, of course, the Maker gets the boot!

In such a scenario, it becomes impossible to maintain a high level of passion and commitment and creativity. No one wants to stick his neck out!

Reason No. 5: No Personal Glory. When a Film clicks, everyone Producer, Director, Writer, Technicians, Stars gets a share of the glory. On TV, however, the glory rarely goes beyond a few stars. Don t believe me OK, here, take this test: Nach Baliye was a huge hit. Quick: Name the Producers, Director and Channel Executives behind the Show.

I rest my case.

Reason No. 6: No Security. In any other Industry (including Films), if a supplier has delivered a product of consistently high quality, he can be certain of the next contract, perhaps even on better terms.

Not so, in the TV Industry!!!

If you have created a successful show for a Channel, the chances are very, very high that you will NOT be given a new Show!!!

The reasons for this anomaly are many, very logical and very legitimate, but the fact remains that to give only two recent examples Deeya and Tony Singh, the producers of Sony s hugely successful Jassi have not been commissioned for a New Show, but are working on a Zee Show, and Fazila, Kaamna and Deepak Gattani, the people behind Star One s Nach Baliye I have not been contracted for Nach Baliye II.

If success doesn t automatically lead to a bigger, brighter future, there is something radically wrong in the system, and less chance of anyone wanting to stick his neck out .

Reason No. 6: Professionals are not nurtured. It s not just the Producers who lead precarious lives.

Once again, to cite a few examples: Karuna Samtani, who orchestrated Zee s growth in the mid-90s, and is a doyenne of Fiction, is now consulting with the News Channel Janmat. Elsewhere, Raveena Raj Kohli, who masterminded Sony in its launch phase, has moved on to Movies. And Tarun Katial, arguably the expert on Reality TV, has shifted to Radio.

These and many others have moved for various reasons, but fact remains that whereas other Industries (including Film and Advertising) nurture and retain Experience and Expertise, the TV Industry seems not to value these qualities.

TV is growing bigger but only in Revenues.

When will the Shows become bigger, different, radical, refreshing

Only when the conditions become conducive to sticking your neck out . A good example is Sameer Nair. In 2000, he stuck to his guns about getting a has-been actor called Amitabh Bachchan to anchor his Channel s mega-mega-Show, Kaun Banega Crorepati. The rest is history.

Will TV ever repeat a Sameer Nair

Given the scenario outlined above, it seems highly unlikely.

But then I come back to the optimism, the practicality and radicalness of Rang De Basanti and the role of NDTV in re-opening the Jessica Lal Murder Case.

There is hope, if Messrs Subhash Chandra, Subroto Roy, Peter Mukerjea, Kunal Dasgupta, Sameer Nair, Purnendu Bose, Pradip Guha and other Channel Heads take a leaf from the book of the boys in RDB, and take some drastic, radical action.

Here s looking forward to a new springtime in TV!

B R Sharan