Bigg Boss 4 grand finale scores 6.74 TVR

The curtains are finally down on one of the most controversial seasons of Colors' four-year-old reality show Bigg Boss. But, even as it bid adieu on its final day (January 8), it gave a performance attractive enough to climb up the TRP chart and become the number one entertainer during the second week of 2011.

Not only has the reality property's grand finale garnered the best numbers when compared to its last three seasons, its opening and average TVR performance has also stacked up additional audiences over the last three.

The show had garnered a 3.52 peak TVR in its first season grand finale, while the second and the third season grand finale episodes pocketed 4.47 peak TVR and 3.63 peak TVR, respectively. Meanwhile, its average TVR stood at 1.96, 2.03 and 2.43 in the first, second and third edition, respectively. The fourth edition earned an average TVR of 3.27.

So what worked for Bigg Boss?

While the top-of-the-mind scandals weaved into the content, did create much excitement and impact, top media executives believe that the channel's and the show producers' attempt to maintain excitement outside the programme pattern, such as inviting Pamela Anderson into the house and the marriage ceremony held within it, also created enough buzz.

While speaking to afaqs!, Kartik Iyer, MD India, Carat Media Services India, elaborates further in support to the above, "Word of mouth has played a very important role in creating the buzz for the channel. Colors has also used the digital media very extensively to reach out to the target audience. Also, since this time, news channels, too, covered the various Big Boss issues extensively, the show gathered good number of viewers and the finale only helped in bringing in additional eyeballs."

The Challenge

However, the challenge now for Colors will be to sustain this viewership and grow it further. According to Tam, the grand finale of Big Boss-4 alone contributed 38 GRPs to the channel while over the week, the contribution was about 89 GRPs which include the show repeats. "Thus the quest for the channel will now be to garner and hold onto the viewers that were sticking on to the Big Boss content during its primetime," Shubha George, chief operating officer (South Asia), MEC tells afaqs!.

Speaking to afaqs!, Ashvini Yardi, head-programming, Colors, says, "While Bigg Boss Season 4 has given us the eyeballs, our goal ahead will be to sustain the same and grow even further. With Phulwa, we plan to bring India's rural heartland alive, thereby tapping the small town audiences too, while Mukti Bandhan, which portrays a 50-year-old businessman as the protagonist, will help in garnering the urban viewership. Thus, with the launch of these two shows, our effort is to present varied setups that will attract the audience across demographics."

As for Chak Dhoom Dhoom, Yardi notes that the show is expected to attract audiences from six to sixty from all demographics because unlike the first season, the second season will not limit the age group of the participants.

Says Yardi, "The idea to come up with a team challenge came to us while we were holding auditions for India's Got Talent. During the auditions, we saw a lot of teams coming and performing a group dance. Since we already had a dance brand, Chak Dhoom Dhoom, we decided to provide a platform for all these dancing groups and came up with a new season, a new look and a new panel of some very accomplished judges."

Says a top media executive on conditions of anonymity, "While reality helps in getting traction, it cannot always be relied upon. Also, while reality attracts both male and female viewership, fictions help in pulling in female audiences."

So the issue is of sustainability, the executive opines, "If Chak Dhoom Dhoom and the two new fictions can sustain themselves in the long run and not just ride on the initial buzz, they will surely become an effective buy for an advertiser, while giving a substantiate push to the overall channel GRPs."