KBC opens with 5.24 TVR in HSM metros

With the Big B-helmed KBC under its banner, Sony's attempt to consolidate itself as the No. 3 player in the Hindi GEC space by the year-end may not be a distant dream after all.

According to TAM's mid-week ratings, KBC opened with a rating of 5.24 on August 15, 2011, to become the leader of the non-fiction genre across three metros -- Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. During its second episode on August 16, the show scored a TVR of 4.

The show has also witnessed the biggest opening in the non-fiction genre during the year. While India's Got Talent, on Colors, opened with 4.5 TVR, Just Dance on Star Plus, opened with a TVR of 4, while Khatron Ke Khiladi -- Torchaar, on Colors, opened with a TVR of 3.7.

In 2010, the fourth season of KBC that also marked the return of Bachchan on the hot seat, opened with a rating of 5.34. However, it is important to note here that unlike the latest edition, KBC4 ran only for one hour on Sony, while the latest season occupies the 8.30 pm to 10 pm band.

Therefore, with KBC adding on to Sony's GRP grade, the channel has moved ahead of Star Plus, with a score of 111. Meanwhile, Star Plus is at 106 GRPs, while Colors and Zee TV are at 100 GRPs and 63 GRPs, respectively (C&S 4+, HSM metros).

For the record, KBC, first aired in 2000, to deliver an opening TVR of 11.13 on Star Plus, averaged at 14.38 TVR. This was host Amitabh Bachchan's first appearance on Indian television.

In August 2005, the show returned after a four-year hiatus, and was renamed Kaun Banega Crorepati Dwitiya (or KBC2), in which the final prize amount was doubled to Rs 2 crore. The show had an even bigger opening than the first -- debuting with 18.52 TVR.

STAR roped in Shah Rukh Khan to host the third season of the show that launched in January 2007. Khan was at the peak of his career then and was considered an ideal replacement for Amitabh Bachchan as the host of the show. But, all the hysteria receded soon after it failed to receive good reviews from audiences. The show opened with a rating of 11.26 TVR, and averaged at 5.86 TVR.