Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, & MS Dhoni top picks to replace Amitabh Bachchan on KBC: IIHB

On 3 July 2025, Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) marks 25 years. This is Season 16 of the quiz show. Host Amitabh Bachchan, who started in 2000 at age 57, is now 82. Sony TV was expected to bring in a new anchor as Bachchan planned to reduce his workload and asked the channel to find a successor. However, the broadcaster did not finalise a replacement, so he continued this season. A change may be necessary next season.

To check out who would be the most preferred anchor to take Mr. Bachchan’s place in KBC, the Indian Institute of Human Brands (IIHB) and Rediffusion’s Red Lab ran a research last week covering 768 respondents (M=408, F=360) in the Hindi heartland.

Respondents voted for potential replacements as follows:

Shahrukh Khan     63%

Aishwarya Rai       51%

MS Dhoni              37%

Harsha Bhogle      32%

Anil Kapoor           15%

Amongst others who got high single digit percentage of votes were Aamir Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Shashi Tharoor and Chetan Bhagat. Akshay Kumar had topped a similar survey by IIHB in 2022 but this year he did not make the Top 10. His wife Twinkle Khanna was also featured in the survey but she too failed to garner much support. Interestingly, “Amitabh Bachchan should continue till he can” was the response of as much as 42% of the respondents surveyed.

Amitabh Bachchan’s most admired trait as KBC host is his ‘empathy’ – he is not overbearing or intimidating to those in the ‘hot seat’. He is welcoming to the participants, and endearing to the family members or friends accompanying the hot seat contestant. He has gravitas, he has stature, he has immense presence – yet he comes across as humble, approachable and relatable. He is also seen to have a great sense of humour without being deprecating or patronising.

Shahrukh Khan, anchored Season 3 of KBC on Star TV, but was at best a lukewarm success as the Big B’s replacement. Shah Rukh Khan brought his own style to the show back then, but comparisons with Amitabh Bachchan didn't help. SRK’s KBC innings started rather well but the show's ratings dropped significantly due to the change of the host. Brand SRK has seen a serious renaissance over the past 2-3 years. No wonder he is seen as the fore-runner by 63% respondents as again the best replacement for Bachchan Senior.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, the Big B’s daughter-in-law surprisingly emerged as a serious front-runner in the research. With more than half the survey respondents backing her as their choice.

MS Dhoni has been on a high post his retirement with nearly 40 brands using him as their brand ambassador. His earthy popularity seems to have spilled over to his choice by 37% respondents as the new KBC host.

Not very many people know that Indian cricket’s finest commentator, Harsha Bhogle, is actually an alumnus of IIM-Ahmedabad. Bhogle, even to those who may not be aware of his academic credentials, comes across as very intelligent and cerebral. Plus, as a commentator he is seen to be ever-smiling, amiable and unexcitable. His garnering 32% support from respondents in the research for Bachchan’s successor is therefore not surprising.

Anil Kapoor despite his stature and seniority is placed at No. 5 in the survey. Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit were placed next in the rankings.

“The fact that politician Shashi Tharoor and novelist Chetan Bhagat have made the Top 10 indicates that the viewing public is happy to look beyond matinee stars as the KBC anchor – it is possible that Mr. Bachchan’s easy-going style has democratized the choice of his successor”, says Dr. Sandeep Goyal, chief mentor of IIHB and chairman of Rediffusion.  

SRK was the No. 1 choice of both male and female respondents. There was no discernable difference between the voting patterns of both sexes, except in the case of Harsha Bhogle who had a significant male skew.