Behind the mask

You never know who might be leading a double life; and it is a surprisingly common phenomenon.

MTV True Life,Friday,7 pm,MTV,HHHn

Whats it about?What if that nondescript guy you see on the train everyday actually moonlights as a stripper? And the girl you meet at the coffee machine in office also offers her services as an escort? You never know who might be leading a double life; and it is a surprisingly common phenomenon. It is these stories that MTVs new show,True Life hopes to uncover a chartered accountant is a steroid junkie at night,an MBBS doctor and a small town girl with big dreams leads the life of an escort and a hunky lad with Bollywood dreams in his eyes opts to be a male stripper. During the course of the show,viewers will also get to watch the life of a porn-star and a lingerie model unfold and a wife-swapping couple and their circle of friends. MTV True Life narrates the real life stories of these people who dare to make bold choices. It is a docudrama on their lives,their lifestyle and their hush-hush jobs. One good example is Zak,the 20-something male stripper who recounts his life story how he wanted to be an actor but ended up dancing and ripping off his clothes at hen parties and other events in clubs,farm houses and villas of the high-society ladies. He talks about the money he makes,the perks of his job and the accompanying misconceptions. Also,how his work affects his romantic relationships and how he can never disclose his profession to his parents.

Whos in it? Each episode is about one person and his/her life. To protect the identity of the principals,their faces arent shown. Lighting,black-outs,blurs and skewed camera angles reveal little. You do,however,see them performing on camera so Zak strips and dances with those who can afford him and teaches a newbie how to give a lap dance too.

Whats hot? Its a very bold concept and is dealt with very sensitively. It also takes the viewers on a voyeuristic tour who doesnt want to know trade secrets of a stripper and escort? The highlight of the show is that it does justice to them by not just focusing on their little secrets,but actually examining how they balance the two sides of their lives.

Whats not? True Life doesnt have great production quality excessive lighting and loud background music make the stories look trivial and overly glamourised. It also seems that the participants were handed out a script to read as the show is full of melodramatic lines.

Should you be watching it? If you are a reality TV follower then you must watch it. Its different from other shows in the genre,which focus mostly on creating conflict between the participants. This one at least makes an effort to uncover real stories.

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