Journalism of Courage
Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega
NDTV Imagine,
Mon-Fri at 8 pm & Sat at 9.00 pm
Rating: HH
What is it about? NDTV Imagine declares Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega to be the second season of their Swayamvar franchise. In the first,they had drama queen Rakhi Sawant choose her prospective bridegroom,by putting all claimants through a series of tasks to test their compatibility with her. This time around,Rahul Mahajan,the now-popular son of the late BJP politician Pramod Mahajan,has donned a dressy sherwani and is going through a roster of 15 prospective brides to ultimately choose a life partner.
Whos in it? Mahajan,whose television career kicked off with Bigg Boss Season 2,has along with the production team of the show,handpicked these 15 contestants out of the 9,000 applicants eager to marry him. Television star Ram Kapoor,who also hosted the first season,is back as the matchmaker. During the course of the show,other minor celebrities will also come as guests to help the would-be groom make up his mind about his life partner. For example,Sambhavna Seth,Mahajans fellow-inmate in the Bigg Boss house,recently paid a visit to the sets as his sister and screened the various girls to fit the role of her sister-in-law.
Whats hot? Most reality shows survive on shock value and Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega provides it in large dosesbe it the 19-year-old Sonia Kour who behaves as if the world will end if Mahajan doesnt marry her or the diary entries of the participants to showcase their adulation and yearning for Mahajan within three days of having known him. And it works. Forget the TRPs; it is easy to get hooked to the show. How can one miss the programme when one knows that in the next episode the girls will probably rustle up their dream mans favourite dishes?
Whats not? Sometimes,the mere sight of two overweight men in the same frame is unpalatable. Add to that 15 women bickering over Mahajan,and the mixture gets a bit too rich.
It was Mahajans goofiness that made him popular on Bigg Boss and should ideally be Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayegas USP. Maybe its the nature of the show or the fear of further controversies that is keeping him from being his goofy best. Or could it be due to the absence of Raja Chaudhary?
On a serious note,it is sad that the format reinforces outdated methods of choosing your life partner,like culinary skills and knowledge of home remedies. Also,the show could have had a possibly more serious dimension had one of the contestants been,like Mahajan,a divorcee. But it seems that either they didnt apply or Mahajans criterion to shortlist his life partner is based on rather conventional standards.
Most importantly,though,theres no way one can watch Mahajan without comparing him to Sawant. The latter,with her simpers and coy glances,definitely had more TRP value than Mahajan,with his rather creepy laugh. He may have as murky a past as any reality TV star,but he doesnt have Sawants histrionic abilities.
Should you be watching it? Just imagine Mahajan walking into focus as Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenges blockbuster track Doli Saja Ke Rakhna plays in the background and youll have your answer.
