How Big Brother became Bigg Boss: Numerology led to name change of Salman Khan’s show

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Deepak Dhar’s fight for ‘Bigg Boss’ title

One of the masterminds behind the Indian rendition of the series, Deepak Dhar recently spoke in detail about how Bigg Boss took shape, including how he finalised the title that stood apart from the Dutch original, Big Brother. Mentioning that the biggest challenge he faced was getting permission for a name change, Deepak pointed out that people wondered why he wanted to do that despite having already paid a significant sum to acquire the rights.

“I fought and made it Big Boss because I wanted it to sound very Indian. Boss, as you know, is a big Indian colloquial term. And ‘Big Boss’ is a term we’ve always used in office setups, home, and between friends and family. I really wanted a term that could galvanise the franchise in India. Finally, after much reluctance, they gave in,” he shared during a conversation with Suchin Mehrotra.

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Roping in a numerologist for the ‘Bigg’ impact

However, he didn’t stop at changing the name to “Big Boss.” He went one step further and roped in a numerologist to add the finishing touch to the title, ensuring the show’s absolute success. “I’m a little superstitious… I would do everything possible to make a show a success. That’s the only criteria and yardstick that we have. So, I looked into making a spelling change because somebody, putting together numerology, told me it might help. It seems to have worked, particularly since it brought in that ‘Bigg’ impact. So, we made that ‘Bigg’ change,” he added.

“I didn’t want the show to feel like just an import. Not just the title, but in the case of the show’s persona and personality, too. If you see the Indian version and you compare it with the UK version, it’s so different culturally. We’ve fashioned this around painting an illusion of offering one a peek into their neighbour’s home. And we gave it to them at prime time. That’s what we’ve always loved to discuss, right? The good, the bad, and the ugly in our neighbourhood,” he pointed out.

Bigg Boss 20 is scheduled to premiere on September 6.