Democratic dreamers

The sudden, traumatic death of Ishmeet Singh in a swimming pool at a luxurious tourist resort in the Maldives, this week, is a fairytale with the wrong ending. In a good fairytale, tragedy and danger always lurk on the fringes of the happy resolution but don8217;t overset it. Ishmeet8217;s death, along with Shinjini Sengupta8217;s incapacitation after being eliminated from a talent contest, is a reminder that darkness always surrounds the spotlight. With more and younger participants emerging from the shadows in search of the arc lights, parents and reality TV show producers face the dilemma of how to help them cope with success and failure.

Sadly, Ishmeet Singh8217;s death has overshadowed his triumph. Here was an unassuming young man from a middle-class family in Ludhiana who won the Star Voice of India contest against stiff opposition with superb performances and becoming modesty. His trip to the Maldives took him from the hidden India to the world8217;s stage in a matter of months. Contracts worth lakhs of rupees, stage appearances in India and abroad, and the promise of a career as a playback singer 8212; perhaps even an acting opportunity with SRK 8212; were part of his dream run. This was a distinct possibility, not just a wish on the wing of hope: both Shreya Ghosal and Sunidhi Chauhan, successful playback singers today, came through the same show system as winners of Zee8217;s Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and Meri Awaz Suno. The fact that many participants do not fully accomplish this mission impossible takes nothing away from the other fact: that they had catapulted themselves, perhaps only fleetingly, into a life of opportunities superior to those they had before.

The success of reality TV in India is not merely that overcrowded auditions have discovered enormously gifted individuals from all walks of life and across the length and breadth of the country with a particular talent for singing and comedy the Great Laughter Challenge has shattered the myth that we8217;re not a funny people but also that, through the contestants, millions of others have participated in their fortunes. The public8217;s power to vote contestants in or out by sms is the pop culture equivalent of a Mayawati being voted into power and Lalu Prasad out of it.

This is democracy by another game. That television per se, and reality shows especially, invest power in the people 8212; however wrong-headed we may believe their choices to be 8212; is an inspiring story often lost in the moment of loss or tragedy. It allows contestants the chance to rise above status or situation and the voting public to do the same vicariously. If Ishmeet is a hero to the thousands in Ludhiana who came out to mourn him, if Punjab gave him a state funeral, it is in recognition of his having lived the dream of millions.

Popular culture is by definition democratic. Reality TV, worldwide, has made television, the mobile, and the internet unique tools of empowerment. Taking a cue, Indian television news, which telecasts excerpts from most reality TV shows, has become the biggest reality TV show on the tube. Much of it works on the principle of the inverted pyramid 8212; traditional up-to-down news is on its way out as journalistic notions of what deserves to be treated as news are now superseded by what viewers want to watch. Regular sms polls on events or incidents claim to reflect what the people think; regular segments present 8220;your news8221; on the basis of the same sms poll. A prince in the well is worth a score of politicians in the studio.

Simultaneously, as economic growth percolates to smaller town India, TV news has set out to capture audiences with more local channels, local content and tastes 8212; one reason why ghosts are more popular on TV than politicians. And why on Thursday and Friday the main news of the day on Hindi news channels was the partial solar eclipse and its effect on you.

shailaja.bajpaiexpressindia.com