With Rs 5 cr at stake, KBC promises a 'hotter seat'

A prize money (Rs 5 crore) that Bachchan Senior believes can change someone’s entire life. “I want to thank Sony Television for increasing the prize money from Rs 1 crore to Rs 5 crore. The jackpot of Rs 5 crore can change someone’s entire life,” Amitabh told reporters on Tuesday.

The show, which created history when it was launched on “Star Plus” several years ago, this time will be telecast on Sony Entertainment Television, and according to channel officials, the show has already attracted over 50 lakh entries in the first phase of registrations and extensive six-city auditions covering people from every nook and corner of the country.

The biggest change in the format has come in the form of reduction in the number of questions in the journey to the first crore. Now, there will be just 12 questions to answer correctly to win the first crore.

Also, the fastest-finger-first contestants get to stay on the show for a week, which means they will get more chances of getting on the “hot seat”.

Adding one more innovation, the show will have an expert in the studio each day to help the contestants in the form of another lifeline called “Ask the Expert”.

Then, there will be another lifeline called the “Double Dip”, in which contestants will be able to try one more answer if the first answer to a question turns out to be incorrect.
To add pace to the game, the new season will have fixed timelines for the first six question, unlike earlier when there was no time limit to answer. Now, questions 1 & 2 will have to be answered within 30 seconds and questions 3 to 6 within 45 seconds. There will be no time limit from question 7 onwards.

“The format itself has changed in a remarkable way. This time we have a faster, sharper and a more nerve wracking KBC coming back to you. This show has never been just about the money, it has always been about the drama,” said Siddharth Basu, producer of the show.