Whose show is it anyway?

The new kid on the reality TV bloc, Indian Idol Junior, is to music talent shows what India’s Best Dramebaaz has been to tiny tots’ histrionics hunt this season.

In an over-cluttered talent hunt template on the telly, the challenge before any new reality show nowadays is to become the face in the crowd. So, that sees reality shows either just dishing out new wine in old bottles or actually going on an innovation or improvisation spree. Thus 2013 sees one of the frontrunners among music reality shows Indian Idol reinventing itself with its first ‘junior’ edition that caters to a younger age group of five to 15.

Whether it is Anmol Jaswal from Ahmedabad or Debanjana Karmakar from West Midnapore or Sonakshi Kar from Kolkata or Anjana Padmanabhan from Bangalore, the new show on Sony draws talent from all corners of the country.

In a choc-a-bloc tellyscape where it is tough to tell one song ‘n’ dance show from another, a show can scarcely hope to draw eyeballs merely on the weight of its content or contestants. And so, Indian Idol Junior steps in with variations to drive the show’s USP. It has ex-Indian Idol finalists from the previous season taking the stage to support the new aspirants.

So, you have an Indian Idol senior Poorvi Koutish backing fresher Anmol in belting out the Lapataa song, while Indian Idol 6 winner Vipul Mehta accompanies Debanjana in rendering Rangrezz.

In the clutter of talent shows, another USP a new programme strives for is a casting coup in catching big names for the panel of judges. The bigger, the better. And so, Indian Idol Junior stars three judges — singer Shreya Ghoshal and the music composer duo of Vishal-Shekhar — in an avatar that goes much beyond exercising their famed vocal chords to exercise even their calf muscles.

To establish a bigger and better audience connect, most music or dance shows on our television have judges shaking a leg or two, sometimes without much ado. And so, one episode saw Shreya, Vishal and Shekhar don their dancing shoes to shake a leg like never before.

And while the star judges are all over the reality stage, Bollywood is also not far behind. With dance and music shows becoming the hottest platforms for the promos of upcoming flicks, the Shakespearean truism of “All the world’s a stage” has a tinsel town twist: All the small screen’s a promo stage. The star parade had the Badshah of Bollywood Shah Rukh Khan, along with his Chennai Express team, trying to lend more ‘speed’ to their film’s promos on the small stage, with a leg here and a hug there. There also came the cast of Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai Dobara, all dressed to ‘thrill’.

Sonakshi Sinha and Imraan Khan spiced up the special qawwali episode on the occasion of Eid, by making a spectacular entrance to their film’s qawwali score, Taiyyab Ali Pyaar ka Dushman. To complete the filmi ambience, even the top seven contestants showed up in signature qawwali costumes. On the same “track” was the Chennai Express cast led by the King Khan. The Badshah of Bollywood was so overwhelmed by Anmol Jaswal’s rendition of the number Ankhon Mein Teri that he made it to the stage to shake a leg and was joined by co-star Deepika Padukone as well. King Khan even went as far as to bestow pecks on the participants’ cheeks.

Bollywood surely doesn’t get bigger ‘n’ bolder than this on the small stage. What better for little ones to bag their 15 minutes of fame by shaking a leg with the Badshah or other biggies of Bollywood. But therein lies the big question: If Bollywood makes the small screen stage a bigger platform to be on, does it not also overshadow the tiny talent meant to be showcased there? Isn’t it becoming more a case of ‘Honey, I sidelined the kids!’