Observations on The Anupam Kher Show

I am a great fan of Anupam Kher and I have huge admiration for his talent and charisma. I think he is one of the finest actors of Bollywood. For some time ‘The Anupam Kher Show’ has been running on popular TV channel Colors and I watch it most of the times. The show’s format is good and it is content rich. Over the time I have made some observations on the show and wish to pen down those. These are merely my observations and intent is not personal towards anyone.

Awarding or gifting the guests at random: In some of the episodes, Anupam Kher gifts the guest with a memoire which is generally a written memento lauding the person for his or her achievements and commending the person. But this practice is followed only when some veteran celebrity arrives at the show and when some newcomer actor or actress or someone less famous from the chosen few comes, he or she does not get any such honor or award. Randomness of celebrity choices to whom such awards are given baffles the viewers and it is an uncomfortable moment near the end of the show. I mean last week you saw how Mr. Kher flattered that celebrity with a gift, but this week the show just ‘abruptly’ comes to an end! The celebrity who does not get award appears insecure about what is going to happen next too. In my opinion, even if Mr. Kher thinks some of the guests are unworthy to get an award and memento from his hands, he should still gift that person a memento – it does not cost much and it appears niceon his part. A good host does not discriminate between his guests.

Volley of questions: Quite often and abruptly at some point in the show we witness Mr. Kher showering the guest celebrity with a volley of questions. It is like a ‘rapid fire round’ without being labeled so. Viewers get confused for a moment and take time to settle down and realize what is happening. When this is in progress, which can start anytime without viewers or the guest having any clue, communication is one-way, i.e. Mr. Kher asks questions, the guest answers, but Mr. Kher instead of grasping the answer or responding or reacting to it, simply asks next question. At times this looks insensitive. After all, the guest might have shared a piece of his or her heart; something private or something dear to his or her heart; and the host is expected to respond or at least acknowledge it sensibly!

Too much flattery of some while ignoring some others: I don’t know if it was intended through the format of the show that the host Mr. Kher should often be too personal or impersonal towards the guests depending on who the guest is. When some old timer veteran actor or actress comes, he is seen flattering him or her with all the powers he possesses but when some youngsters or less famous celebrity comes, he is seen too impersonal or aloof/detached at times. I noticed when Sonam Kapoor came, at many points Mr. Kher kept her at arm’s length, i.e. did not respond with the same warmth with which Sonam was talking to him. Is it contempt or disapproval reflecting in Mr. Kher’s behavior towards those he thinks do not deserve too much respect for their not-so-great talent? It also reflects in the fact that Mr. Kher appears to have done much homework on some celebrities while on some others he appears unprepared and more like scratching on the surface.

Calling multiple celebrities: In many episodes two celebrities were called while it would be better to have only one. I think this show’s best USP is the content which is soaked in personal experiences of the celebrities who come on the show. Most of the time the celebrity guests have too much content to share but Mr. Kher has to flip between the two guests and hence viewers lose continuity. Though I must say that Mr. Kher tries to be balanced towards both hosts on such occasions brilliantly. I think if at some point of time this show could be documented in the form of a book, the book will definitely be a great hit. But for that to happen, episodes with two or more celebrities in it won’t make that much sense.

Appearing insensitive towards some guests: I am a big fan of Aditya Roy Kapoor. In today’s (7^th of Sep) episode I did not like it when as soon as Aditya arrived and sat down – Mr. Kher asks something like, “We were discussing how Parineeti has been a topper and good in studies. Somehow I feel you have been an opposite of her…” This was not a respectful line to begin with; after all, was it written on Aditya’s face that he was not good at studies in school? For next fifteen minutes or so Aditya is quizzed on how he did not know what to do in life (which no kid does!) and in short how he fitted into the mold Mr. Kher had created for him! The frank, honest and cool manner in which Aditya handled all these questions was adorable. And while asking all these questions, Mr. Kher laughed at Aditya while Parineeti joined him and also interrupted Aditya with her comments perhaps in order to show her presence on the show and not to allow Aditya eclipse her. In my opinion some editing should have been done for Aditya’s portion to come uninterrupted.

There are many positives of the show too, that is why I shall continue watching it. If I have to name a few, first thing is rich content, which won’t be possible without the brilliant Mr. Kher asking those probing and intelligent questions which encourage celebrities to come out of shells and bare their hearts. Honoring one viewer in each show and giving him/her opportunity to talk to the celebrity is also a very novel idea. Mr. Kher himself is excellent and adds huge star power to the show. Still, sometimes I have felt uncomfortable with the points I mentioned in the earlier parts of this article and hence thought to share what I felt. I am sorry if some feelings were hurt of the viewers who consider this show or Mr. Kher flawless. There is always a room for improvement – as Mr. Kher says and I like it very much, “Kuchh bhi ho sakta hai”!