Reality shows are going to die soon: Rannvijay

Rannvijay Singh, whose tryst with fame began with his victory on MTV "Roadies" in 2003, says after enjoying considerable space in Indian television, the reality genre is going to hit a dead end in the country soon.

"I think reality shows are going to die soon. Everything has a life," Rannvijay, who has been associated with action-adventure show "Roadies" since the past nine years, told IANS.

"If you see in the West too, reality shows are dead. Four or five years ago, everything was a reality show there, now it's all fiction. Our problem is our fiction is bad," he added.

However, the 29-year-old believes talent shows, involving singing and dancing, might survive.

"There will be talent shows... it is great to watch talent, and its even more wonderful to see how perception towards dancers and singers has changed over time thanks to these reality shows," said the veejay-turned-actor.

Fame is the main draw for the youth for shows like "Roadies", where talent hardly matters, he said, adding: "Every country has this phase where the latest craze is fame. I would say 50 percent people who come for 'Roadies' just want to be famous.

"At least in a singing show, one knows you're there because you can sing, and it is only one's singing talent alone that could make him famous. But on 'Roadies', people have no talent and they want to be famous."

"It's brainless. Bas famous hona hai (All they want is to be famous)! They come and talk crap. Sometimes I can't stand the auditions for the show," added Rannvijay, referring to a contestant, who aimed to work at NASA, but wasn't even aware of its full form - National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Overtime, Rannvijay has become popular among the youth for his love for adventure and his rough and tough looks.

Asked if he plans to get into producing shows, he flatly refused.

"It's not my kind of thing. I am ambitious towards adventure, and so I'd rather spend time doing bike stunts, cliff dives and other such things. All these activities are not career-based for me, they are passion-driven.

"The fact that I'm earning money through my career, it only makes my passion possible. Otherwise I won't be able to go to Australia, New Zealand, and all these places to pursue my passion," added Rannvijay, who is associated with adventure sports company Rocksport Adventures.

He is glad that through shows like "Roadies" and "Stunt Mania", he is able to pursue his passion.

"Touchwood, my work takes me to adventure sports. Thanks to the last season of 'Roadies', I got to go and try some stuff in the US. Thanks to my work, I recently met the world's best freerunner, and learnt a couple of moves. So for me, the scene is work cum pleasure. I am happy that I don't have to find time for my passions... it's all in my workspace," he said.

On the film front, Rannvijay says he is doing an action film with Nagesh Kukunoor, and also a romantic comedy apart from that. But he prefers to be tight-lipped about both the projects.