Voting Trends in Jhalak - Is it Based on Regionalism Or Popularity?

A popular TV channel, some of the most popular and talented television heartthrobs, some very popular rocking chartbusters - if all this is given to the audience in a celebrity reality show like Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, then what will the outcome be? The most popular TV show is expected to be hit by a Tsunami of SMS votes, coming from the crazy fans, in support of their favorite and popular actors, thus helping the reality show’s TRP to skyrocket. In a nutshell, the key word that runs this kind of reality shows is the “Popularity Quotient that the show can offer, in terms of participants”.

The voting trends used to follow a set pattern, wherein the more popular the star is, in the Soap World, the greater are the chances of his/her winning. But lately, the second season of Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa has broken away from this set pattern, and the voting trends tell a different story. Popular actors like Sudha Chandran and Prachi Desai, who have been loved by the viewers for their roles on TV and for their exceptionally good dancing skills, are no longer a part of the competition, while the Hottest Men of Television, Ronit Roy and Jay Bhanushali always seem to be on the threshold of elimination, in spite of the fact that, they ride on enormous fan following. Now, how is it that there is a sudden change in the voting pattern? Is it that the junta has stopped adoring their favorites’, who are very talented when it comes to dancing too? This is surely not the case, as Mika Singh, who is relatively less talented than the others, seems to be sailing high on votes. So should we consider that ‘Regional voting’ has surged ahead of the ‘Popularity factor’ in Jhalak?

Talent is surely going unnoticed in this reality show; while Mika marches ahead round after round, with just a slight improvement in his dance, talented contestants like Sudha and Prachi have been shown the door, even after stellar performances. Some states can be chauvinistic about the sons and daughters of their soil, and a mass SMS movement from that state can skew the voting numbers big time. The difficulty is that not all states are equally enthusiastic about supporting their sons and daughters. Parochialism in such matters can go against genuine talent - and the best talent may lose out, and that’s something that is happening in Jhalak due to this bizarre public voting.

First, it was popularity that maneuvered viewer’s choice, today that is taken over by a celebrities domicile. One question that now comes to mind is - How long is this fad going to last? Will we ever see a real talent emerge from a talent show, or in all these other “hunting” reasons, the probability of getting a worthy winner has gone totally extinct? Will talent ever emerge as the true winner, or do we have to compromise and learn to accept and live with mediocrity? Well, you the Voting Junta needs to answer…

Author: Barnali

Note: The views expressed are solely of the author. For any information, please contact the author.