Akshay Kumar's The Great Indian Laughter Challenge judges sacked due to low TRPs

Akshay Kumar's 'The Great Indian Laughter Challenge' judges sacked due to low TRPs

This is no laughing matter. It's been barely two weeks since The Great Indian Laughter Challenge went on air with Akshay Kumar as the super judge and stand-up comedians Mallika Dua, Hussain Dalal and Zakir Khan as the co-judges. Ideally, the first few weeks witness contestants being eliminated. However, in what can only be termed role reversal, the show instead witnessed the ouster of the judges over the weekend.

Akshay Kumar

While the trio of Dua, Dalal and Khan was allegedly shown the door, the makers brought Bollywood's funnyman Sajid Khan and actor Shreyas Talpade on board. Said a source associated with the project, "The last few seasons were a big draw. But, this season didn't kick off on a great note. The makers arrived at the decision after seeing the dismal TRPs (TV rating)."

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Sajid Khan and Shreyas Talpade

The decision was followed by several brainstorming sessions between the production house and the channel regarding possible replacements. While Khan was a name that repeatedly came up during the discussions, Talpade's effortless chemistry with Kumar didn't go unnoticed when the former appeared on the show to promote his next, Golmaal Again. Added the source, "The team went ahead with Sajid and Shreyas only after it was green-lit by Akshay. Shreyas was signed on Saturday and Sajid completed the paperwork last evening."

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Mallika Dua, Zakir Khan and Hussain Dalal

While the former co-judges will be seen in the episodes that will air over the Diwali weekend, the duo will be seen on screen from the October 28 episode. Producer Ashvini Yardi simply said, "We would like to thank mentors Zakir Khan, Mallika Dua and Hussain Dalal for giving us our final contestants. We now move from mentors to judges Sajid Khan and Shreyas Talpade."

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