22 November,2017 07:30 PM IST | Mumbai | Letty Mariam Abraham
The trio -- Mallika Dua, Zakir Khan and Hussain Dalal -- was replaced by Sajid Khan and Shreyas Talpade, in a bid to attract the audience for The Great Indian Laughter Challenge. Question is, has the gamble paid off?
The Great Indian Laughter Challenge TRPs get a boost after Sajid Khan and Shreyas Talpade join show
When it comes to Indian television shows, it's all about the number game. When The Great Indian Laughter Challenge couldn't grab eyeballs despite it being headlined by Akshay Kumar, the team dropped stand-up comedians Mallika Dua, Zakir Khan and Hussain Dalal from the judges' panel in October. The trio was replaced by Sajid Khan and Shreyas Talpade, in a bid to attract the audience. Question is, has the gamble paid off?
Shreyas Talpade, Akshay Kumar and Sajid Khan
The latest BARC report shows that the numbers have seen a steady, albeit gradual, rise over the last few weeks. While the last episode featuring Dua, Khan and Dalal [October 22] had a TRP of 0.6, the following weeks have seen a growth, with the latest episode [November 11-12] garnering a TRP of 1.2. Khan says that Talpade and he can't take credit for the numbers shooting up. "It's a team effort. Shreyas, Akshay and I are merely the bogies; the contestants are the engine. Over the weeks, they've also upped their act."
However, the director agrees that the current judges' panel has effortless camaraderie - something that may have been missing earlier. "I've worked with Akshay and Shreyas in the past. So, our tuning is effortless," concludes Khan.
