HYDERABAD: We’ve seen him as a VJ on Channel V for almost as long as we have been watching the channel. He has also hosted various shows including the India’s Minute to Win it and the Indian Premier League (IPL) innings as well. Vj-cum-actor Gaurav Kapur recently went on a hunt for the first-of-its-kind travel jockey for an upcoming show Freaky Traveller.
“Travel Jockey is just a fancy name for a travel show host,” laughs Kapur, adding, “On a serious note, we didn’t want to call the host of Freaky Traveller simply a travel show host because that’s too simple a name. This essentially is a travel show, but the travel jockey gets involved in the entire travel experience.”
Hunt for a travel jockey
We were on a search for a travel jockey who could host the upcoming travel show, Freaky Traveller. The hunt was through Facebook – we received around 7000 entries from which we selected 100 contestants who were called to Mumbai for the auditions and from 25 finalists – Brij Bhakta, a Gujrati-boy who is currently based in Mumbai was selected. He is a stand-up comedian who returned to India from America. We were looking for someone who is not only confident and had presence of mind, but also someone who can think on his feet and uninhibited along with having a whacky sense of humour. Brij fit the bill perfectly. Mentoring, but not hosting We were looking for a new face to host this show – someone who wasn't carrying baggage. This is why I am not hosting the show.
I did mentor Brij with a few sessions before they went shooting; discussed a few dos and don’ts. But it will be wrong to take credit for him. Brij is a quite a crazy guy, and he added his elements to the show. Anyway, if he does the show well, it is because of me and if he doesn’t do well it is because of him (laughs).
How is Freaky Traveller different?
There are so many travel shows based on India. All the places and monuments are the same. We were wondering how to portray Freaky Traveller in a different way and realised that it could only be by looking at same things in a different way. Brij will be thoroughly involved in the travel, and the audience will look at India through his eyes. They will experience the crazy side of a travelling Indian through this show. What’s next? I do one thing at a time. So currently I am eating, breathing and sleeping Freaky Traveller. Post this I will start working on the IPL innings. Starting February 5, Freaky Traveller will air every Sunday at 10 pm on FOX Traveller.
(As told to Varsha Bansal)