KOCHI: Siddhartha Basu needs no introduction. A mainstay of television programming for years, he is best remembered for hosting the popular quiz show Mastermind India and producing Kaun Banega Crorepati, among a slew of other big game shows. His phrase, “I’ve started, so I’ll finish,” remains a popular nugget of Indian television history.
Siddhartha was in Kochi recently for the state finals of the H&C All Kerala Quiz Competition, where he was the guest of honour. TNIE caught up with the ‘Father of the Indian Television Quizzing’ for a freewheeling chat about his career, the KBC saga, future projects, and more.
What brought you into the world of quizzes?
It was happenstance. My background was in theatre. I was passionate about it — I still am — and would’ve loved to make a living out of it. But it’s difficult in India. Here, people usually only pursue theatre performance as a hobby, not a career. I also dabbled in documentary filmmaking, doing shows around science and developing news features.
Later, I worked as a cultural attache with the Taj Group, often acting as an impresario — I would put together events and host them. Seeing how I was all dressed up and stately, as an impresario usually is, my friends from my filmmaking days, who had landed a job at Doordarshan, invited me to deliver the opening monologue for their upcoming quiz show. A month later, I was told that Doordarshan wanted me to host the show.
That’s how I got into Quiz Time, the national inter-college quiz competition that was a big hit on television then. It had a snowball effect, and I saw myself hosting many shows afterwards, most of which were quizzes.
Many still remember you as the face of Mastermind, a popular quiz show. How did that show shape up here in India?
It was originally a British show. BBC had noticed that quiz shows were popular in India. So they wanted to roll out something here, too, to fill their Made in India slot. They decided to replicate a form of their successful Mastermind, and we were tasked with producing the show. We did a total of five seasons and two seasons of University Challenge. It did fantastically well. However, when that division of BBC folded, the shows, too, wrapped up.
You eventually formed a company, Big Synergy, which was key in creating some wonderful shows in India. Could you elaborate on that journey?
When it began, it was called Synergy, and later, when we tied up with Adlabs and Reliance ADAG, it became Big Synergy. The idea was to have complete creative control over the programmes. Remember, this was way back in 1986. With each new step, our projects became bigger. I was associated with Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) for 21 years. We also oversaw the production of the game show in nine different languages. The programme garnered fantastic viewership across India in all languages.
We also did shows like India’s Got Talent, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, and Dancing with the Stars. In 2016, I stepped back from active work in the company but remained as a consultant producer. Later, I started Tree of Knowledge Digital (DigiTok), which does game shows in a similar genre.
Could you share details on how KBC was conceived?
KBC was a licensed Hindi adaptation of ‘Who Wants To Be a Millionaire’. The show was a big hit across the world. Star decided to license it and run the show here in India. For this, they collaborated with our company.
Mastermind, though successful, was a cerebral kind of programming which only a select group of people tuned into. KBC, on the other hand, was on the other end of the spectrum with its mass connection and appeal. It had its fair share of challenges, too, as we had to quickly find ways to connect with the Hindi-speaking world as the first version of the show was to be rolled out in Hindi. We looked at all aspects, from audience participation to content, from presentation to finding the perfect host, which we found in Amitabh Bachchan.
Finally, everything came together well. I remember overhearing the music of KBC on the streets once. I was overjoyed.
The Malayalam version, Ningalkkum Aakaam Kodeeshwaran, also garnered a positive audience reception. KBC had a satisfying outing.
What are some of your fondest memories from hosting shows?
As a host, you mix stagecraft and a sense of competition and play with everyone. For me, the biggest satisfaction has always been in engaging not just the contestants but also the audience, kindling their imagination. This participation, this interactivity, especially when questions come thick and fast, is the soul of quizzing.
It has also been a pleasure to work as a coach to several talents like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Suresh Gopi, Mukesh, Surya, Prakash Raj, Sourav Ganguly and others across languages and programming. It was a pleasure and a privilege.
What projects are you working on now?
Quizzer of the Year. It is a national inter-school contest for senior school students in grades 9 to 12. The show offers a scholarship of Rs 1 crore. The programming recording will be done later this week. It is an all-digital property and likely the first of its kind. It will be available on Sony Liv soon.
What word of advice would you like to give to future generations?
Stay curious, be sceptical, and question everything, especially in today’s age of misinformation. Learn to get to the facts and truth of things and share it. Information leads to knowledge, which leads to understanding and, hopefully, wisdom. In this world, we need so much understanding, compassion, care, mutual tolerance and diversity.