HOSTS WITH THE MOST: (From top) Urmila Matondkar, Salman Khan, Malaika Arora and Shah Rukh Khan

Bollywood stars used to make it a point to shun the small screen. It was too infra dig, they felt. In fact, in the 1980s Doordarshan’s Phool Khiley hai Gulshan Gulshan happened to be the only TV show that offered viewers a chance to take a peek at Bollywood stars in their own living rooms.

All that has changed. Today a host of top stars are anchoring television shows and making oodles of money from them too. From Shah Rukh Khan to Salman Khan, from Akshay Kumar to Urmila Matondkar, they are going all out to woo small screen audiences.

While Shah Rukh is doing his star turn in Kya Aap Panchvi Paas Se Tez Hai? (his second stint in television after Kaun Banega Crorepati, Season 3), Salman Khan is helming Sony’s game show Dus ka Dum (DKD). Askhay Kumar will anchor a desi version of Fear factor and Urmila Matondkar is hosting Sony’s Waar Parivaar — Sangeet Ka Naya Gharana — a show where musical families spanning three generations will be seen battling it out for the title.

Of course, it all began with Amitabh Bachchan’s stunning debut as quizmaster in Star Plus’s Kaun Banega Crorepati, a hugely successful adaptation of the British quiz show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Not only did the show resurrect Bachchan’s sagging career, it also made Star Plus the number one channel of the country. “When KBC was launched, initially people switched it on to see Amitabh Bachchan as a person and not as an actor. Gradually, the content appealed and the rest is history,” says Viren Popli, head, mobile entertainment, Star TV, India.

Clearly, every TV channel wants a winner like KBC on its hands. And so they are prepared to pay eye-popping amounts to get a mega star on board. Sources reveal that Salman Khan is charging Rs 85 crore for 104 episodes of Dus ka Dum (DKD), while Akshay Kumar will be charging Rs 1.5 crore per episode for his show. Reportedly, Shah Rukh Khan is getting Rs 75-80 lakh per episode for his show.

Siddhartha Basu, quizmaster and CEO of Synergy Adlabs Media Ltd, says that using celebrities to anchor shows makes a lot of business sense. “It happens whenever the stakes are high and the broadcaster wants to add star power to a format.” In a competitive market, each channel seems to be betting on a star to pull in viewers and keep them rivetted.

Does the addition of stars to the game format always increase television viewership ratings (TVRs)? After all, weren’t shows like Sawal Dus Crore Ka (hosted by Manisha Koirala), Jeeto Chhappar Phad Ke (anchored by Govinda) or Madhuri Dixit’s Kahin Na Kahin Koi Hai (a matrimonial show) flops around the time that KBC was being aired? “Well, initially the stars are able to pull in viewers. But after a few episodes it’s the content and the persona of the star that determines whether or not viewers continue to remain glued to a particular show,” admits Siddhartha Mukherjee, vice-president, communications, Television Audience Measurement (TAM) Media Research, the Mumbai-based company that tracks television viewership.

Still, no one denies that stars can make a big difference to a show. Says Tarun Mehra, business head, Zee TV, Mumbai, “The popularity of film actors is far more than the popularity of television actors in our country. So it definitely helps if you have a leading actor judging or anchoring a show.” Right now Zee has only one celebrity-powered show, Rock and Roll Family, anchored by Ajay Devgan, Kajol and Tanuja.

And even if those viewership ratings don’t always look quite so healthy, producers remain optimistic. In the case of Kya Aap Panchvi Paas Se Tez Hai, for instance, the TAM report for the April 26 and 27 shows reveals that they had a modest 4.6 and 3.7 TVR rating, respectively.

TV channels also defend the whopping payouts being made to stars. Says Albert Almeida, business head of Sony, “We only pay what the stars are worthy of. Salman is hosting a show for the first time so there’s a great curiosity surrounding him. Hence, we’re sure of the recovery.”

Clearly, it’s a quid pro quo situation for both the stars and the TV channels — both hoping to strike it rich riding on each other.

But for the celebs, a sojourn in television is not just about easy money. It is some amount of hard work as well.

For instance, Shah Rukh Khan has taken an eight- month break to do his bit for Kya Aap… Salman Khan is busy sharpening his skills as an anchor and Akshay Kumar is probably honing his dare devil acts for his show. Urmila Matondkar too has improved on her singing skill for Waar Parivaar.

“It’s not that we are all here to resurrect our career. As a game show anchor, you get an opportunity to interact with the audience present on the set as well as those watching it on air,” says Matondkar.

Shailja Kejriwal, EVP Content, NDTV Imagine, agrees, “Stars are turning to television for two reasons. They can reach out to millions of viewers every day and also because the money is attractive.” Kejriwal should know, since NDTV Imagine uses celebrities like Karan Johar (Say Shava Shava), Malaika Arora Khan (Dhoom Macha De) on its programmes.

But too much of a good thing can also begin to pall. Warns Mukherjee, “Too many stars can saturate television and TV channels may soon have to look for newer options.”

Until that happens, it’s starry starry nights on TV.