Opinion The swami and the Boss
What on earth is Swami Agnivesh doing on Bigg Boss? And why is it worthy of news TV discussions?
So,Swami Agnivesh,that crusader against the many ills of our society,will join the cast of Bigg Boss 5,a show many people think is pretty sickening. What is it about TV,especially a reality show that gets him hooked? asked Times Now,for once completely bewildered.
Good question. And one serious enough to be addressed in the Newshour. What will a man who wears saffron robes,do in the company of women who often wear only what is absolutely necessary to avoid censorship? How will a man recognised as one of our foremost social activists interact with housemates for whom social is something they must be at a party? What will a man who usually speaks on topics like female foeticide,inter-faith tolerance and more recently,corruption,say to contestants who have spent the last month speaking (if that is what you can call their verbal utterances) only about each other and that too as unkindly as possible?
Well,heres your chance to find out,as Swami ji entered the Bigg Boss house on Tuesday. And Monday night,Times Now wanted to know: Did he do the right thing?
According to his associate,Manu Singh,a panelist on the show,he is there to spread social awareness amongst the women and the viewers. But,asked host Arnab Goswami,are people watching Bigg Boss for social messages? Panelist Simi Chandok was curious about what message he would give half-naked contestants?
Poonam Dhillon,a former Bigg Boss contestant,said well,it was a place you could be heard. But Kirron Kher saw more to it than meets the eye: Mr Agnivesh,she insisted,had been paid by the Congress party to be on the show (she didnt explain why,though). Vindu Dara Singh,winner of Bigg Boss season 3,thought it was shocking to see the 70-year-old activist in the show and was concerned for him. They will get him, he warned.
The mind boggles,the soul shudders. Or wait. Maybe he will get them,clean up their act and their language. Watched the show recently?
Either the women,especially the women Shraddha Sharma,former Miss Afghanistan Vida Samadzai,VJ Pooja Missra,Pooja Bedi,Juhi Parmar,Shonali Nagrani,Mahek Chahal and transgender activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi compliment themselves on their own fine qualities (however,few are on display during the show) or theyre bad-mouthing each other in shrill voices with the most horrible scowls on their faces. Hate alliteration,but this is a house of haranguing harridans (HHs),a bevy of bellicose,bickering begums (BBs).
So God help Swami Agnivesh!
Hes an oddity; that is what the channel wants,and of course that is what Bigg Boss 5 needs; we are fast tiring of the HHs and BBs. But honestly theyve got the wrong Swami. Cant you just imagine Swami Ramdev,instead,on the show?
Now Ramdev would know how to deal with the highly disturbed damsels. To begin with he would hold long yoga sessions each morning to occupy them; then there would be pranayama to calm their nerves,give them serenity and turn their thoughts towards matters spiritual. He could have then initiated a game of kabbadi,something hes been good at recently. That should exhaust their bile. He may even agree to wear a shalwar-kameez and join the fancy-dress party.
Meanwhile,what will Swami Agnivesh do? Well,he might surprise us yet,so lets wait and find out.
Monday night seems to have been the evening for television news discussion on television entertainment shows. Thus,while Times Now debated Bigg Boss,CNN-IBNs Face the Nation analysed the phenomenon of Kaun Banega Crorepati. This says one of two things: that such shows are making and breaking news or that Team Anna and Digvijaya Singh didnt say,write or do anything bizarre enough to agitate the headlines.
Lastly,instead of Bigg Boss,why not watch a rollicking medieval drama with all the machinations,twists and turns of a modern thriller? Game of Thrones (HBO),an Emmy award-winning series,is set in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros,where summers span decades and winters can last a lifetime. Its a good old-fashioned soap with violent dynastic struggles as the kingdoms noble families fight for control of the Iron Throne. Enjoy.
shailaja.bajpai@expressindia.com
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