Anant’s blog: Pamela Anderson delivers for Colors…

I haven’t watched a single second of a single episode of Bigg Boss. But then, I haven’t watched a single second of many programs which have the viewers of this nation transfixed. I watch a lot of news, a lot of English football, and, undoubtedly, there are millions who watch neither news nor football.

Thankfully, we live in an era of 300+ channels, and I can be left to my own tastes and devices and I can leave others to theirs.

But I do wonder what the ‘others’ are about.

There are people who will ignore 299 channels and watch Pamela Anderson on Bigg Boss? Really?

Colors obviously thinks so.  They’ve reportedly paid Rs.2.5 crore to make a three-day appearance on the Indian version of Big Brother.

And if the free publicity Pamela Anderson has generated is a yard-stick, Colors has already made a handsome profit.

This morning, all the newspapers that I read carried a piece on Pamela Anderson and Bigg Boss, some of them mentioning the program by name, some carrying the name of the channel, Colors, as well. I didn’t watch news TV last night or this morning (I didn’t watch TV at all); but a quick glance at the new TV dotcoms suggests that they, too, covered Anderson’s Bigg Boss entry extensively.

Not just Indian news media; BBC.com announces, “Pamela Anderson to enter Indian Big Brother house”. The story adds her presence “could prove a ratings booster for the show, which is now in its fourth season.”

BBC.com also gives us a rare glimpse into Anderson’s intellect. “Last year Anderson wrote a letter to Mumbai's municipal authorities requesting them to sterilise and not kill stray dogs. “Dogs cannot use condoms but... they can be 'fixed' painlessly," she wrote.” 

When I first heard that Colors had signed on Anderson, I thought the channel’s think tank had gone completely nuts. I learn every day that there’s very little I understand about the Hindi general entertainment space, and, if I needed to be absolutely certain that there’s a world I have no clue about, the coverage for Anderson has certified it. 

But, even for people like me, there’s entertainment that I can derive without watching a second of Bigg Boss. 

From futuristicmedianetwork.wordpress: “Given the fact that Colors may be spending as much as Rs 4 crore (Read our earlier post) on busty Pamela, they would definitely want to get the maximum bang for the buck. Which would include some swimming pool footage as well as a washroom fiasco or wardrobe malfunction with Pamela aunty, we think?”

From the Daily Mail, UK: “She can still attract a crowd: Pamela Anderson gets mobbed by fans as she lands in India”Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1329978/Pamela-Anderson-gets-mobbed-fans-lands-India.html#ixzz15Pj48KJp
 
She’s also had time to write a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in which she says, “India’s laws prohibit animals from being crammed onto vehicles in such high numbers that their bones break, ban handlers from smearing chilli seeds into cows’ eyes and breaking their tails, and prevent animals from being hacked to pieces in front of each other while still conscious, yet all this continues, involving countless animals every day.”

I’m sure the PM will read this once he’s sorted out the Raja mess, the Adarsh scam, the Ratan Tata bribery accusation, and so on. I doubt he’ll have the time to meet her.

Ah well, there are the millions who’ll watch Anderson on Colors. I won’t; I’ll look for gems such as the Futuristic Media one.

I guess I no longer think Colors is nuts…