Kaun Banega Crorepati 5 | KBC 5 | KBC | Amitabh Bachchan | Sony TV | KBC Game Show

The Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar wants to participate in Kaun Banega Crorepati. She expressed this wish when Amitabh Bachchan called her up on the request of one of the participants, Manju Singh.

Lata ji told Amitabh that she would like to be a part of this inspiring game show but also candidly confessed that she will not win much as her general knowledge was not up to the level of questions being asked there. Amitabh very graciously said she was welcome anytime on the show.

Manju didn’t lose this opportunity of talking to her idol and she also sang a song for Lata ji. Lata was delighted to hear from such an ardent fan and she blessed Manju to win a big prize money.

Ranbir Kapoor danced like mad, playing pranks and copied Amitabh Bachchan.

All this took place when the junior Kapoor came calling on the sets of KBC. Ranbir also paid a heartfelt tribute to his grand uncle Shammi Kapoor, who died recently.

Ranbir Kapoor did it all while promoting his upcoming film Rockstar.

The actor also enacted daddy Rishi’s famous lines.

Finally, he delivered a few dialogues from the Shehenshah of Bollywood, showing all how to promote films.

Amitabh Bachchan’s Kaun Banega Crorepati 5 has opened with 5.24 points on day one (August 15) and the week’s average (August 15 to August 18) came to 4.54 points by TAM India, the official agency that issues TRPs for TV shows in India. The last season that opened on the host’s birthday on October 11, 2010 had recorded a whopping 6.2 points for episode one and 5.3 points as the opening week’s average.

The numbers are visibly lower than the previous season’s opening figures, but they are the highest for a celebrity-driven reality show across Hindi general entertainment channels within the current calendar year. A handful of big names surfaced on the tube between January and August. Some were impressive and some failed to make a mark.

Apart from Bachchan, Dharmendra (India’s Got Talent 3), Hrithik Roshan (Just Dance), Preity Zinta (Guinness World Record — Ab India Todega) and Akshay Kumar (Khatron Ke Khiladi Torchaar), in this order, recorded decent opening figures for their respective shows. Shah Rukh Khan’s (Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout) and Mallika Sherawat’s (Chak Dhoom Dhoom 2) entries on the small screen respectively were disappointing in terms of numbers and content.

Officials at Sony Entertainment, Kaun Banega Crorepati’s current broadcaster, are elated. Danish Khan, vice president, marketing, points out that the show not only helped the channel occupy the second spot on the GRP chart, but also got them eyeballs for their early prime time slot, 8.30 pm. He adds, “We were hopeful that Mr Bachchan’s charisma and the classic show would help us. So, we decided to extend the show from a 60-minute capsule to 90-minutes. The numbers are encouraging. As per official records, they are the highest so far in the year. We have no reason to cut the show’s length throughout the season.”

While other showbiz personalities are happily dividing their time between movies and television, Amitabh Bachchan has taken a conscious decision to focus only on television and that too on one television show at a time.

For the rest of the year, Bachchan will be shooting for Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC). All producers desirous of signing him have been told to hang on while he finishes with his commitment to the other medium.

Filmmakers, however, seem unwilling to wait that long and are imploring him to shoot in the gaps during the shooting of KBC. However, directors like Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Raj Kumar Santoshi, Balki and Puri Jagannath have all been told to wait.

In all probability, the next film that Bachchan will sign would be another project with Prakash Jha, which is likely to start in January 2012.

At the moment it is imperative for Bachchan to focus on KBC so as to give the franchise a new lease of life and to also combat the rival show Bigg Boss.

Kaun Banega Crorepati returns on Sony Entertainment Television with Amitabh Bachchan as the host on 15 August, 2011 at 8.30 pm.

Produced by Big Synergy Media, this season of KBC will be aired from Monday to Thursday. This season, KBC’s 14 weeks run comes with special episodes and themes. Along with a new set with new design elements, Bachchan will be seen in a new look and his wardrobe has been designed by Rohit Bal.

KBC 2011 will see innovations incorporated in the game like Ghar Baithe Jeeto Jackpot, Manchaha Padav in the money tree and special episodes like Jodi special and School special.