Reality show star

Have you ever wondered if there is reality in the reality TV shows?

I always used to think that the reality TV shows were completely scripted. It was my belief that there is no reality in these shows. I had a strong feeling that everything including the final outcome of the show is premeditated. All the drama, emotion, and outbursts are completely planned. My friend Suyash (pseudonym) confirmed my suspicions.

I met Suyash in my office. Suyash was an aspiring singer and musician. When I first so him I felt that he looked familiar. When asked he told me that he had participated in a singing reality TV competition in his school days. When he told me that, I definitely rememberd his performance from that show. It fueled my curiosity and I asked him about his experience and journey on that show.

Suyash was 8 years old when he decided to participate in that singing competition. When he reached for the audition, before the actual audition began, he was told that instead of applying from Mumbai he should apply from another city where he will have a better chance. Apparently the selection quota for the Metro city was already full. So Suyash decided to apply from his native village for the audition. With his skills and classical music training Suyash got selected. However selection in the audition was not sufficient. They were told to pay money so that he can advanced to the first elimination round. I was shocked to hear when Suyash told me this.

It was a mandate to pay a fixed sum of money so that the contestant can move to the next level. Hence for each round Suyash's parents had been paying to the organisers so that he can move to the next round. At 1 point of time it was impossible for his parents to pay any further which is when Suyash got eliminated from the competition.

Not just that several other aspects of the reality TV competition are also fixed. The homes of contestants what they show on the TV are not real. The organisers create melodramatic stories about the contestant so that they can make the audience emotional and the appeal for vote would look more like charity work. None of the sad stories they show on the TV are real. Also Suyash had informed that for the singing competition they used to get several hours to practice. They would also record their performance several times. The performance that would be the best of what has been recorded would used to get aired on the channel. Most of the times the contestants would not even perform in front of the judges. Even the judges have been told what they are supposed to say about the performance of the contestant.

After exciting the competition Suyash was able to find some work in the music industry. He attributed that to the exposure he got from the reality TV show. Unfortunately the magnitude of the impact was limited because of his early elimination despite of his talent and classical learning.

Hearing Suyash's story I was completely shocked. In my opinion the reality in these shows was minimal but as per Suyash it was almost zero. It feels like the reality TV shows are nothing but the fictional drama disguised as talent competitions. It cemented my belief that reality TV stars are the only ones who have a lot of money and they are willing to use it only for fame. That is the reality of reality TV shows.