Bade Achche Lagte Hai paddles Sony forward

For Sony entertainment television, Bade Achche Lagte Hai could eventually prove to become the real force behind pushing the channel forward in the viewership battle.

The show, launched on May 30, 2011, has been steadily rising up the ladder, thereby helping Sony to up its channel stickiness and sampling, for the 10.30 pm slot. Result? Sony, whose average GRP stands at an approximate 175-185 points, closed at 220 GRPs in Week 30.

For Sony entertainment television, Bade Achche Lagte Hai could become the real force behind pushing the channel forward in the viewership battle.

Consider this: Bade Achche Lagte Hai opened with a TVR of 1.3, and steadily grew to a 2.4 TVR in its fourth week on TV, and now, as per the latest ratings for the week ended July 23 (TAM, C&S 4+, HSM), the TVR for the show stands at 3.4 TVR.

Bade Achche Lagte Hai has completed eight weeks on Sony, and its cumulative reach for the eight weeks stands at 53,839,000. Now, compare this to the average cumulative reach for the first eight weeks of Kismat, the first daily fiction property from the YRF stable that occupied the same slot prior to the launch of Bade Achche Lagte Hai. Kismat's reach stood at 30,571,000, exhibiting the fact that the slot has witnessed an approximate 76 per cent increase in cumulative reach with the launch of Bade Achche Lagte Hai.

So what is it that has worked for the show?

The success of the show has been brought in by two primary factors -- marketing and promotions, and a good storyline.

The promotions for the show were unveiled during the fourth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), one of the highest-viewed properties during that period. Thus, the hype generated for the show on the back of IPL was humungous too, say media pundits.

"This aside, the content of the show also looks very promising. Unlike a lot of other shows, this show talks about the love story between two adults. And, with Ram Kapoor and Saakshi Tanwar as the lead protagonists, the content stickiness is even more. Bade Achche Lagte Hai is steadily doing well with the viewers and has doubled its ratings in the last six-to-seven weeks," says Rahul Jadav, investment director at MEC.

As the product shows potential in viewership, media executives are optimistic that the show's advertising rates too, will eventually show growth.

While a top show on a Hindi GEC commands an approximate Rs 90,000-Rs 1 lakh per 10 seconds, Bade Achche Lagte Hai currently demands an ad rate in the approximate range of Rs 40,000-60,000 per 10 seconds.

"The show has already made way into the Top 10 list of the Hindi GEC space. If it is able to sustain its stay in the list and grow in rank further, the product is sure to command rates comparable to the top shows in the long run," says a top media executive on conditions of anonymity.