Veteran actor Dharmendra ups India's Got Talent's viewership quotient

The latest season of the reality property has overtaken its first two editions in the race for the opening and the first week's average ratings.

Dharampaji seems to have cast a spell on the latest season of India's Got Talent, which is currently on air on Colors.

The third season of the property was launched on July 29, to become the slot leader at 9 pm for the week ended 30 July, 2011. According to TAM (C&S 4+, HSM), the show opened with a TVR of 3.91 and went on to average at a 3.55 TVR during the week.

As compared to the opening and the first week average ratings of the reality property in its first two editions, the latest season surely wins the race.

Consider this: the first season of India's Got Talent opened with a TVR of 2.36, while its average for the first week stood the same ground. Meanwhile, in the second season, the opening TVR for the show was 3.08, and its first week average was 3.32 TVR.

Quite evidently, the show has been gaining strength with each year.

So, what is it that has worked for the show?

When it comes to reality content, the general trend exhibits an upswing in audience viewership with every passing season, provided the brand has been able to establish a good equity for itself.

"While the quality of talent on the show is good, audiences are inquisitive to see Dharmendra in a completely new avatar. And, this curiosity has helped the channel to attract additional eyeballs," says Balakrishna, chief operating officer, Percept Media.

For the record, in the first season, Sonali Bendre and Kirron Kher were joined by Shekhar Kapoor as the third judge, while in the second season Sajid Khan had replaced Kapoor.

But, will the show be able to sustain this growth?

Top media executives are yet to pass a verdict on the show's sustainability within the same TVR range. This is because, if one examines the second season performance of the show, it is observed that the viewership had been falling towards the end of the season.

Colors is, however, confident that the show will continue to grow in its current pace. Says Ashwini Yardi, head programming, Colors, "We intend to make the show even more engaging with every passing week. And this, coupled with an aggressive marketing push, is expected to generate more eyeballs for the show."

The other top-rated reality shows in 2011 have been Star Plus' dance reality show Just Dance, which scored a TVR of 3.7 TVR, followed by the Guinness World Records -- Ab India Todega, which opened with a 3.3 TVR, and Fear Factor -- Khatron ke Khiladi - Season 4 with a TVR of 3. Zee TV's Saregamapa Li'l Champs opened with a 2.7 TVR.