Star Plus gambles with MasterChef 2; drops Akshay Kumar for celebrity chef Vikas Khanna

The second season will not see Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar anymore. Instead, the channel has got on board international celebrity chef Vikas Khanna to judge the latest version of MasterChef India, along with the judges of Season 1, chef Ajay Chopra and chef Kunal Kapoor.

STAR India has decided to head for an all-celebrity-chef judging panel instead of including a Bollywood face on the judging list for the latest edition of MasterChef India, to be launched on October 15.

The second season will not see Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar anymore. Instead, the channel has got on board international celebrity chef Vikas Khanna to judge the latest version of MasterChef India, along with the judges of Season 1, chef Ajay Chopra and chef Kunal Kapoor.

Speaking on the reasons behind the move, Monica Shergill, senior creative director, Star Plus, says, "When we were launching MasterChef in India, Akshay's background was aspirational and a perfect fit from an amateur's perspective, since the initial phase of his career was in cooking, though it did not take a professional turn. However, themed 'Ab Badlo India Apne Khaane Ka Andaaz', the latest season of MasterChef India is positioned as a bigger, tougher culinary challenge and we therefore, decided to take Vikas Khanna on board."

While Akshay Kumar's presence in the first season promised the requisite TRPs, at least during the initial phase of its launch, will Khanna's inclusion in the judging panel and the absence of a celebrity star call in risk to the show's viewership?

"Not really! It's the contestants who are the real stars of the show. And, the high level of culinary talent that they will exhibit is sure to pull in the viewership," says Shergill. Like the first season, the show will be placed on the weekend slot, at the 9 pm band.

Meanwhile, Survivor, again a weekend property, will be the next internationally formatted show which will find its desi version on Star Plus. Produced by Miditech, the show is expected to be launched by the end of December, 2011, or in early January, 2012.

Survivor is a reality television game show format produced in many countries. In the show, contestants are isolated in the wilderness and compete for cash and other prizes. The show uses a system of progressive elimination, allowing the contestants to vote off other tribe members until only one final contestant remains and wins the title of 'Sole Survivor'. The format for Survivor was created in 1992 by British television producer, Charlie Parsons.