Where have the thrills gone?

Detective thrillers like Karamchand, Byomkesh Bakshi etc ruled Indian television in the 90s. However, those days are gone.

Now, it’s the age of reality shows and saas-bahu tearjerkers. The only exception is probably the detective show CID which has been doing consistently well. That brings us to the question — has thriller as a genre on Indian television died down?

Shailja Kejriwal, programming head of NDTV Imagine, feels this genre has been affected because a large number people own television sets nowadays compared to what it was in the 90s.

She says, “Earlier most people who had television sets at home belonged to the Section A of society and most of them were educated. Now, people from all strata of society own television sets. As a result their preferences have changed. So everything on TV has gone through a major change as well. Moreover, since TV has spread its wings even in the interiors, it has become a part of furniture. Detective fiction has a lot to do with applying your mind, which is one area where most of the audience doesn’t want to get into. Then these kind of shows become a little niche besides being male skewed. Detective fiction, which involves crime and investigation, is not considered fit for women (especially mothers, aunts and grandmothers) in general. CID is doing very well because it’s been running for a long time and has become a part of family,” she adds.

Shivaji Satam, who plays the lead in CID, says, “It has a lot to do with characters. In CID, the characters are believable; we employ a simple narrative technique with no camera gimmicks. In a way, we look more professional and logical without the melodrama which people can identify with easily.”

But everybody is hopeful that the genre will make a big comeback. Sushmita Mukherjee, who played Karamchand’s assistant Kitty, says, “I don’t think the genre is dead. It’s always there and it’s something very dear to the kids. It also depends on the way a generation thinks. For example we had a deluge of saas-bahu shows for a decade and now the village soaps have taken over. Detective fiction can never be timed out. I personally feel there is always a segment of viewers for shows like CID.”