It’s said that to win a war, you have to stay one step ahead of your competitor. In the world of television the golden rule is followed although in a slightly different manner. The competitor doesn’t mind following the footsteps of his fellow competitor, creativity and novelty be damned!

When Ekta Kapoor started the trend of daily soaps with Kyunki...Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi... on Star Plus, all the channels and production houses followed suit. Daily family sagas became the order of the day. The hit show Kaun Banega Crorepati on Star Plus was followed by Jeeto Chappar Phad Ke on Sony and by Sawaal Dus Crore Ka on Zee (though none of the copycats fared well). There have been countless other fad followers.

Ravi Behl, the producer and host of the longest surviving dance show, Boogie Woogie, is quietly enjoying the battle between the other two shows. “I’m happy that Boogie Woogie isn’t there in the rat race. Let them fight. I would wish all the best to both of them. I am satisfied that after so many years also, Boogie Woogie is rocking and is in a league of its own. And I’m sure it would continue to rock in the future, too.”

Ravi on his part has analysed the issue about celebs attached to the show quite logically. “In both Nach Baliye and Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, the competition is based on celebrities. The essence of these shows is the celebrities who are non-dancers, whereas in Boogie Woogie, we give a chance to the common man or woman to prove his or her dancing skills. The invited celebrities are like icing on the cake. For me the content of the show is very important. If I call Amitabh (Bachchan) as a guest, our show would surely get better TRPs. But would the TRPs be as good in the upcoming episodes? It would only happen when the show has a good structure,” he explains.

The other leading entertainment channel Zee TV, however, is not trying its hand at dance shows and is not likely to do so in the days to come. “Zee has always given new faces an opportunity to showcase their talents through shows like Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, Antakshari, Cinestars Ki Khoj, etc. At present we don’t have any plans on working on a dance show. Maybe in future it can happen.

“I feel that Nach Baliye has not done that well in its second season. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li’ Champs has provided us TRPs as much as five. Nach Baliye or Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa hasn’t got that kind of TRPs. For me, in any show the packaging and presentation play a very important role,” says Tarun Mehra, Senior Vice-President, Marketing, Zee TV.

To each his own, one can say. Zee TV might not be considering a dance show at the moment and might be planting its hopes on Cinestars Ki Khoj 2 which focuses on dancing and acting both. But the first instalment of the series wasn’t a hit, either. So it all depends on the changing trend. But looking at the current popularity of dance shows, they might keep coming back every year on this channel or that.