Day 1 - 10 Ka Dum

I still remember the day when my brother Sohail Khan, who always dreams big, thinks different, brought the proposal to anchor a show for Sony Entertainment Television. I had my reservations. The idea sounded so impractical that I rejected it even without giving it much thought. All my decisions are based on my instinct and some people think that I am too moody and cynical. But believe me I have been guided by my instincts and my heart all my life! I do not depend too much on intelligence, analysis and calculations… I believe in poet Adam who has said: “ Aakal har kaam ko zulum bana deti hai…”. Some meaning is lost in the translation-- that intelligence begets torture and torment and man is lost in deep thought and often feels ashamed of things that have never happened!

However, Sohail, the eternal optimist, and family friend Ajay Chhabaria have tremendous patience and endless power of persuasion. They kept asking me to look into the format closely. Their patience and perseverance paid dividends…

My experience of playing guest contestant in a show had taught me that simple inability to answer questions may humiliate a person in presence of millions of viewers. All such shows have that inherent humiliation. As a matter of fact most students do not ask questions in classrooms is only because of the fear of being refuted by the teacher and the thought of being ridiculed & booed by fellow students.

Questioning has been a taboo and there’s social stigma attached to it which is quite unnecessary. Ours is a very obedient society. We have created an atmosphere in which ignorance has become bliss. What attracted me to the format of 10 Ka Dum is that there is no false shame and sense of humiliation if your answer is wrong. Sample survey has determined the exact answers in form of percentage and nearest to the exact answer is the winner.

This game is simple. It is a game of guessing.

So here I am convinced & ready to go…
The format attracted me…and how! Stay connected will be back tomorrow.