Street singers for reality show ?

In a season of reality shows, where women face polygraph tests to prove their marital fidelity and men slug it out to win over Rakhi Sawant, this one stands out for sure. Indiavision, a Malayalam television channel, has roped in street singers for a brand new show which kicked off last weekend. Interestingly, the singers will not compete with each other. The new reality show, called VKC Street Light, is telecasted on Saturdays and Sundays and it features 17 street singers. Calicut Landmark Builders has volunteered to build two-bedroom houses for each of the 17 participants.

"We see a lot of talented people singing on trains and streets. Why not have a television show for them?" said Sudheer Ambalapad, producer of the 100-episode reality show. "Theres no elimination round. Of course, there will be emotional moments given the background of our participants. But this show is one of celebration," said singer Chitra Iyer, who anchors the show. Participants range from a Gujarati elder who ekes out a living singing Malayalam classics to little children who sing songs in trains. The production team is thrilled with the support it has got from the film and music industry.

If Shankar Mahadevan sang the signature composed by Jassie Gift, legendary composer Dakshinamurthy was a guest of honour in the first episode. Ambalapad hopes to welcome icons, such as Ilayaraja, Lata Mangeshkar and KJ Yesudas, on the show. Kerala, with at least 10 Malayalam television channels clamouring for viewers attention, has been addicted to reality shows like the rest of the country. The once-popular saops have been relegated to the background with reality shows ruling the charts.