Factual

BBC Worldwide’s factual entertainment successful in India

Published

9 years ago

September 21, 2016

MUMBAI: Once in a blue moon or so, a television programme comes along that transfixes a nation and changes the daily routines of its viewers. The Great British Bake-Off is one of those. It airs once a week at 8pm on BBC One. And every week UK residents rush home to watch whose puddings have got saggy bottoms. In last season’s final episode, 14.49 million viewers tuned in to watch the 30-year-old Nadiya Jamir Hussain take home the crown of the best baker. That episode, on 7 October last year, was the most popular programming in the UK, apart from the sport of football.

GBBO is a sign of the times. One of the Beeb’s most successful innovations in recent times – though it will be moving to Channel 4 in the next season as its producer Love Productions has struck a deal for it with the former – it indicates how British and European audiences are lapping up what we in India may call rather tedious factual TV shows as they deal with more mundane everyday matters. BBC Worldwide has been at the forefront of driving this change with hits such as GBBO.

Says BBC Worldwide’s Factual Entertainment and Entertainment genre director Tracy Forsyth: “The audience here is more inclined to enjoy factual entertainment shows about perfecting a hobby or skill. The success story of The Great British Bake Off is a good example of this.”

This BAFTA-winning British television baking competition that first aired on BBC Two in 2010 is already on to its season seven this year

Extreme sports have also emerged as a favourite in other European, American and Australian markets. “Shows like Special Forces – Ultimate Hell Week, SAS: Who Dares Wins on Channel 4, are doing exceptionally well,” says Forsyth.

She notes that imbibing digital and social media into storytelling has added new dimensions to factual entertainment content leading to BBC Worldwide taking chances with several experimental formats.

“In Stupid Man, Smart Phone’ we asked the simple question – Can we survive the most remote locations in the world using only our mobile phones? Apart from this we have also roped in YouTube stars in our shows to leverage their fan base in the social media,” Forsyth explains.
Being a pioneer in the sector globally puts BBC Worldwide is in a comfortable position to leverage its rich international format library and devise relatable local content off it for the Indian market.

Forsyth’s Indian counterpart, BBC Worldwide India SVP and General Manager Myleeta Aga has been pushing the UK powerhouse’s fortunes in the Indian market. To date, the production house has produced innovative factual formats like the three seasons of Asian Paints HarGharKuchKehta Hai or ‘The House That Made Me ‘for Sony Entertainment Television and ColorsTV, two seasons of Epic Ke Dus on Epic TV, Inside Out for Discovery Channel, My Big Decision on Channel V and Wife Bina Life (The Week The Women Went) on Star Plus. Most recently BBC’s show Real Two States Couples featuring the best selling author Chetan Bhagat has aired on new factual entertainment channel FYI.

While keeping an eye on global trends helps understand where India stands in terms of content consumption behaviour, Aga reinforces the fact that the key to getting more eyeballs and ad revenues flowing in the genre in India is to catch the pulse of local content.

“Ours is a local content market – audiences want to see content that is relevant to them,” she states, confident of her team’s skill sets to meet the market’s ever growing need for quality content.

“Factual entertainment is just a step away from pure factual content where BBC Worldwide is a global leader,” adds Aga. Barring the genre leaders like Discovery, National Geographic Channel and HistoryTV18, newer channels like Travel XP, FYi, Insight Channel, Living Foodz have popped up in BARC India’s infotainment category. Additionally, channels like Sony BBC Earth are also waiting to launch and further expand the genre, as reported earlier by indiantelevision.com.

http://www.indiantelevision.com/sites/drupal7.indiantelevision.co.in/files/styles/large/public/Myleeta-Aga.jpg?itok=IwD400kT — BBC Worldwide India SVP and General Manager Myleeta Aga

Going by the FICCI KPMG M&E report 2015, the genre commanded a viewership share of 1.3 per cent of the total market, higher than both English Entertainment and English News, while it’s AdEx share stood at two per cent of Rs 175 billion. Since then the sector has seen an upward trajectory both in terms of volume of content produced, and advertising revenue earned.

“While Infotainment in India represents a mere 1.25 per cent of the viewing share, this is still larger than English Entertainment and English Movies. This share of audience has been pretty much stable since 2012 but with platforms offering packaging by content genre there is scope for growth,” points out Aga. “Factual/infotainment should also index better with advertisers as share of audience grows and we are able to more accurately measure viewership. Well made locally relevant content will be key to growing this category,” Aga said.

Drawing distinction between factual entertainment with the essence of drama and entertainment in it, and purely informative factual content Aga states that India has a demand supply gap in the latter category, which the production house intends to fill with its high quality content.

The Indian market provides a great playing field for the content producer in its regional languages as well. “Regional language dubbing makes factual content more accessible. And because it is often content without ‘dialogue’ it is easy to dub. However you still need to make an effort to give direction to dubbing artists just as you would to actors in a drama. Because they are the storytellers,” Aga points out.

Executives who dabble with content assert that there is a large audience in Tamil, Telugu and other regional languages which respond positively to factual entertainment content being dubbed and provided to them.

This directly translates to a sizeable business opportunity for content creators and BBC Worldwide India backed by its rich experience of is already on it to make the most of it.

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Kumar Mangalam Birla makes KBC debut with Amitabh Bachchan

Published

2 months ago

December 29, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: India’s most famous hot seat is about to welcome an unlikely first-timer. For the first time on Hindi general entertainment television, industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla will appear on Kaun Banega Crorepati, the iconic quiz show hosted by Amitabh Bachchan.

The special episode marks a rare meeting point of boardroom heft and prime-time television, bringing one of India’s most influential business leaders face to face with the country’s most enduring screen legend. It is a crossover that blends intellect, leadership and popular culture, all under KBC’s familiar spotlight.

Birla’s appearance dovetails neatly with the show’s current theme, Jahaan Akal Hai, Wahan Akad Hai, which celebrates the confidence that comes from clarity of thought and knowledge. His presence lends weight to the idea that sharp thinking and conviction are as vital in life as they are in the quiz chair.

In a thoughtful conversation with Bachchan, Birla shared an upbeat view of India’s economic journey, pointing to the nation’s rapid growth and the scale of opportunity opening up across industries and communities. He spoke of momentum, ambition and a future shaped by enterprise and ideas.

The episode is not all serious talk. In lighter moments, Birla confessed his long-standing admiration for Bachchan, calling him his favourite actor and admitting to a touch of nervousness at answering questions in front of the Shahenshah himself. The candour adds a human touch to a man more often seen in headlines than on television sets.

The special episode airs on Monday, 29 December at 9.00 pm on Sony Entertainment Television and Sony LIV.

Factual

Rocky heats up NCR as Road Trippin returns with winter bites

Published

3 months ago

December 26, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Winter’s bite just got tastier. Road Trippin With Rocky is back for its 15th season, with Rocky Singh rolling through the NCR to plate up comfort food, cult favourites and cold-weather cravings from 27 to 30 December.

The four-day journey opens in Noida, where Rocky kicks off with the much-loved Jain Tikki Wala in Sector 27 before wrapping the day at the always-humming Social. Faridabad follows, with stops shaped by local recommendations, while Gurugram brings a balance of indulgence and restraint from a standout vegetarian spread to smoky carnivore fare at The Pit, finished with Thai flavours at Banng.

Saving the grand finale for Delhi, Rocky dives into the capital’s contrasts from humble roadside falahar to refined fine-dining tables that define New Delhi’s evolving food scene. The promise is simple: honest recommendations that belong on every serious food lover’s list.

Over the years, #RoadTrippin has grown into one of HistoryTV18’s most successful digital-first properties. Built for viewers who snack on content on the move, the format’s easy humour, spontaneity and conversational style have kept audiences coming back season after season.

The numbers underline its pull. Across platforms, the franchise has clocked over 2 billion impressions and more than 550 million video views, turning each new season into a highly anticipated return.

Season 15 of #RoadTrippinWithRocky will play out across HistoryTV18’s and Rocky’s social media handles, a winter road trip that proves once again that in NCR, the cold only makes the food hotter.

Factual

Street of Stories Warner Bros doc amplifies GB Road’s unheard voices

Published

4 months ago

November 18, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: The cries may have gone unheard, but the stories now refuse to stay silent. Warner Bros. Discovery and Times Network have come together to shine a piercing, humanising light on Delhi’s GB Road, one of India’s most stigmatised spaces with Unheard Cries at GB Road, a documentary that trades sensationalism for truth, and myth for lived reality. The film premiered on 17 November 2025 on discovery+, offering rare, unfiltered access to a world long discussed but rarely listened to.

Crafted under Times Now Studios and shaped by producer and co-writer Rohit Chadda, the documentary draws on over 50 in-depth interviews with survivors, sex workers, police officials, social workers and experts. Instead of dramatisation or stylised retellings, the film builds itself on first-hand accounts bringing to the fore women whose lives have often been spoken about, yet scarcely spoken to.

At its heart, Unheard Cries at GB Road is a testament to the women who battle cycles of trauma, exploitation and coercion, while still searching for small, stubborn pockets of hope. Their accounts, delivered on record and often at great personal risk, reveal the emotional, physical and psychological landscapes of a district too frequently flattened by stereotype.

Warner Bros. Discovery, head of factual entertainment, lifestyle & kids for South Asia,Sai Abishek said the project demanded both courage and care. “Unheard Cries at GB Road is a story that demands to be seen and heard. Factual storytelling carries responsibility, and this film embodies that commitment. By giving these women the space to speak for themselves, the documentary brings rare honesty and emotional depth to a subject too often misunderstood.”

The production team gained access to the interiors of brothels, capturing the quiet routines, the harsh constraints and the precarious negotiations that shape daily life. Insights from the Delhi Police, NGO workers and legal experts situate these personal stories within the larger systems of trafficking, safety failures and legal gaps that the women must navigate.

Rohit Chadda said, “We made this film to confront a truth that has long remained ignored. Our commitment from the very beginning was to tell these stories with honesty, dignity, and responsibility – and we hope it resonates deeply enough to spark reflection, conversation, and a sense of hope, which results in long term change. Unheard Cries at GB Road is the first production under the banner of Times Now Studios, and we intend to build on this foundation by creating more meaningful, purpose-driven stories that deserve a platform and a voice.”

“This special documentary, produced under Times Now Studios and directed by Rohit Chadda and Yatharth Chauhan, is built on more than 50 in-depth interviews.”

While the documentary does not attempt to provide simple solutions, it offers something more vital, a vantage point grounded in truth. By presenting the voices of women who endure the unseen and the unimaginable on a daily basis, the film asks viewers to confront the complexity of GB Road with empathy rather than judgement.

Unheard Cries at GB Road is streaming now on discovery+, inviting the nation to listen truly listen to stories that can no longer remain in the shadows.