He is known as the Quizmaster, and he is a household name. Siddharth Basu is ready now to enter the world of fiction, with his new show, 'Jiya Jale', on 9X, which will launch on November 12. He speaks about his new show, and other plans.

Q. How is this show different from the others?
A. Conceptually, it is distinctive, and not confined to kitchen politics. It is a love story of a young girl, who is torn between her independence, and her family values. A young architect enters her life.

Their families and their destinies demand that they be united, but somehow, this does not happen. It is a daily, and has more drama than a soap. We have treated it different, both visually and cinematically.

Q. What do you mean by more drama than a soap?
A. A soap has a certain convention and a grammar of storytelling. Also, a certain visualization. Soaps, as you know, are a daytime phenomenon, which housewives sit and watch. The companies recover their cost.

A typical American soap would be 'Santa Barbara' and 'The Bold and the Beautiful', where plot lines are improbable, and very far-fetched, stretched, with infinite capabilities.

This show is a defined drama, which will work itself out in a few episodes, and it is a story that you can keep track of. Indian soaps have a certain visualization, and dramatization, and typical performances. When I say our show is not a tele -soap, that is what I mean. It is a drama serialized on a daily basis.

Q. How have you worked out the story? Is the channel looking at TRPs?
A. Hmmm. It is a story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. It is not an open-ended saga. Let's see what happens next. It may have a sequel.

Q. The TRPs for conventional soaps that have been running for five-six years have decreased. What is your take on this?
A. There will always be a place for soaps. They have had their days, and will never be out of the television scene. However, they may never regain the command they had once. This is because the viewers are ready for change. Now there is space for someone doing it differently, and someone doing it with more variety.

Q. How did you decide to enter the world of fiction?
A. Synergy Adlabs is diversifying and expanding into multiple genres and on different channels. Fiction is just one of them.

Q. Synergy is more than 20 years old. Why expand now?
A. We were a small production house, doing big shows. We were restricted to the demands that the projects had. Now that we are a joint venture with Adlabs, we have the resources to expand.

Q. What are the other genres that you are planning?
A. We are working on fiction, talent shows, kid shows, and quizzes, of course. There are also some science shows, youth shows, and regional programmes planned.

Q. Everybody seems to be targeting the youth as an audience.
A. I don't think so. The target is usually the family. Youth is a specialized segment, and not much is happening at this time. There are many attempts, though, like ZNext and Bindaas channels.

Q. How many programmes are you working on at the moment?
A. Right now, we are working on 12 different programmes, on different channels.

Q. But it is because of Adlabs that you ventured into fiction?
A. Like I said, it is the joint venture that makes it possible to work in multiple genres.

Q. You have been a serious quizmaster. How are you going to deal with daily drama?
A. Quizzes are just one of the many things that I have done. Most people are not aware that I have a background in drama. Anyway, I have always said that a quiz is a drama through other means. I always try to make quizzes dramatic and entertaining.

One thing in common with our quizzes and other programmes is that we build quality into them, and try to make them world class. We hope to be the 'A-team' in whatever we do.

Q. How is 'Jhalak Dikhla Jaa' doing?
A. I am very happy with the way it is going. It is superb, a benchmark.

Q. The TRPs are on the lower side this year, though.
A. Actually, they are the same as last year. It was 5, but the platform that it has, and with Sony and its GRP, it is doing well.

Q. What do you watch, personally?
A. I love a variety in programmes. However, after a hard day's work, I would want to watch, on TV, something that can make me laugh, or something that can provoke thinking, stories that I can relate to.

Q. And what makes you laugh?
A. Sometimes it is the ridiculous, like (laughs) the ghost stories, the snake stories, and especially news channels, which are cheap reality shows.

Q. Can you name a few?
A. Absolutely not. Sonu Anand