Star Plus unveils futuristic arena for India Ke Top 1%

MUMBAI: This is one arena where the game is less about playing to the gallery and more about beating the odds. Star Plus is bringing India Ke Top 1% to television with an amphitheatre-style set designed to put 100 contestants and their reactions at the heart of the action.

Hosted by Anil Kapoor, the quiz and entertainment format will bring together Indians from strikingly different backgrounds, including students, homemakers, shopkeepers, YouTubers, magicians and real estate agents. The contestants will represent a mix of rural towns and major cities, turning the arena into a cross-section of the country.

And this is no ordinary studio set. Cameras cover the arena from every direction, leaving no blind spots and ensuring every nervous glance, moment of confusion and burst of celebration is captured.

Each of the 100 contestants gets an individual tablet, with the option to play in Hindi or English. Giant screens keep the participants connected to the action, while individual status lighting tracks their progress through the game.

The lighting shifts from blue to red as the stakes change, while the circular LED floor serves as the centrepiece, bringing gameplay graphics and changing percentage levels to life as contestants get closer to the coveted Top 1%.

Behind the glossy technology is a remarkably quick build. The entire arena was constructed in just one month, with hundreds of people involved in bringing the concept to life.

Varsha Jain, who designed the set, said the team explored multiple concepts for around two to three months before settling on the final design. Another month was then spent building the arena, with individual elements designed and handcrafted in detail.

The brief was to make the space feel premium and futuristic without turning it into an intimidating technological maze. The result combines large-scale screens and LED technology with brighter, warmer elements intended to make the arena feel inviting.

Jain identified the individual status lighting and circular LED floor as the set’s biggest highlights, particularly for the way they visually track contestants’ journeys and bring the percentage-based gameplay into the physical space.

India Ke Top 1% premieres on September 19 at 8 pm on Star Plus and JioHotstar, putting 100 contestants, one arena and a rather literal race towards the top on the same stage.