MUMBAI: Zee News has a unique show up its sleeve. The channel has roped in former finance minister Yashwant Sinha to anchor a show on its channel. The show, which promises to be a 'people oriented show', will go on air by mid-May. And as the buzz goes, Sinha will be playing a roving reporter for the channel by traveling across the country, interviewing people from the nooks and corners of India.
Elaborating on the thought behind the show, programming head Alka Saxena says, "The former finance minister takes on the role of a reporter in the show. For every episode he'll choose a category or a section of society like say farmers, bureaucrats, shopkeepers or for that matter even say peons or maids. And the whole episode will revolve around what that particular section of society has to say."
The show promises to cut across all TGs and is broadly divided into three sections. The first segment will talk about the problems of that particular section of society; the second segment will take a slightly personal look at that particular community and the third section will get their views on any policy decision. Like for example the episode on shopkeepers had them expressing their views on VAT. The question posed will be general as well as personal.
On being queried on why the channel has gone ahead with Sinha as the anchor, Saxena replies, "He had earlier on anchored a programme `Captains of India' on Zee Business for us which gave us a very good response. Also, Sinha has been a lecturer and a bureaucrat earlier and comes from a family with very strong grassroots. So, because of his background the show has a very rustic feel and its like a `neta going to the janta' and wanting to listen to their problems."
About seven episodes of the show have been shot for which Sinha has traveled by public transport to interact closely with people. Says Saxena, "There have been times when people in the villages have been totally spellbound by Sinha's personality. Also, we definitely have been able to get people to talk about their problems."
