Only a few weeks ago, Zee TV, Aapka Colors, and STAR Plus all released dance-based reality shows. Dance India Dance L’il Masters, Chak Dhoom Dhoom, and Zara Nachke Dikha all came out at the same time, but it’s Zee’s DID L’il Masters that is at the top of the TRP charts.

As I had mentioned in a previous article, DID Li’l Masters recorded an opening TVR of 6.7. DID L’il Masters is maintaining its lead over the other two dance shows, “registering a TVR of 3.2. In comparison, Chak Dhoom Dhoom has managed a TVR of 2.35; while Zara Nach Ke Dikha has a TVR of 2.81.”

According to Hema Malik, general manager, Lodestar UM, the reason for this is that Zee TV has a strong weekend slot for all genres. (The 9:30 slot has been ruled by captivating shows like Sa Re Ga Ma Pa!)

Colors used to air National Bingo Night, hosted by Abhishek Bachchan, in the time slot occupied by Chak Dhoom Dhoom now. Bingo Night was not as successful as was hoped, as it didn’t live up to its hype and failed to grab any great ratings.

Unsurprisingly, ZeeTV played strategically, and DID L’il Masters was rolled out immediately after the DID2 Finale, leveling the playing field by not giving the other channels a head start. With two successful (and not to mention extremely entertaining) seasons of Dance India Dance, why wouldn’t people keep coming back for more?

DID L’il Masters and Chak Dhoom Dhoom are both children-based dance shows, and they both have a similar format (16 kids vying for a champion cup over the course of 13 weeks). According to Rajiv Gopinath, chief operating officer, Madison Platinum, the reason that DID L’il Masters is more popular than Chak Dhoom Dhoom is because, ”DID has been an established slot for the last five months; so, it was only natural for the opening of L’il Masters to have a blockbuster TVR. On the other hand, Chak Dhoom Dhoom needed huge promotions to get a good initial rating of 4.3.”

Gopinath also mentions that DID as a brand focuses on the talent of the ordinary man, whereas other shows like Zara Nach Ke Dikha use celebrities. Through two seasons, DID has been lucky to have 3 talented masters who are compassionate and encourage participants to do their best. By contrast, in the third week, Chak Dhoom Dhoom discovered that one of their judges, Vindoo Dara Singh, is being replaced!

Zara Nachke Dikha is not compared too much to the other two children-based dance shows. It has television actors and actresses pitted against each other in the classic girls versus boys teams. It used to be aired on STAR One and was shifted to STAR Plus in an attempt to garner more ratings, but it seems the ratings are more or less the same.