''Evaru Meelo Koteeswarulu'' (), previously known as ''Meelo Evaru Koteeswarudu'', is an Indian
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
-language television game show. It is the official Telugu adaptation of Britain's game show ''
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and l ...
''. It was produced by
BIG Synergy
Big Synergy Media Limited is a television production company headed by chief executive officer Rajiv Bakshi. It started as one of the country's first few independent television outfits in 1988. BIG Synergy is an acknowledged leader in factual en ...
for first four seasons and was aired on
Star Maa. The first three seasons were hosted by actor
Nagarjuna
Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...
and the fourth season was hosted by actor
Chiranjeevi
Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, film producer and former politician, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. Chiranjeevi starred in over 150 feature films in Telugu, as well as some fil ...
.
In 2021, after the completion of the first four seasons (2014–2017), the show was revamped with a new title ''Evaru Meelo Koteeswarulu'' under the production of
Studio Next with
Sun TV Network
Sun TV Network is an Indian mass media company headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is a part of Sun Group and is one of Asia's largest TV networks. Established on 14 April 1992 by Kalanithi Maran, it owns a variety of television c ...
buying its broadcasting rights.
It started to air on
Gemini TV from 22 August 2021 to 5 December 2021, with
N. T. Rama Rao Jr.
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr. (born 20 May 1983), also known as Jr. N.T.R. or Tarak, is an Indian actor who primarily works in Telugu cinema. One of the highest paid Telugu film actors, Rama Rao Jr. has won several accolades, including two Fil ...
as the host.
Series overview
''Meelo Evaru Koteeswarudu''
''Evaru Meelo Koteeswarulu''
History and production
Debut (2014–2019)
In March 2014, reports emerged that
Nagarjuna
Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...
would host the Telugu version of ''
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and l ...
'' and the makers were in talks with him. With Nagarjuna confessing that he wanted to be a television game show host, the reports gained prominence. There were reports that Nagarjuna charged 3 crores for hosting 40 episodes for the first season. The reports of Nagarjuna's inclusion were confirmed in early April 2014 and Nagarjuna participated in the promo shoots. The official announcement was made on 18 April 2014 and the show was titled ''Meelo Evaru Koteeswarudu'' aired on
MAA TV
Star Maa (formerly Maa TV) is an Indian Telugu language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India. The channel telecasts Telugu language programmes such as serials, reali ...
. The game show was launched in an event at
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
. Nagarjuna and his wife
Amala were present at the event, as were
Allu Aravind
Allu Aravind (born 10 January 1949) is an Indian film producer and distributor in Telugu cinema under his banner Geetha Arts. He co-owns the Indian Super League club ''Kerala Blasters FC''.
A part of the Allu–Konidela family, Aravind is t ...
, MAA TV Chairman
Nimmagadda Prasad
Nimmagadda Prasad (born 11 October 1961) is an Indian industrialist from Andhra Pradesh, India. He is known for his ventures in the Pharmaceutical and Television industries, and is involved in philanthropic activities through Nimmagadda Fou ...
, CMD of BIG Synergy
Siddhartha Basu
Siddhartha Basu is an Indian television producer-director and quiz show host, widely regarded as the "Father of Indian television quizzing".
He is best known for hosting shows such as '' Quiz Time'', '' Mastermind India'' and ''University Cha ...
and his wife Anitha. To introduce and educate the viewers about the show, Nagarjuna was seated on the hot seat and Amala took the role of host and asked questions about their personal life which were answered by Nagarjuna. Nagarjuna, Allu Aravind, Nimmagadda Prasad, and Siddhartha Basu spoke to the media about the game show.
The Call for Entry (CFE) was announced on 24 April 2014. The makers asked registrants to answer the five questions asked by replying with an SMS. The registration lines were closed on May 1, 2014, and the selection process was supervised by
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewat ...
. The channel's call for participants received more than a million entries, of which 1500 were shortlisted through the randomized process. From among them, 100 contestants were selected through auditions in
Vijayawada
Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises N ...
,
Tirupati
Tirupati () is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirupati district. The city is home to the important Hindu shrine of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple and other historic temples and is re ...
, and Hyderabad. The show was announced to go on air on 9 June 2014 at 9:00 PM and by 6 June 2014 Nagarjuna completed shooting of 6 episodes. Nine participants from different socioeconomic backgrounds played the game in each episode. Every contestant's back-end story was recorded and addressed in the show. The prize money ranged from 1,000/- to 1 crore/- ,and the rules were the same as the Hindi version. Those who answered all 15 questions correctly would win 1 crore. The show initially ran from 9:00 PM to 10:30 PM from Mondays to Thursdays, but it was later changed from Sunday to Thursday because of the show's success.
The shoot of 40 episodes of the first season ended on 18 July 2014 and the last episode of the first season was aired on 7 August 2014. In addition to contestants, celebrities such as
Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan (pronounced ; born 1 January 1979) is an Indian actress. Known for pioneering a change in the portrayal of women in Hindi cinema with her roles in female-led films, she is the recipient of several awards, including a National Fi ...
Shriya Saran
Shriya Saran Bhatnagar (; born 11 September 1982) is an Indian actress who works predominantly in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi-language films. Although Saran aspired to become a well-known dancer, she became an actress with her film debut in 2001 ...
,
Allari Naresh,
Naga Chaitanya
Akkineni Naga Chaitanya (born 23 November 1986) is an Indian actor who primarily works in Telugu cinema. He made his acting debut with '' Josh'' (2009) and his breakthrough came with Gautham Vasudev Menon-directed ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' (2010). ...
,
Vishal,
Jhansi
Jhansi (; Hindi: झांसी, Urdu: ) is a historic city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It lies in the region of Bundelkhand on the banks of the Pahuj River, in the extreme south of Uttar Pradesh. Jhansi is the administrative head ...
,
Suma Kanakala,
Charmme,
Lakshmi Manchu
Manchu Lakshmi Prasanna (born 8 October 1977) is an Indian actress, producer, and television presenter who works in Telugu cinema and worked in American television. The daughter of actor Mohan Babu, Manchu holds a bachelor's degree in Theatre fr ...
,
Kajal Aggarwal and
Chiranjeevi
Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, film producer and former politician, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. Chiranjeevi starred in over 150 feature films in Telugu, as well as some fil ...
made guest appearances on the show.
Season 3 started on 26 November 2015, with a special theme of Jodi (couple). As the first step towards the launch of MEK Season 3, the CFE for the registration process commenced on 9 October and would continue for 10 days. As part of the CFE process, one question was broadcast every day at 7:00 PM on Maa TV. Those who were interested could respond before 6.30 PM the next day.
Season 4 was launched on 13 February 2017, hosted by
Chiranjeevi
Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, film producer and former politician, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. Chiranjeevi starred in over 150 feature films in Telugu, as well as some fil ...
.
Revival (2020–Present)
In late 2020, the show makers planned the brand new season of the series on
Gemini TV, broadcasting the show for the first time with
N. T. Rama Rao Jr.
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr. (born 20 May 1983), also known as Jr. N.T.R. or Tarak, is an Indian actor who primarily works in Telugu cinema. One of the highest paid Telugu film actors, Rama Rao Jr. has won several accolades, including two Fil ...
as a host. The title and logo of the show also changed during this time. In March 2021, it was reported that the filming would begin with a live audience. However, it was indefinitely postponed due to the second wave of the
COVID-19 pandemic in India
The COVID-19 pandemic in India is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). As of , according to Indian government figures, India has the second-highest n ...
. Popular television director Arun Sheshkumar was roped in to direct the first few episodes of this season. Filming started on 10 July 2021, with Rama Rao joining the production. The first schedule of the shoot lasted for ten days. A celebrity guest episode featuring
Ram Charan
Konidela Ram Charan Teja (born 27 March 1985) is an Indian actor, producer, and entrepreneur who works predominantly in Telugu films. One of the highest-paid Telugu film actors, he is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards and two Nandi Awa ...
was also shot during the schedule.
Format
The standard ''
Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and l ...
'' format is used, with the Fastest Finger contest before the main game.
Game rules
The money won after each question is roughly doubled from the previous amount won, exponentially increasing the amount won after each correct answer until the contestant reaches the final question, when they win the maximum prize (₹1 crore/-).
Lifelines
A contestant can use a lifeline when he/she is undecided about which answer is correct. A lifeline can only be used once.
* Audience Poll: If the contestant uses this lifeline, it will result in the host repeating the question to the audience. The studio audience gets 10 seconds to answer the question. Audience members use touch pads to designate what they believe the correct answer to be. After the audience has chosen their choices, the results are displayed to the contestant in percentages in bar-graph format and also shown on the monitors screens of the host and contestant, as well as the TV viewers.
* Phone a Friend: If the contestant uses this lifeline, the contestant is allowed to call one of the three pre-arranged friends, who all have to provide their phone numbers in advance. The host usually starts off by talking to the contestant's friend and introduces him/her to the viewers. After the introduction, the host hands the phone call over to the contestant who then immediately has 30 seconds to ask and hope for a reply from their friend. In season 5, the lifeline was renamed to "Video Call a Friend." Instead of three pre-arranged friends, instead, there are five.
* Fifty-Fifty (50/50): If the contestant uses this lifeline, the host will ask the computer to randomly remove and eliminate two of the "wrong" answers. This will leave one right answer and one wrong answer, resulting in a situation of eliminating 50% of the choices as well as having a 50% chance of getting the answer right if the contestant is in a situation of making a guess.
*Double Dip: This lifeline allows the contestant to make two guesses at a question. Getting both answers incorrect results in the contestant's winnings dropping back down to the last milestone achieved. This lifeline differs from others in that once the player has chosen to use this lifeline, he/she must answer the question, and cannot walk away or use any further lifelines on that question.
*Code Red: The lifeline, which gives the opportunity for the contestant's family members to warn the contestant if they feel the answer is wrong. Removed in season four.
Records
In the first 3 seasons, no one won the ₹1 crore/- prize in the show. However, in Season 3, two pairs of contestants, Husband-Wife duo Amarnath - Rohita from Vizag, and Mother-Son duo Uma - Aditya, also from Vizag, each won ₹50 lakhs/- and both attempted the ₹1 crore/- question accurately after quitting.
However, in the 1st season of the revived version of the show, Raja Ravindra, a Sub Inspector from Hyderabad, became the first contestant out of all 5 seasons to win the ₹1 crore/- prize.
Reception
As per the TAM data, MEK has recorded 17.61 TVR in CS Female AB 25-44 Years category, 14.58 TVR in CS Female ABC 25+ years category, 10.20 TVR in CS Male ABC 15+ Years category, 12.31 TVR in CS ABC 15-44 Years category and 10.15 TVR in CS 4+ Years category, which is a record of sort for a game show in Telugu.
One of the episodes in mid-June 2014 garnered a rating of 9.7 TVR and averaged 6.7 TVR that week becoming the fourth most-watched Telugu GEC at that time. The following month it garnered its peak rating of 10.8 TVR, consistently maintaining its position in top Telugu GEC since four weeks.
References
External links
*
*
{{Gemini TV Shows, state=expanded
Indian game shows
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Star Maa original programming
Gemini TV original programming
2014 Indian television series debuts
Telugu-language television shows