Entertainment - Roadies Raghu speaks

I was in Delhi last Saturday, and watched the Mumbai audition episode of Roadies: Hell Down Under with my parents. Before it started, I told them that they could not ask me any questions. In terms of language and violence, this episode was particularly explicit. But of course nobody can stop them from asking questions.

“Why did you throw the nice boy out (Sufi)?” “Why are you pushing the little kid around (Ashish)?” “Why are you pulling his leg? He has such a sweet smile (Sunny)”.

All these questions were answered in the episode itself. Sufi provoked us. Ashish went against the cardinal rule of Roadies: do not prepare and assume a different personality. Be yourself. I had to present him with a situation he wasn’t prepared for, to see how he reacted.

Sunny had an impressive form. We wanted to see how interesting he could be in a situation going against him. But my favourite part was the sneak-peek of the journey at the end. What has been shown is just the tippy-tippy-top of the iceberg.

Roadies this year is Bigger and Badder by far. The whole format has changed, while preserving the basic DNA of the show. We’re aware that the contestants have come with a game-plan. But little do they realise that we have by now become experts at changing the game.

I’m really excited about Akshay Kumar! Rannvijay and I are big fans. The poor Roadies had to pay the price though.. he bajaao’d them.

Let me tell you something you’re not likely to figure out by yourself. Roadies Hell Down Under is inspired by Batman: The Dark Knight! Rannvijay, Rajiv and I are Batman freaks. We saw the premiere together and decided to interpret it in our way.

Some situations from the film, whether resolved or not, find resonance in this series. The Roadies are faced with the same moral dilemmas faced by Batman and the people of Gotham city. My presence is a tribute to the Joker, the “Agent of Chaos”.

The big difference is, I don’t like smiling. (I’m sure I inspire the question “why so serious?”) Watch the show and tell me if you make the connection. Till next time..