Hosting 'Big Money' is mentally draining: Madhavan

Jun 18, 2010 IANS

Mumbai, June 18 (IANS) Multilingual actor R. Madhavan has hosted game shows before, but he finds hosting "Big Money" exhausting because he has to interact with the whole family on the sets.

"Not very often you have shows where the host has to interact with the whole family. It is quite difficult to deal with four different personalities on one show. It is mentally draining because you are constantly on your feet," Madhavan told IANS in an interview.

"You have to keep the show interesting, you have to keep it under control, you have to keep that in mind that people are not bored and most importantly you have to keep following the format of the show. So mentally it is quite exhausting."

"Big Money" will go on air July 10 and it offers a prize money of Rs.10 million and is played with four family members. The show will have questions related to everything shown on TV.

Madhavan had earlier been associated with game shows like "Tol Mol Ke Bol" and "Deal Ya No Deal".

Asked whether it is different from his previous shows, the actor said: "It's never the same, it's a vastly different world altogether. When first time I did a show, there were no screens, no wires, you just started the show. With the second one, there were wires going into my ears and all that and now with there is the whole tablet form, which is unnerving but exciting."

So what does he enjoy most - acting or hosting.

"I can't choose from one. As an actor, you always play a character in the film and then you have the pleasure to see how people react to your film. But when you are hosting a show like this, you can't act. You have to be yourself completely, otherwise you won't be able to reach out to people at all," said the 40-year-old.

"I've been in the industry for many years and usually meet people from the industry, there is no contact with the common people. For me, it is an opportunity to reach out to my audience and connect with them."

Also throwing light on the reason why many actors, big or small, are making their presence felt on the small screen, Madhavan said: "TV is a non risky affair for film actors. It doesn't have a great impact on our film career. If it works, it is good. If it doesn't work, that doesn't harm the actor in any way."

Apart from his TV stint, the actor, who is riding high on the success of "3 Idiots", has completed "Tanu Weds Manu" that also stars Kangana Ranaut. He will start a Tamil film in a few months.