Summer breaks were once supposed to be a time when kids lolled around, played round the clock and made merry. But this summer, a different kind of game is being played out and that too on the small screen. Kid are vying to be television’s latest celebrities, as they match steps and dance to the latest numbers from Bollywood, or attempt to showcase their version of bharatnatyam or hip-hop.

The dance-based kids competitions airing on almost all the major Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) are believed to have the potential to rake in big money for the channels, as they enthrall advertisers and indulgent parents alike. No wonder, that the kids dance shows have been pitched on the prime-time slot. Within a month, several channels including Zee TV, Colors and Sony Entertainment have come up with kids dance-based reality shows such as Dance India Dance Li’l Masters, Chak Dhoom Dhoom Chhote Dancers Badi Jung and Boogie Woogie, respectively. According to data provided by television viewership rating agency TAM Media Research, Dance India Dance Li’l Masters on Zee TV had in its opening episode managed to beat not only its competitors, but also all the prime time programmes aired on various channels and notch the numero uno position. Currently, DID Li’l Masters lead with an average TVR of 4.2%, followed by Chak Dhoom Dhoom on Colors at 2.4% and Boogie Woogie, the pioneers of this format, on Sony has managed to clinch an avarage TVR of 0.97%.

For Zee TV, it was a no-brainer. After tasting success with its Dance India Dance reality shows in both season I and season II, DID Li’l Masters was a logical extension of the format. ?When we were taking auditions for Dance India Dance season II, there were kids who gave mind-blowing performances,? says Zee TV’s marketing head Akash Chawla. ?But because they did not fall under the right age bracket, we were unable to accommodate those kids. It was then that we thought of a show exclusively for kids.? As DID Li’l Masters was on air immediately after the grand finale of Dance India Dance, the channel did not have to spend much on promoting the kids dance-based programme as the format was afresh in the minds of the audience.

Unlike Zee TV, a kids-based reality show is a new concept for Colors and hence the channel is promoting the show with a 360-degree plan including television, print, radio and outdoor in over 50 cities. Colors programming head Ashvini Yardi said, ?Apart from the usual campaigns, we are also doing some special out of home innovations including the Chak Dhoom Dhoom-make your own dance album road show, where children across the country get a chance to do spontaneous dance performances that can be recorded and cut into videos for personal memory. There are flash mobs, tie-ups with resident welfare associations for community screenings in a bid to create a big buzz.?

Chak Dhoom Dhoom which airs every Friday and Saturday at 9 pm clashes with DID Lil’ Masters . In fact, both the shows are uncannily similar in terms of the audition process and their hour-long formats. Bullish on the model, Boogie Woogie too is back in action. According to Sony Entertainment Television marketing head Danish Khan, Boogie Woogie is a brand which has stood the test of time. ?The show encourages talent without being over critical, while there are winners, still the competition is friendly, not intense and killing like other dance reality shows and is an easy watch for the entire family,? he said.

The shows are a money-spinner for the channels. While none of the channels are willing to divulge the ad rates for their respective shows, media buyers say the ad rates of Boogie Woogie stand at an average of Rs 35,000 per 10 seconds, DID between Rs 90,000 and Rs 1 lakh and Chak Dhoom Dhoom is priced at Rs 1-1.5 lakh. But this too is not comparable as the weekend slots are more expensive than the weekday slots and Boogie Woogie is aired on a weekday. Industry experts are extremely enthusiastic about the kids reality shows. Thanks to the popularity of Dance India Dance’s adult format, industry experts are unanimous in their decision that DID Li’l Masters on Zee will be the favourite among the advertisers.

Nikhil Rangnekar, executive director of TME India, the media company of 1 Rediffusion group, said, ?I think there will be enough advertisers willing to advertise on the kids shows. Though Boogie Woogie existed since ages, it never garnered huge TRP ratings like DID and so advertisers will be betting on DID Li’l Masters to get maximum eye balls.?

Colors national sales head Simran Hoon claims that the advertisers have been waiting for a show like Chak Dhoom Dhoom on Colors as the channel has had reality shows which have been big winners. ?For Chak Dhoom Dhoom, we had signed Rin as our title sponsor and six associate sponsors including Dabur, Heinz Complan, Max New York Life Insurance, Union Bank, Facia and Bhawani Textiles,? she added.

?Brands that especially talk to kids and family audiences have been extremely keen and have come on board for the show. The ratings across the target groups are a testimony to brands on Chak Dhoom Dhoom and categories as varied as fast moving consumer goods, insurance, banking and lifestyle are on the show. In fact, some clients have been exclusive to Chak Dhoom Dhoom vis-?-vis competition and there are some who have actually come on competing shows as well as ours,? she said.

As of now, advertisers are for sure getting the eyeballs. But how long the kids are able to attract viewers with their amateur performances is something which needs to be closely watched.