SRK's wit adds sparkle to first episode of 'Kya Aap...'

New Delhi, April 25 (IANS) Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's wit, exuberance and charisma carried through the first episode of Star Plus' much-awaited reality game show "Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tsez Hain" Friday that saw a PhD scholar being bested by school children in answering teasers.

The show, a Synergy Adlabs production and formatted on US game show "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader", featured adult contestants facing questions picked directly from the textbooks of school kids.

Casually attired in a light blue shirt teamed with a black waistcoat and jeans, Shah Rukh played the school teacher to perfection on the first day of his 'tele-school'. As he entered the blue-coloured sets, the audience gave him an enthusiastic reception.

On the show, Shah Rukh said he had "always wanted to be a teacher. In fact, I did become one in 'Mohabbatein', but today, my wish has actually come true".

Five enthusiastic kids participated in the "school" along with 39-year-old Vedula Ramalaxmi, an M.A gold medallist and a PhD in Hindi, the first contestant on the show.

Ramalaxmi, an Orissa-based lecturer, was left baffled at the very first question - "The are nine edges in a prism - true or false" followed by a series of mind-boggling questions that she admitted having "studied almost 30 years ago".

In order to win the mega Rs.50 million prize money, contestants are required to answer a series of 11 primary-level questions. They can avail of three life saving options - "taak-jhaank" (cheating), "copy" and "bachao" (save me).

According to the headmaster (Shah Rukh)'s rules, a person wishing to leave the game midway has to call himself/herself as "bhagoda" (coward), and if the person loses, he/she should look straight into the camera and say "Main paanchvi paas se tez nahin hoon" (I am not smarter than a fifth grader).

Ramalaxmi leaves the game after winning Rs.200,000, but only after Shah Rukh has made her squirm with embarrassment.

The second contestant, 29-year-old Pramod Tripathi managed to answer only one question before the "school bell" rang, signalling the end of the show.

Shah Rukh ended the episode by narrating a "Khan Ki Kahaani" (Khan's story), a value addition to his stint as headmaster on the show after gathering the young classmates - Sreeparna, Dheirya, Shriya, Milanjeet and Anubhav, who aide the contestants on the show.

The three 10-minute-long "tiffin breaks" or ad breaks were too tedious for people watching the show.

The show will be aired every Friday to Saturday at 8 p.m. on Star Plus.

• Television