Amitabh Bachchan hosts a television game show, “Kaun Banega Crorepati”, an Indian version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”.
The show starts with very simple questions from day-to-day life, mythology, general awareness etc, but I’m surprised to see that most of the people fumble even on those questions and start taking lifelines. They can’t go beyond nine or ten questions.
The reason is not far off to seek. People now watches just headlines or sensational news items on TV or inshorts on mobile phones, but they don’t have time or interest to read daily newspapers. Editorials are now read by seniors or serious aspirants for civil services.
Young aspirants for jobs do read newspapers, NCERT books etc for general awareness to compete, but there are some competitive examinations for professional services, where general awareness section is conspicuous by its absence.
A complete newspaper contains all sorts of information, views and reviews. I don’t know how a person can remain oblivious of what is happening around him or her. It’s okay, if one decides to read not in the morning, as the negative news may ruin the day.
But today the problem is the thunderstorm of information and details that the cerebrum has to deal with every moment. The endless inflow may lead to traffic jam or roadblock. It’s a real challenge to maintain a balance, but we have to keep ourselves updated.
–Kaushal Kishore
Kaushal Kishore 
Newspaper Editorial and NCERTs are an important base for a civil aspirant. I love reading editorial and wonder how they cover a big topic in a few words. The last line of an editorial has a direct link with whatever happening in the country and our life.
Have a wonderful day KK. Enjoy.👍
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Wonderful, Lokesh. Are you preparing for any exam?
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Actually, I don’t want to talk about this topic here. Yes, I’m preparing. I am serious about it.
I am thinking of changing my blog schedule to weekly posts.
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Ok, all the best 👍
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I very much agree with you, KK, I couldn’t imagine not reading at least one newspaper a day.
I read even some of the sports pages, as it is important to have a connection with the whole population. It is good to learn “speed” reading as it helps to cut on the time needed to read everything.
I watch Who wants to be Millionaire and had the satisfaction of once knowing the answer to a 125,000 question because I wrote about geological periods in my blog.
Thank you.
Joanna
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That’s really nice, Joanna. Have you participated in any such show? I had a fancy of such shows during my school and college days. I loved to participate. I tried for KBC as well, but couldn’t get any chance. I came to know that a research team selects only those who have unique backgrounds. Thank you, Joanna.
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The same in my case, I was always putting my hand up to answer questions during concerts organised monthly by the Philharmonic Orchestra for our schools. Another day, I came across a book with an inscription dedicated to me for giving the right answers. Also, I was allowed to choose for the final encore my favourite vocal piece. Happy Days!
I never wanted to enter or rather was to busy to apply to take part in the big show.
Joanna
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Wow! Great, Joanna. Orchestra! You are a multifarious personality. An achiever of course. Thanks a lot for sharing such a wonderful information.
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You are so right with this post! The subject of media coverage whether it is in newspapers (many of them) or on TV I find that the “thunderstorm” you mention just gets bigger and louder every day! Unfortunately, the content of much of the media is going the wrong way; celebrity and sensationalism! I think this will drive all media content into the realm of tittle-tattle! I tend to imagine things in a very visual way: the newspapers used to be ‘broadsheet’ where we physically had to turn pages, then we had television ‘news headlines’ then mobile phones and everything is getting smaller, guiding our brains to a non-thinking way of life! Sorry! I must stop before I get carried away! 🙏
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Very well said, Ashley. Newspapers cannot be simply replaced with any media. You know why people are attracted to audiovisual media like TV, because it is considered less strenuous for the brain, but in the process, we miss the actual content. Thanks, Ashley, for sharing your beautiful thoughts ☺️
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The show content not useful for cavils preparation… better to prepare subject wise sequence … if follow that program confidence will be lost and mind disturbs
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I have simply referred the show to highlight the level of ignorance. I’m not recommending to watch it. There is, of course, no substitute to hard work for civil or other exams. Thank you, Siva, for reading and commenting.
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Sad but true commentary you’ve offered. I’ve also found that along with only reading headlines, they have lost the ability for critical, deep thinking…
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Yes, that’s precisely the reason for their superficial knowledge. Thank you for taking time to read and share your reflections.
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I always wanted to try a show like that.
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So, what happened? Still trying? Thanks for reading the post.
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So I was a game show junkie at one point. I took the tests for Jeopardy and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire in USA, although I did not pass them. Learning and preparing for these shows is a skill in itself, from knowing how to learn and recall information about history and context and how to find clues within the question.
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Preparing for the show is just one part. In India, the channel director selects only those from the final lot for reaching the hot seat, who have some unique background with the help of an expert team. Thank you for reading and sharing your own experiences.
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It’s similar in US in that if you pass the test, you are put in a pool of potential participants, but there’s no guarantee that you will make it on the show. For Jeopardy, as part of the audition, after you pass the written test, they do a mock game to learn about your background and see if you have an engaging personally for TV.
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Thank you for sharing such a wonderful piece of information 😊
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True! Where did you take that picture?
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Thank you, Rupali. It’s from the ND’s film city at Karjat.
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A great post without any doubt.
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