Dream easy

Business reality show, The Pitch, is back. With ten finalists, the show (in its second season) will see corporate icons like Rahul Bajaj and Niranjan Hiranandani, among others, assigning challenging tasks. We caught up with the host, actor Rahul Bose, who shed some light on the show.What made you say yes to the show?Having run my own enterprise, albeit non-profit, The Foundation, for five years, I understand what goes behind converting one’s dreams into reality. This show is about giving people a chance. Also, it is a positive reality show. Finally, it’s a wonderful way to make money!How is this season different from the first?There are surprise twists and turns in the tasks set out for the contestants. Also, I see myself as being less of a host, more of a facilitator, an encourager to the contestants and their ideas.What has it been like so far?Shooting is fun, hectic, but the contestants are a warm, bright, thoughtful bunch. I respect them for their fearlessness, their willingness to better their ideas, their self-belief and their candour; really, India at its best. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has captured our collective imagination. Do we have an Indian Steve Jobs?I have just finished reading Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs, warts and all. While he was a design and a consumer-behaviour genius, I for one hope we don’t have a Steve Jobs in our midst.Is there one typically Indian characteristic that works in our favour in a global set-up (in the corporate jungle)?Our inventiveness—our ability to think on our feet, the essence of jugaad.The Pitch airs on UTV Bloomberg every Saturday at 8pm