Shweta's intelligence comes through on her show: Amitabh

He also reveals that whenever a family discussion reaches a dead end, they all turn to Shweta for her viewpoint.

"We call up Shweta and put her on the conference line. We always keep going back to her for her wise opinion," Amitabh told IANS in an interview.

The actor adds that Shweta had always been shy of films and wasn't even interested in accompanying him to movie shoots and events.

Excerpts of an interview:

Q. Shweta's foray into television is so unexpected.

A. Well, you know NDTV Profit called her and offered her the chance to host this show. So it wasn't something she planned or even initiated. Now that she's taken it on we gave her all our blessings and little suggestions. We even did a dummy show in my office. I watched her first episode and she was very good.

Q. I think Shweta is the most photogenic Bachchan.

A. You're right. And she's also the most intelligent and balanced Bachchan. She's very objective in assessment of situations. Whenever we reach a dead end during a family discussion, we call up Shweta and put her on the conference line. We always keep going back to her for her wise opinion.

Her intelligence comes through on her show. Shweta is a voracious reader.
All that she speaks on the show has been written by her.

Q. Why did Shweta never come into movies?

A. The choice was entirely hers. In fact she was never interested in even accompanying me to shootings and film events. On the other hand, Abhishek would always accompany me wherever I went. I think Shweta was a little shy and scared of events. Some of that shyness comes through on her show. But she's also very perceptive.

I loved the way she questioned Aman and Ayaan (Ali) Khan in the first episode. I think she's finally found her vocation. She is presenting herself well on the show. She's able to speak her mind brilliantly. And that too on a show which isn't frivolous in nature.

Q. I am amazed that she writes the script herself for the show.

A. Well, she does. Anchoring is generally divided into mind and face. Someone writes and another person comes on camera. It's rare to have someone bring both the qualities in her personality.

Q. Did you have a script when you did Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC)?

A. Yes. But a lot of improvisation came into the interactions with the participants and in the construction of several portions of the game show that wasn't there in the original. KBC was a game show and one had to follow the format. However all the interjections and homilies were mine.

Subhash K. Jha, Indo-Asian News Service