When the history book on quizzing on television in India is written, Siddhartha Basu will be remembered as the man who popularised the famous catchphrase “I’ve started, so I’ll finish” as he volleyed questions to contestants on various shows for nearly 40 years. Basu first captured the imagination of a nation in 1985 with his disarming smile, perfect diction and charming mop of hair, when he hosted Doordarshan’s Quiz Time, the inter-collegiate quiz show on Sundays at 9pm. Four decades later Basu is nowhere near finishing what he started — playing quizmaster. He is back with Sony Liv’s Quizzer Of The Year (QOTY), co-designed with Anita Kaul Basu and the team at Tree of Knowledge Digital, for students from Standard IX to XII.
Speaking over phone, Basu says, “QOTY is a daily digital offering which is on the Sony Liv app through the year. Within that, there is an open quiz and a schools’ contest. There will be episodes on city championships and the national finals. The aim is to offer an interactive daily engagement, at a time of choice and on a device of choice to students and everybody else.”
