Mumbai, India: The third season of the adventure-based reality show The Amazing Race Asia 3 is set to kick off on AXN on 11 September. The show will air every Thursday at 10 pm.
As has been the case in the past, 10 teams linked by a relationship, will travel to various locations across Asia and the winner gets $100,000.
AXN, Animax India senior VP, business head Rohit Bhandari notes that this time there are two Indian teams – a father son duo and an ex air-hostess and her cousin. “What makes this edition exciting is that the tasks are more difficult. We are pushing the event as being ‘The Toughest Race Ever’.
The fatigue level was so high that even one of the production crewmembers was hospitalised. There are shorter rest periods while a faster pace between challenges thrown to teams at a more intense speed.
Bhandari says that the USP of this show is that it takes viewers across different locations. “Other reality shows tend to be studio based and are song and dance talent shows. To do well on The Amazing Race Asia, one requires physical stamina and mental agility. So, to win this race is harder than most other reality competitions. It takes a lot more character. We also look for character among participants. From India we got around 550 entries, this time compared with around 460 for the previous edition. Across Asia we got around 5000 entries. The participants must have the ability to generate excitement for our viewers.”
The other contestants include two teams each from Thailand, Malaysia and India, and one team each from Singapore, Philippines and Hong Kong.
Malaysia and Singapore had won the first two seasons respectively.
Bhandari adds that the show will turn in a profit this year. The partners for the show, which include hotels, will help defray production costs to an extent. Maskargo, which is the air cargo division of Malaysia Airlines, is one of the partners as well as an advertiser. The other companies that have come in as sponsors are Nokia, Standard Chartered Bank, Caltex, Singha Beer, Sony Electronics and Sony HD World.
Bhandari says that products are integrated into the show. For instance, participants use a Nokia phone to navigate their way to the next location. Mascargo is used to transport equipment while Caltex is used in a Go Kart Challenge.
Bhandari rules out the possibility of doing an Amazing Race in India. That is because it would get repetitious after the second season, as one would have to keep visiting the same locations.
“We are, however, looking at possibly doing an adventure reality show sometime around the festive season. We are also to take a decision on whether we would air the show or just do it as an on ground activity to bring the AXN experience closer to fans. Things like the cost factor and how fast we can possibly air the show on television also come into the equation. Our aim going forward is to look at new concepts instead of merely going back to things that have been done before like Guinness World Records,” Bhandari quips.
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