If you are programmed to get up from your chair and switch on the TV at precisely 9 pm every night to watch Bigg Boss even though you’re screaming, protesting, and swearing that this is the last time you'll watch it, you are in good company.
Though certain sections have claimed that Bigg Boss is the devil and the centuries old Tamil culture will come crashing down on our heads if Namitha wears an off-shoulder top for two consecutive episodes, Tamil Nadu seems to have embraced the reality TV show with all its heart.
There are people crying about Bharani's elimination and calling themselves Oviyans (after the starlet who spouts phrases like "Neenga shut up pannunga"), as we speak. Here are some of the types of Bigg Boss viewers in Tamil Nadu today:
The "intellectuals"
They claim they watch Bigg Boss only because it's so bad that it's so good. Or they profess, like Kamal Haasan, that they're watching it because it's a "social experiment". They start telling you all about The Truman Show and how this is so "interesting".
They might also throw in a few lines about Michel Foucault and surveillance. But, really, they are only watching because they like the feeling of being in control, chucking Ganja Karuppu out of the house, while saving Oviya, the misunderstood, much maligned member.
The offended
These are folks who are on the watch for sexist, casteist and other slurs that the contestants throw at each other. While, of course, such behaviour is terrible, that's why nearly anyone watches this show – to see terrible behaviour.
If everyone was sitting around the house and saying, "Would you please pass me the salt?" and exclaiming "Bless you!" every time someone sneezed, who on earth would watch it?
As it is, Bigg Boss in Tamil Nadu is severely restricted, considering we have "family" audiences and children in India don't go to bed at 7.30pm like their counterparts in other countries.
Everyone's wide awake at 9pm to see Gayathri Raghuram getting insecure or Snehan shooting his sleazy glances at Juliana. We're still in the "see but don't touch" zone, so something's gotta give.
The skeptics
These are people who believe everything on TV is scripted. All the talk shows, all the dance shows, all the singing shows - every single one of them. It doesn't matter if a man confesses that he killed someone or the host had a wardrobe malfunction. It is scripted.
They have a conspiracy theory about everything but will watch all the shows nevertheless just so they can comment on every social media discussion about it with a single line, "It is scripted show."
They believe they know everything about Bigg Boss, including whether Juliana was set up by Rahul Gandhi to stop the BJP from spreading its wings in the state.
The believers
This is a group of people who love Bigg Boss unabashedly. They don't even disguise it by issuing a disclaimer that, actually, it's because of Kamal Haasan that they love it. No, they love Bigg Boss because they love Bigg Boss.
They cast their votes as a matter of right. They do it with the same pride and sense of importance as casting their vote in the state or central elections. They make and share memes about their favourite contestants. Their Facebook profile picture is a Bigg Boss contestant's photo.
They cry when a contestant gets hurt or is eliminated. They hate the skeptics who think the tears aren't real.
Ganesh Venkatraman fangirls
Yes, they exist. And they're just there to see Ganesh Venkatraman's muscles. They'll stop watching when he gets eliminated.
So, which category are you?