Three episodes of ‘The Traitors’, hosted by Teja Sajja, were released this week on Amazon Prime. For the next month, three new episodes will be streamed every week. Here is a review of the first week’s episodes.
First and foremost, Teja Sajja’s performance as a host is a success. Until now, shows of this nature have typically been hosted by senior stars with Nani being the only relatively younger face among them. Since senior hosts naturally command a certain level of authority, it is interesting to see how Teja would handle the role. Initial impression is that he did a great job; his styling, diction, and body language all worked well.
While it is still early, he has the potential to join the ranks of successful hosts in the Telugu industry. It would have been even better if Teja hadn’t limited himself to just explaining the game rules perhaps by also addressing the behavioral issues among the contestants, similar to how it’s done on Bigg Boss. Maybe that’s something we’ll see in the episodes to come.
As for the show itself, the scale and grandeur are truly impressive. The palace setting and the cinematography are incredibly lavish—something perhaps never seen before in Telugu television. The casting includes several notable faces; however, eliminating well-known personalities like Chinmayi, Vidyullekha Raman, and Nikhil in the very first week feels like a misstep. It remains to be seen if they might be brought back in some form later on.
That is also an indication that game is organic and do not go out of the way to save popular faces.
Regarding the gameplay, there are three main components: “Midnight Murders”, the “Ring of Doubt,” and various tasks assigned to the contestants throughout. The tasks were moderately engaging. The “Midnight Murders” segment didn’t quite land as effectively, while the “Ring of Doubt”—though predictable in terms of who would be eliminated, still managed to keep the audience engaged.
Gaurav’s elimination was quite obvious, and while Vidyullekha Raman’s elimination was also predictable, the drama surrounding it played out well. Vidyullekha Raman is the star participant of the first round. Discussions regarding the elimination between contestants could get even spicier. Perhaps interest will grow further once the contestants’ true character traits are revealed. For now, it’s a good start for the show.