R Madhavan to host Game Changers, a business reality show made in Dubai

Actor R Madhavan is stepping back into the host's chair. He will front Game Changers, a new business reality show from Optimystix Entertainment India Limited, which announced the project on Monday. The show is being made in Dubai for the Middle East market.

The idea is simple. Startup founders from across the world will present their businesses to a panel of international investors, with members from Dubai, London, Russia and the United States. Filming is set to begin shortly, but no release date has been announced yet.

Optimystix founder and chairman Vipul D Shah said the company sees Game Changers as much more than one show. He called it a format the company owns, built to travel to other markets, draw big brand partners and earn money in several ways over time. Co-founder and chief executive Rajesh Bahl said it would go further than a regular pitch show, putting the focus on the ambition, grit and strategy of the people behind each business.

Dubai will be the base for the first edition, and the makers plan to take the format to other regions later. Madhavan is expected to talk with the founders and guide viewers through their journeys as they pitch to the investors.

Hosting is familiar ground for the actor. He reportedly hosted the Hindi game show Tol Mol Ke Bol in 1997, the Indian version of Deal or No Deal on Sony Entertainment Television in 2005, and Big Money on Imagine TV in 2010. On the film side, he was reportedly last seen in the Tamil biographical drama G.D.N., based on the life of G.D. Naidu. Reports say he is likely to appear next in director R Balki's untitled Tamil film with Vidya Balan.

Optimystix has reportedly made more than 160 television shows over the past twenty years, including Comedy Circus, Crime Patrol and Laughter Chefs, along with films such as OMG 2 and The Diplomat. Game Changers marks the company's move into creating and owning its own original formats.