RESERVOIR Hills resident, and Elvis Presley fan, Viren Ramprith, said he had one of the best experiences of his life, when he recently appeared as a contestant on his favourite game show, Deal or No Deal. From initially wanting to spend his winnings on tyres, Ramprith, who went on to win R20 000, settled on taking his family on a holiday.
The electrical engineer said he was a fan of the show for many years and in January, he applied on the Deal or No Deal website to be a contestant.
“I was always intrigued and fascinated with the show, which is screened during prime-time viewing. When I get home from work, I have dinner and watch the show. This year, I decided to enter as a contestant. I completed an application and was thereafter told I had to wait three weeks for confirmation if I was chosen.
“Three weeks had passed and I had not received feedback. I eventually got a call from the producer of the show, who told me I was chosen as a contestant. I was thrilled. The producer said they chose me because of my ‘Elvis Presley’ look. He said they wanted me to give the show a bit of the Elvis vibe,” he said.
“The producers flew me to Cape Town. The experience was exhilarating. We were given first-class treatment. There were hair and make-up artists. We took our own clothes, but there was also a dressing room with clothes for the contestants to choose from. A stylist decided on our clothes for each day of the show’s filming.
“I wore blue suede shoes and a suit and I did a short Elvis Presley dance move for the song Blue Suede Shoes as when I was chosen to play.
"Since I was asked to add my own unique twist to the show, the box numbers I chose were that of the numbers on the T-shirts of soccer players. We were also asked to provide quirky names for ourselves on the show.
"I chose Viren HS. HS was to honour my favourite soccer team, the Tottenham Hotspur. I enjoyed fun banter with the show’s host, Katlego Maboe, who is an Arsenal supporter,” he added.
Ramprith said at the start of the show, he said he would use his winnings to buy new tyres for his car.
But when he won R20 000, he decided he would take his family for a holiday.
"I encourage fans of the show to enter as contestants. The show is accessible to everyone and it is a great platform to be on national television. During my time in Cape Town, I missed my beautiful wife, Mashree, and my daughters Miashka, 17, Vimara, 14, and Riona, 8. I thank them for their support,” he added.