Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; January 21, 2014)

Sohail Khan’s association with the TV show Comedy Circus is an old one. Not only did he host the show’s previous season, but he also had his brother Arbaaz Khan fill in for him as the judge in the current season.
However, it looks like the Khan brothers’ equation with the producers of the show is all set to change; it is being rumoured now that Shekhar Suman will be replacing Arbaaz in the show. A source says that this change has been brought about by Sohail’s decision to make an appearance with his latest film Jai Ho’s starcast on the rival show, Comedy Nights With Kapil.

Says the source, “With Salman Khan’s Jai Ho up for release, the producers were keen to have the film’s starcast make an appearance on their show. Instead, Sohail opted to turn up on a rival show and this didn’t go down well with the producers of Comedy Circus.” As a result, adds the source, the producers are now opting to not renew Arbaaz’s contract with the show. “Shekhar Suman is most likely to be the judge for the upcoming season,” says the source.

While the production house and Sohail Khan remained unavailable for comment, the channel spokesperson denied the news. Arbaaz too denied the buzz. “It is true that my contract with the show is now nearing its end – I have already done two and a half seasons spanning over 65 episodes. I now need to focus on my film and that’s why I am no longer a part of the next season,” he said. Nikul Desai, director of Comedy Circus, confirmed Arbaaz’s version of events.