Tanvi Trivedi (BOMBAY TIMES; December 9, 2018)

Singer Jasleen Matharu has just been evicted from Bigg Boss. She entered the reality show with bhajan maestro Anup Jalota, giving everyone the impression that they were a couple. But now, she has denied all of it. In an interview with BT, she reveals why she faked a relationship with Anup in the house. Excerpts...

How was your experience in the Bigg Boss house?
It was a great journey, but it wasn’t easy being in the house. Some of the inmates were aggressive and so, there were many tough situations to handle.

Are you in a relationship with Anup Jalota? He denied it, soon after he was evicted from the house...
I will tell you what actually happened. My father has known Anup ji even before I was born. I started learning music from him as a child and we share a beautiful guru-shishya relationship. When the Bigg Boss offer came to me, I convinced him to do the show together as a guru-shishya jodi. Just before entering the house, when I was on stage, I thought of playing a prank and announced that we were in a relationship. He did not react to it. I thought he would react, but since he didn’t, we entered the house as a couple and played along.

You thought of playing a prank on national television before taking him into confidence?
Yes, I never thought it would become so serious and people would react in such a manner. I did not bother to clarify because after we entered the house, we needed to discuss many things. But nothing was pre planned. Even the channel did not know that I had planned to play such a prank on Anup ji. But woh prank mujhe bhari pad gaya.

So all those romantic moments in the house were not real?
We were just playing along.

In the house, it was also mentioned that you were in a relationship with playback singer Sukhwinder Singh. Is this true?
Sukhwinder is a family friend and Anup ji has misunderstood our equation if he said that we were in a relationship then or now. Sukhwinder has been a friend for the last six years and we will continue to be friends. These are all baseless rumours. In fact, the other day I heard that Honey Singh and I were having an affair, which is again totally false.

Rohit Suchanti and you had issues in the house ...
God bless Rohit. And even Deepak (Thakur). They were extremely rude and crossed their limits when they spoke to me. I feel Sreesanth is a good player and he should win the show.

Did you know that your father was upset with all that was happening inside the house?
Obviously, he would be. He was not aware that Anup ji and I would be entering the house like a couple. I am really scared of his reaction now that I am out of the house.

Are you planning to get married anytime soon? Would you marry a man twice your age?
I don’t want to get married now. I will never marry a man twice my age, he has to be a few years older than me.