Showing posts with label Paras Chhabra. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paras Chhabra. Show all posts
There was a time when I wanted to quit acting-Mahira Sharma
8:37 AM
Hasti Doshi (BOMBAY TIMES; March 4, 2023)
Mahira Sharma, who rose to fame after Bigg Boss 13 three years ago, has been away from the limelight for a while. Ask her about it and she says, “I haven’t consciously stayed away. It just happened that after I did BB in 2020, the pandemic struck. I have done music videos and have been busy shooting for my Punjabi film and a couple of web shows, too. I’m waiting for my projects to release. So, yes, now I am back in action.”
The actress is excited to make her debut in Punjabi cinema with LehmberGinni and she also wants to try her luck in South films. So has she quit television? “No, I’m not doing a TV show right now because I am busy with other projects. But in the future, I will be happy to take up a television show as well,” says the actress, who has been part of shows like Naagin and Kundali Bhagya.
On the personal front, Mahira is in a happy space with actor Paras Chhabra, who she met in Bigg Boss 13. The two have admitted to being close, but they prefer to call it a beautiful bond rather than a relationship. Ask her about it and she says, “We have never said that we are in a relationship. He is my best friend and I share everything with him about my life and work. I even discuss my scripts with Paras.”
She adds, “We have been able to sustain our friendship because we appreciate each other’s work. We support each other andhe always guides me well.”
Mahira started her journey in showbiz six years ago, but there was a time when she did not want to continue. She shares, “I started acting in 2016, my first TV show was Y. A. R. O Ka Tashan. I took a break in 2017 and around that time, I felt that I was not cut out for this industry. But that was a passing phase and in 2019 I returned with Naagin and from that moment, I have been working hard.”
Talking about why she felt she wasn’t meant for this profession at that time, she says, “I have been through my share of ups and downs. In 2017, I wanted to quit the industry because I was a teenager then and just wanted to have fun and not work so hard (laughs). My parents always supported me and encouraged me to take up challenges. At that time, within a year I realised that I was in the right profession and I love acting. Since then, I have been working towards achieving my dreams.”
Mika Singh and I know way too much about each other to date-Akanksha Puri
8:26 AM
Akash Wadhwa (BOMBAY TIMES; January 8, 2022)
Akanksha Puri, who rose to fame with her character Parvati in the show Vighnaharta Ganesha, recently entered Bigg Boss Season 15 for a few days. Speculations about her entry have been rife ever since the actress first appeared on the reality show in season 13, when she was dating actor Paras Chhabra. “I finally went inside the Bigg Boss though for just a few days,” shared an excited Akanksha.
Akanksha also made news recently of being in a relationship with singer Mika Singh. Clearing the air, however, she said, “Mika ke saath toh meri engagement aur shaadi bhi kara di hai logon ne (laughs). I know him for more than a decade now. Mika and I know way too much about each other to date. Kabhi kabhi kisi ko bahot zyada jaanna bhi achha nahi hota. Mika is not someone whom I will get married to though we can play cupid for each other. Also, I don’t think Mika will get married now. I am not stuck up that I will not date anyone, I will if I get a good person.”
Sidharth Shukla reunited Asim Riaz and me from up there-Paras Chhabra
8:10 AM
Asim Riaz and Paras Chhabra are back to being friends again
Akash Wadhwa (BOMBAY TIMES; September 13, 2021)
Sidharth Shukla’s sudden demise shook the entire nation. His co-contestants from Bigg Boss 13, Asim Riaz and Paras Chhabra, too, were in a state of shock with the loss. However, the duo, who were at loggerheads because of their fights inside the Bigg Boss house, have now patched up. The two recently buried their past animosity and are friends again.
Telling us more about it, Paras shared, “When I heard the news of Sidharth’s demise, I was already anxious and depressed since morning. In fact, I had posted a picture with my mother at 6 am that morning. By noon, I started getting calls about what had happened with Sidharth and I began having a lot of anxiety. What had happened was shocking. I immediately decided to go to Sidharth’s house, where I met Asim for the first time after coming out of the Bigg Boss house last year.”
Talking about this further, Paras added, “The moment Asim and I saw each other, we couldn’t control our emotions and hugged each other. Asim, in fact, said ki milna toh tha, but aise nahi milna tha humein. It is at that very moment that we decided that we shouldn’t be keeping any animosity against each other and should be back to being friends. We also vowed to be in touch and to meet each other often. We both realised that no issue is so big in life that it cannot be resolved. Both of us took the first step towards each other at Sidharth’s place. It was as if Sidharth reunited us from up there. We have learnt a big lesson from his loss and the lesson is that life is really short to keep grudges with one another and not talk to each other. Asim and I have spent a lot of time inside the Bigg Boss house together and both of us were close to Sidharth.”
Ex-Bigg Boss contestants Jasmin Bhasin, Paras Chhabra, Delnaaz Irani, Hiten Tejwani talk about mental health post exit
8:11 AM
Jasmin Bhasin, Paras, Delnaaz Irani and Hiten Tejwani. Pics/Instagram
They may be distressed and depleted in the house, but evicted Bigg Boss participants are still eager to return. mid-day analyses the mental toll of being promptly dropped from the show, and what transpires during the first few days following eviction
Sonia Lulla (MID-DAY; January 20, 2021)
“I’ll do anything to get back into the house,” evicted contestants of the reality TV show Bigg Boss parrot year-after-year, a mere few days after stepping out. It doesn’t matter that their time spent in the make-believe atmosphere was dominated by unpleasant experiences. Or that leaving the house to return to the comfort of their homes was precisely what they desired when they were in it. “I can’t put a finger on it, but, if someone gave me the opportunity to go back, even if it was for a day or two, I’d love to go. I’d do anything to hear Bigg Boss’ voice,” says Delnaaz Irani, when attempting to bridge the disconnected behaviour. On prodding the Season 6 contestant, who survived in the show for 94 days before she was “dropped like a hot potato” during a surprise midnight eviction, we get a decisive reaction. “You could attribute it to the glamour associated with the show. The aura of the house is such that you fall in love with it within the first five days,” says the actor, alluding to the undivided attention that one is afforded, owing to their participation.
Recently evicted contestant Jasmin Bhasin, on the other hand, attributes the desire to return, to a competitive spirit. “You think you are a contender until you are suddenly eliminated. Then, all that you want is to get back into the race, and get one more chance to fight,” admits the actor, adding that despite the distress she faced in the house, she too has been “craving to go back”.
Oscillating between extreme emotions
When trying to analyse how confounded a house-mate feels in the week following their eviction, Bhasin evidently becomes a case in point. Connecting with her a mere few days after her elimination on the 99th day, she admits she had to work towards tweaking her mental state to even hold a conversation. “I took two days to start behaving normally. In the house, one is always targeted. Any and every conversation is either a fight, or an attempt to provide a justification. That attitude of constantly being up in arms, begins to feel normal, because you are mentally and emotionally programmed to believe it. One becomes so defensive that having a normal conversation outside the house becomes difficult. You get agitated with people who are your own,” says Bhasin, who would often lose her temper on her parents when they’d express concern. “They were upset due to my elimination, and would begin analysing why it happened. I began to feel that they were questioning me, and would react by highlighting how I wasn’t at fault. They had to step back and tell me that they knew I wasn’t to be blamed, and that they were merely concerned. It took a while to comprehend that.”
Fear of facing the world
The tremendous reach of the Salman Khan-hosted show could never be questioned. However, the growth of social media has only made this fact more pronounced. On one hand, artistes are armed with fan-clubs to promote their cause. On the other, trolls are significantly adept at maligning. It is perhaps due to the tendency of making opinions easily available that Bhasin was “too scared to step out of my house”, following her exit. “I only began heading out with the help of my friends, after a few days. They would point out that I was behaving apprehensively, and assured me that outside the house, things were all right.”
Connecting with artistes across seasons, it is easy to notice that each one continues to be unsettled by perceptions. Years may have passed since their participation, but they are eager to justify their actions as participants, regardless of whether they are asked for it, or not. Among those who make this agitation evident is Paras Chhabra, for whom the period of isolation was significantly longer than expected. Chhabra was locked in the house till the Season 13 finale last year, and returned to the house the next day to work on Mujhse Shaadi Karoge. The hectic schedule implied he was locked in throughout the week, and spent his weekends participating in press interactions. “Then, we found ourselves in the Coronavirus pandemic. The show shut down as a result of it, I was locked up again. I didn’t get a chance to experience people’s love, or analyse if they liked me or not. I would ask participants [of Mujhse Shaadi Karoge] about my Bigg Boss stint. Around that time, I developed anxiety and went into depression. I couldn’t understand what was happening, because people were trolling me, and I had become the face of memes. My eating habits were hampered, and I gained 16 kilos. Then I began to fret about how I was looking,” says Chhabra, who had to be subsequently medicated for depression.
Like every other interviewee, Chhabra also refers to the “good amount of money” he was being offered, and laments that he didn’t get the opportunity to “enjoy it”. “I wanted to do everything I couldn’t do before, due to the lack of money. I wanted to have fun with my friends, and buy a home for my mother in Vrindavan. I was able to head there [and work on the deal], only recently.”
When it is time to go home, don’t go home
As soon as he was evicted from the house after 77 days, Hiten Tejwani found himself in the cold climes of Pondicherry. Having known that he was nominated in the week, wife Gauri Pradhan had booked an extra ticket for the actor for the family’s scheduled vacation. “I got out, we had the ticket, and we left,” says Tejwani, adding that he’d recommend every Bigg Boss participant to head for a vacation on leaving the show. “It definitely takes time to become yourself again,” says the actor, adding that jumping right back into work is another way to tide over the phase.
Mental health coach Kanchan Rai weighs in
The desire to head back in despite unpleasant experiences could be linked to the feeling of being less competent. Participants are eager to prove their calibre, and hence want to go back. As for the way they behave when they leave the house, one must understand that a lot of the tasks given to them in the show test their mental ability. Case in point being one given to them this year, where they were to share their deepest secrets. When you discuss matters like being sexually assaulted as a child on national TV, that will take a toll on you after your exit.
Bigg Boss 13 contestants share tips to deal with #CoronaLockdown
8:28 AM
Tanvi Trivedi and Neha Maheshwri (BOMBAY TIMES; April 4, 2020)
While the nation is going through a 21-day Coronavirus lockdown, we spoke to some Bigg Boss 13 contestants, who were locked up inside the house, cut off from the world outside, for months together. Here’s what they said about surviving this phase of isolation...
SIDHARTH SHUKLA
It is quite easy to lose one’s sanity in these times. Right now, people may be getting bored and feeling lazy, which is understandable. However, this is our chance to prove our love not just for our near and dear ones, but also for our country by staying at home. In the Bigg Boss house, the only thing that kept us going was that we were being entertained by each other. While in Bigg Boss, we had no contact with the world, in the lockdown situation, you are staying in your house with your loved ones. There won’t be fights... here it’s a very different scenario and can be fun. Also, you are not being screened all the time! I feel it is easy to stay sane at home and, this is our chance to be soldiers for mankind and not let the virus spread.
RASHAMI DESAI
Yes, we were locked inside the Bigg Boss house, but this situation is extremely serious. Fortunately, people have a lot of options to keep themselves occupied, unlike the reality show. We don’t get to spend time with ourselves when we are working, so use these days to pamper yourself. Catch up on your reading and practise yoga and meditation. Spend quality time with your family, which we miss out on in our busy lives. This phase is difficult, but we can sail through it by focusing on the positive aspects.
VISHAL ADITYA SINGH
In the Bigg Boss house, we couldn’t meet, see or talk to anyone, but that’s not the case in the real world. At some point, all of us have yearned for a time when we get to focus on ourselves. This is the time to do that. Also, you can pursue your hobbies and interests, which you couldn’t earlier, owing to lack of time. In my case, I am learning to play the guitar by attending online tutorials, reading poetry and watching documentaries. Look around, and there are a lot of things to keep yourself occupied with.
ARTI SINGH
At a time like this, counting your blessings really helps. What’s most important is to stay positive and keep reminding yourself that the lockdown period will end soon. Use this time to learn something new, or indulge in your hobbies. For example, I love cooking and I try a new recipe every day. The key is to keep yourself occupied and not let boredom set in.
SHEFALI JARIWALA
Like the Bigg Boss house, where I followed a routine, my husband Parag (Tyagi) and I are following a daily schedule rather than give in to boredom and laziness. Patience is the most important thing right now, the way it was in the Bigg Boss house, too. If we avoid going out, we will be able to fight this situation. My husband and I exercise, meditate, pursue our hobbies and keep away from unnecessary updates on social media.
PARAS CHHABRA
It feels like the Bigg Boss house was a training ground for the situation we are facing today. In the house, I loved to wake up to music and start dancing. It was a mini workout, which set the ball rolling for the day. Whenever you dance and exercise, you feel good. One tip I would like to give everyone is to occupy yourself with productive work. The lockdown has given us an opportunity to spend time with our family and meditate. People should use this opportunity to the fullest and stay indoors.
Sabko pata tha Mujhse Shaadi Karoge mein kisi ki shaadi nahi honi hai-Aanchal Khurana
8:33 AM
Neha Maheshwri (BOMBAY TIMES; March 26, 2020)
Ideally, she should have been revelling in her Mujhse Shaadi Karoge (MSK) win after Paras Chhabra chose her as his ‘connection’. However, Aanchal Khurana, who joined the reality show on March 9 as a wildcard entrant, was busy doing the rounds of hospitals. After being hospitalised for severe gastritis in Mumbai, the actress, who is currently in her hometown, Delhi, had to make rounds of several hospitals following an attack by stray dogs. In a chat with BT, she talks about her tryst with hospitals, her equation with Paras and her stint on MSK. Excerpts…While you should have been celebrating your win on MSK, we hear that you had been doing the rounds of hospitals. What went wrong?
I didn’t get the time to celebrate because I was doing the rounds of hospitals. I was hospitalised in Mumbai on the very night the shoot wrapped up (March 17) abruptly in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak. The next evening, I left for Delhi and on March 19, I went to a hospital for further medication. My pet dog was with me, when suddenly, three stray dogs attacked him. When I tried to save him, they attacked me as well. Thankfully, some people came to my rescue. I immediately went to get an anti-rabies shot, but because of the Coronavirus pandemic, it was not available in most hospitals. I had to run from pillar to post to get the shots, but I am better now.
Talking about Mujhse Shaadi Karoge, it was supposed to be a wedding reality show with Paras and Shehnaaz Gill (Bigg Boss 13 contestants) looking out for a prospective life partner. However, eventually, it turned into a poorer version of Bigg Boss. With Shehnaaz openly professing her love for Sidharth Shukla and Paras being linked with Mahira Sharma, the show didn’t seem real right from the word go...I feel that it was a wrong decision to come up with a show like this immediately after Bigg Boss, because we saw two strong connections — between Shehnaaz and Sidharth, and Mahira and Paras. The makers just picked one contestant each from the two pairs and made a show on them. I think that didn’t work, because the audience would have liked to see the four of them together and their chemistry. I know Paras ki life mein kya chal raha hai and Shehnaaz is totally into Sidharth. So, it was more of a joke for everyone. Sabko pata tha wahaan kisi ki shaadi nahi honi hai.
Did Paras tell you that he won’t get engaged or married on the show because he is already in love with Mahira?
I also assumed him to be in a relationship with Mahira, but he told me, ‘Mahira is a very good friend’. While he wasn’t too sure of getting married, he was open to an engagement on the show. ‘Kisi se achha connection bann jaata hai toh why not?’ These were his exact words. We needed more time to know each other better. You don’t get married on a lark. After going inside, I told Paras that if not him, I would want to meet someone else, date that person and eventually get married. I don’t want to get into anything frivolous. I went with a clear mind that if I get along with Paras, we will date for six months and get engaged. For me, it was all about making a genuine connection even if it didn’t materialise into anything bigger. I was real, more mature, practical and honest than others. I didn’t suck up to Paras to win the show. Even he acknowledged that I was the only girl who came with the purpose of settling down. The others just faked it with an intention to win the show. However, I don’t see a future with him. I didn’t get enough time with him and also, we friend-zoned each other. We are better off as friends.
If you are friends, why has Paras unfollowed you on Instagram? He unfollowed you a couple of days after the show wrapped up, only to follow you back a few hours later. However, he has unfollowed you again. Also, though he chose you as his ‘connection’ on the show, he is busy posting pictures with Mahira on his social media pages. Where does your equation with him stand?
Even I am shocked, because we spoke on the phone half an hour before he unfollowed me the first time. Maybe, Mahira doesn’t approve of his friendship with me (shrugs). That’s okay. People tend to be possessive of each other when in a relationship. Though he didn’t say it openly, it was quite evident that there was something more than just friendship between him and Mahira. It’s just that they haven’t accepted it yet.
Uss ghar mein aisa koi hai hi nahi, jisne rishton ka tamasha na banaya ho-Vishal Aditya Singh
9:34 AM
The actor talks about the drama in the Bigg Boss house & his messy equation with Madhurima Tuli
Neha Maheshwri (BOMBAY TIMES; February 6, 2020)
More than his game, Vishal Aditya Singh was in news for his volatile relationship with his ex, Madhurima Tuli, on Bigg Boss. While Madhurima was asked to leave the show a few weeks ago after she got violent with him inside the house, Vishal was evicted three days back. In a chat with BT, he spoke about his stint in the house and his messy equation with his former girlfriend. Excerpts...Many felt that you provoked Madhurima after which she hit you and eventually had to leave the show. What do you have to say about that?
Not at all. I retaliated only when she treated me badly, insulted me or abused me. Given our past, I wasn’t ready to meet her again on the show because I knew that if Madhurima entered the house, we would have fights. She would get aggressive, hit me and, like always, I would take it quietly, which is exactly what happened. I regret the fact that I didn’t mention that she should not be a part of the show in my contract.
I believe that before entering the house she said that she had moved on, which she says all the time, while I have always maintained that I have a soft corner for her and I am in love with her. Par ab kuchh nahi hai. I won’t call our relationship a mistake, but we were two incompatible people trying to be together. We were wrong for each other. Having said that, uss ghar mein aisa koi hai hi nahi, jisne rishton ka tamasha na banaya ho, be it Rashami-Sidharth, Sana-Sidharth or Paras-Mahira.
While she was evicted on grounds of violence, she had said in an interview soon after her exit that you, too, have hit her in the past. Is it true?
If that was true, she would have said it earlier. I have never done that. Maine life mein kabhi bhi unke upar haath nahi uthaya hai. Our relationship ended because she was abusive and violent. If you look at her Bigg Boss journey, she has been aggressive and irritated towards everyone, especially when it came to work. There were many instances when I helped her, and she fought with me over it. Everyone has seen her true nature on TV, so what more can I say about it?
There was a time when you two grew closer in the house and it seemed that you could revive your relationship...
My feelings for her were as genuine as my fights with her. I did not do anything for the game. I requested her several times to not indulge in useless fights, as we and our relationship would end up becoming a joke. I had even told her that my game was suffering because of our fights.
Who according to you is the most toxic contestant inside the house?
Mahira (Sharma). She gets involved in Paras (Chhabra), Sidharth (Shukla) and Shefali’s (Jariwala) fights without any reason. Woh unnecessarily mudda banati hain.
-----------------------------
I’m done with Vishal: Madhurima Tuli
Meanwhile, BT also got in touch with Madhurima, and here’s what she had to say about Vishal’s eviction. “I have nothing to say about that. I’m done with Vishal, the relationship is over from my side. I was real with him in the house and I wanted to be with him, but it looked like he wanted only one of us to stay there. He kept provoking me to ensure that I was out of the show, and I eventually did something that got me out. I have never done something like that with anyone. That shows that he is not meant for me. I don’t want to be with a person, who cannot see me happy and do well in life.”
Sunny Leone harassed by Splitsvilla 8 contestant Paras Chhabra?
7:49 AM
Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; July 3, 2015)
Grapevine has it that one of the contestants on a reality show hosted by Sunny Leone has rubbed the actress the wrong way. Paras Chhabra, winner of the show’s last season and TV actress Sara Khan’s ex who appears on Splitsvilla as a celebrity participant, had apparently been coming on too strong, forcing Sunny to take up the matter with the makers.
A source says, “Since Sunny is one of the hosts on the show, she has to interact with all the contestants.
During the shoot, Paras has been trying to impress her with one liners and silly jokes. Initially, she did not react to it. When it went out of control, she had a word with the makers.”
It is said that the production officials asked Paras to take it easy. Another source says, “Sunny and her husband, Daniel Weber, are generally part of the shoot and so, no one dares to trouble her. But Paras would still try to get friendly with her. So, she requested the production house not to call him for the show’s launch as they had planned.”
While Sunny was unavailable for comment, Paras denies the buzz saying, “I am a straight forward and positive person. It is not true that I passed odd comments at Sunny during the show. I have been friendly with other contestants as well as the jury. Sunny’s personality is so charming that it attracts everybody who is around. Moreover, I was formally invited for the show’s launch, but I couldn’t make it as I was operated for pilonidal sinus and was on bed rest.”
It was a big mistake to sign Sana Khan-Midsummer Midnight Mumbai director
8:35 AM
Ankur Pathak (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 31, 2013)
Sara Khan, who shot to fame with the TV show Bidaai and stayed in the limelight with a run in various reality shows, is giving the producers of her latest film, Midsummer Midnight Mumbai, sleepless nights. A source told Mirror, “Sara has become so difficult that the producers regret signing her."
Says the source, "Sara routinely threw tantrums on set and one time, even refused to shoot for a scene in a busy street owing to lack of a vanity van."
When contacted, director Braj Bhushan confirmed the news. “How can I park a vanity van at a busy traffic junction? A few people laughed at us when we went to the BMC asking for permission.”
He alleged that Sara and boyfriend Paras Chhabra, would always come late on the set, delaying the shot.
“We had to almost cancel a song sequence because the two didn’t turn up at all. While we were at Ratnagiri, they would report at 2 for a 6 am schedule. The budget went haywire.”
Braj has somehow managed to complete the film, which is gearing up for a March release, and has vowed to never work with Sara again. “It was a big mistake to sign her,” he said. Despite repeated attempts, Sara Khan could not be reached for a comment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)