India’s reality TV culture thrives on controversial celebrities and their 20 seconds of fame or infamy – a surefire way to rake up drama and revive plummeting ratings. Elvish Yadav, who recently won season 2 of Bigg Boss OTT, emerges as a prime example of this disturbing tactic. Known to be a proud misogynist, Yadav often leverages his contentious reputation for publicity.
From an inappropriate ‘roast’ video that attacked fellow digital creator Kusha Kapila, having an FIR lodged against him by actor Swara Bhaskar for relentless social media harassment to body-shaming allegations by fellow Bigg Boss contestant Aashika Bhatia, Yadav is the perfect example of how misogynistic men find validation, fame and money on Indian reality television.
These shows invite and aggrandise audacious behaviour by the likes of Yadav, repackaging them as welcome eccentricities and quirks.
By labelling these men ‘desirable’, reality TV creates an ecosystem where manipulative and violent behaviour becomes romanticised and celebrated. Men with problematic pasts continue receiving career upgrades & social credit with zero accountability for their actions as women struggle to even come forward with their complaints.
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The men Bigg Boss features
In Bigg Boss season 16, TV actor Shalin Bhanot, who had been accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife Daljeet Kaur, found both popularity and love with fellow actor and BB house inmate Tina Datta.
During a conversation with Datta about the alleged abuse, Bhanot had this to say: “Let’s not talk about things.. because I really don’t want to. But it will be funny when I tell you.” He also said, “If something wrong happens, it’s always the boy’s fault.”
With over three million Instagram followers, Bhanot remains a popular actor and has not faced any repercussions for his actions. However, Datta did not take the relationship forward, as she also alleged that Bhanot was aggressive toward her and even tried to hit her once.
Bhanot and Kaur have been part of the TV fraternity for long, making it implausible that showmakers were unaware of the allegations against Bhanot.
Bigg Boss is notorious for showcasing celebrities with histories of abuse, harassment and even crime. In 2008, it featured actor Shweta Tiwari’s first husband, Raja Choudhary, who had allegedly molested another woman while also having been accused of abusing Tiwari.
Actor-producer Sajid Khan also made a ‘grand comeback’ with Bigg Boss 16 despite many actors and models, including Sherlyn Chopra, Aahana Kumra, and Saloni Chopra, accusing him of sexual harassment. The Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) banned Khan only for a year. Moreover, when voices were raised for his dismissal, FWICE wrote to the information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur to let Khan work. Bigg Boss then happily hosted Khan in its 16th season last year, whose final ratings beat the popular daily soap Anupamaa.
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OTT isn’t far behind
It’s not just reality television, OTT giants have also brushed off misogynistic behaviour for ratings. Pradhyuman Maloo, a jewellery designer and a contestant on Netflix’s Indian Matchmaking, was glamourised for rejecting over 150 women for their appearances. He has now been accused of domestic violence by his wife, Ashima Chauhan.
Maloo’s rejection of 150 proposals was dismissed as ‘high standards’ by matchmaker Sima Taparia. “The boy is good, he’s fair, he’s tall, and a very handsome guy…[he is] a good-natured guy,” Taparia told her audience, and all was forgiven. This stood in stark contrast to how she addressed her female client Aparna Shewakramani, whose selection criteria she constantly criticised. The show also allegedly edited out segments featuring contestant Nadia Jagessar, making her look like a non-commital “heartbreaker”.
Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega
Men with histories of domestic violence have also had shows named after them. The most infamous example is Rahul Mahajan. In Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega (2009), several women competed to win his hand in marriage. The show came after his divorce from Shweta Singh, who had accused him of physically abusing her while they were together.
Mahajan went on to marry model Dimpy Ganguli in 2010 after she won the show. The grand wedding was telecast nationally, and the duo did multiple shows before Dimpy filed for divorce citing domestic violence as a reason.
It did nothing to stop Mahajan’s career or marriages, though, as he tied the knot for a third time with Kazakh model Natalya Ilina. The couple filed for divorce last year.
Also read: Dear Indian men, toxic masculinity is harming you too. Stop making fun of Korean band BTS
Hollywood follows suit
This trend is not exclusive to India. Leading reality shows in Hollywood have also popularised gaslighting and other disturbing forms of emotional abuse.
One such show is Bling Empire (2021), which follows a group of wealthy young people living their very best lives in Los Angeles. Andrew ‘The Red Power Ranger’ Gray’s actions toward his girlfriend Kelly Mi Li raised many eyebrows as he gaslit her, yelling and accusing her of not sharing information about her whereabouts. In season 3 of Love is Blind, a show where singles try to find a match without laying eyes on each other, Bartise, engaged to his co-contestant Nancy, openly shared the attraction he harboured for another. While the incident is discussed in the show’s reunion episode, it is interesting to see how showmakers don’t actively intervene in the name of showing “real lives of real people.”
Unlike Bartise and Nancy, another couple from the same season, Brennan and Alexa, did end up at the altar. However, a Redditor recently shared a post attaching a police report as proof of Brennon’s involvement in a domestic assault in January 2021. While the incident occurred before filming commenced for Love is Blind, it shows background checks for contestants aren’t as thorough as they should be.
Be it Hollywood or Bollywood, the message is clear – men will continue to rake in money and fame despite the offences they have committed or eventually do. Yadav’s fans turned up in hordes after his win, and even Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar felicitated him. In addition to that, Alia Bhatt, whose sister Pooja was a contestant on the show, called him her favourite contestant.
This will only encourage viewers to emulate such behaviour in real life. After all, their ‘heroes’ do it – and get away with it too.
Views are personal.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)