Gaurav Khanna lifted the Bigg Boss 19 trophy and took home a Rs 50 lakh cash prize. Gaurav, who earlier won Celebrity MasterChef India, was questioned for playing "safe" and "on the backfoot" from the beginning of the game. Even a section of the Internet said he "observed" instead of playing. After Gaurav came out of the house, he reacted to those allegations. People said that he was a "fixed" winner, as he enjoys a fan base due to his popularity on the small screen.
What Gaurav Said Defending His Gameplan
"First of all, these are their allegations; we shouldn't even cater to them. Today, in the age of social media, everybody is a keyboard warrior. I don't think I need to answer them. If they don't like me, fair enough. I am not God's gift to mankind that every person needs to like me. But I am happy that most people like me," Gaurav told India Today.
Dismissing the "fake" tag and other labels, Gaurav said he won the way he wanted to. "If I were a fake, I would have woken up in the morning and dressed up in designer outfits, and put on makeup. I would have had a plan and played accordingly. I would have broken plates, worn saris, jewellery. I didn't do anything like that. I worked out in my slippers. I ate rice with my hands, and even kneaded dough," Gaurav said.
Gaurav claimed that he didn't pay money to get votes.
"I would wake up in the morning before the alarm would go off and have green tea in my glass. This was my fixed pattern, and this is how I live my life otherwise also. I really believe that if you are real, then you will connect with people's hearts. I don't have so much money that I could even think of doing something like this. I think if one mother, a brother, a child or an elderly person liked me, then I touched their hearts [and they voted for me]," Gaurav asserted.
While Tanya Mittal and Amaal Mallik dominated headlines in the last few months, Gaurav tried to retain his image as "clean" and far from controversies. And it paid off.
While Gaurav lifted the trophy, Farrhana Bhatt and Pranit More were declared first and second runners-up.
