Comedian Kiku Sharda has dismissed speculation about a fallout with co-star Krushna Abhishek, clarifying that their recent on-set "fight" was only a prank and that reports of him quitting The Great Indian Kapil Show are untrue.
What's Happening
- In a collaborative Instagram post with Krushna, Kiku shared a black-and-white picture of the two in comic style with the text overlay: "A never-ending story."
- He captioned it, "Yeh bandhan... kabhi nahi tootega! (This bond will never break). The 'fight' was a prank only. Don't fall for all this gossip and rumours that I've left The Great Indian Kapil Show. I'll always be a part of the show and this parivaar."
- Urging fans to focus on the series, he added, "Toh yeh sab chhodo aur jao Netflix pe show dekho - sirf 3 episode baaki hain."
Background
Kiku remains part of The Great Indian Kapil Show. He has completed his role for the current season but continues to be a permanent member of the cast. He will also be seen in Rise & Fall, which marks his next project, not an exit from Kapil's show.
The Netflix series features Kapil Sharma, Sunil Grover, Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda and Archana Puran Singh.
Earlier, a source confirmed that Kiku has already wrapped shooting for this season. There is no pending work, no sudden exit and no tension within the team.
His appearance in Rise & Fall came after finishing commitments to Kapil's show, leading to assumptions that he was leaving. The source also clarified that Kiku and Krushna share a cordial relationship and that any clips showing tension were part of comedy acts.
Speculation grew after a video surfaced online showing the two engaged in a mock argument during a practice session. In the clip, Kiku says: "Timepass kar raha hu?" (Are you wasting your time?), to which Krushna responds, "Toh phir thik hai, aap karlo. Main jata hu yaha se." (Okay, you do it. I'll leave the place).
Kiku adds, "Baat yeh hai ke mujhe bulaya hai toh main apna khatam kar lon pehle." (The thing is I was called in, so let me finish mine first).
An irritated Krushna replies, "I love you and respect you, I don't want to raise my voice."
Kiku then says, "Raise voice ka baat nahi hai, aap isko galat tarike se leke jaa rahe hai." (This is not about raising my voice, you're taking this the wrong way).
Amid the buzz, celebrity photographer Viral Bhayani also posted about "visible unrest" in the camp, writing: "A video went viral that showed an 'altercation' between Kiku Sharda and Krushna Abhishek. The latest buzz (read 'update') is that Kiku Sharda has moved out of The Great Indian Kapil Show."
He further added, "Just as Kiku's leaving is being touted as the result of the aforementioned altercation, the fact remains that Kiku has reportedly been signed up for the upcoming reality series Rise & Fall, which will be streaming on Amazon MX Player, an arch competitor to Netflix, where Kapil's show is streamed. As for Rise & Fall, it will be hosted by Ashneer Grover."
