# Bigg Boss (Hindi TV series)

Bigg Boss is an Indian Hindi-language reality television show of the Bigg Boss franchise in India that airs on Colors TV. It is based on the Dutch format of Big Brother, developed by Endemol. Since its premiere on November 3, 2006, the show has completed eighteen seasons and three OTT (Over-the-Top) seasons. Throughout its run, Bigg Boss has seen a variety of hosts. The first season was hosted by Arshad Warsi, followed by Shilpa Shetty in the second season and Amitabh Bachchan in the third. Farah Khan led the Halla Bol season, while Sanjay Dutt co-hosted the fifth season with Salman Khan. Since season 4, Salman Khan has taken the helm as the show's primary host. As of now, a total of 332 contestants have participated in Bigg Boss. Out of these, 13 contestants have returned for other seasons, while 2 contestants played as proxy contestants and 4 contestants were not selected by the audience, preventing them from entering the house. As of season 18, Bigg Boss has aired a total of 1,970 episodes.

## Overview
### Concept

Bigg Boss is a reality TV show inspired by the original Dutch Big Brother format created by John de Mol Jr.. In this competition, a group of contestants, referred to as "housemates", live together in a specially designed house, cut off from the outside world. Each week, these housemates nominate each other for eviction, and those with the highest nominations face a public vote. Ultimately, one housemate is "evicted" each week.
There are some unique elements to the eviction process. Besides public voting, housemates with special privileges, like the captain, may have the power to evict someone directly. Additionally, Bigg Boss has the authority to modify the eviction process as needed, sometimes introducing exceptions or twists.
The final week of the show, with three to six housemates left. During this time, the public votes for their favorite contestant, leading to the crowning of a winner.
While most participants are celebrities in Indian version, seasons 10, 11 and 12 saw an influx of commoners as housemates, bringing a new dynamic to the show. Notably, Manveer Gurjar, a commoner, emerged as the winner of Season 10.
The housemates' actions and interactions are monitored by the voice of Bigg Boss, a mysterious figure who represents the show's authority and enforces rules.

### House

The Bigg Boss house is a unique and carefully designed space that serves as the central setting for the popular reality show which is built for each season. Over the seasons, its location has varied, with the initial seasons situated in tourist-magnate hill station of Lonavala, Pune district of Maharashtra and later moving to ND Studios in Karjat, in Maharashtra's Raigad district for Season 5. From Season 13 onwards, the house has been established in Film City, Goregaon, Mumbai.
The architecture of the house is contemporary and well-furnished, featuring a range of modern amenities to facilitate the daily lives of the housemates. Key areas include: Kitchen, Living Area, Bedroom (two in first three seasons while four in sixteenth season and three in seventeenth season), Bathrooms (two toilets, two bathrooms, two washrooms in bedroom, one washroom in jail, one washroom in garden area), Storeroom, Garden and Pool Area, Lounge Room, Activity Area, Medical Room, Smoking Room, Luggage Area, Dining Area, Jail, Gym and Balcony.
One notable aspect of the Bigg Boss house is the Confession Room, an essential feature where housemates can express their thoughts, feelings, strategy or any kind of conversation as Bigg Boss listens and talks with them. This is also where the nomination process occurs sometimes.
To ensure the housemates remain disconnected from the outside world, the house is devoid of televisions, telephones, internet access, clocks, books, pens, or paper.

### Rules

While not all the rules have been explicitly communicated to the audience, several key ones are clearly established. Inmates are required to speak only in Hindi. Tampering with any electronic equipment or other items in the house is strictly prohibited. They may not leave the premises at any time without permission. Physical violence is completely forbidden. Discussing the nomination process with anyone is also not allowed. Housemates must remain awake until the lights go off, and they can only converse outside of the designated smoking area. Additionally, singing is not permitted within the house, nor can they write anything while inside.
Occasionally, housemates may be nominated for various reasons, including being chosen by individuals with special privileges obtained through tasks, for breaking rules, or for other unspecified reasons. In serious cases, a contestant may face expulsion from the house.

### Airing

The main television coverage of the show consists of a daily highlights program and a weekly eviction show, typically aired on Saturday/Sunday and known as "Weekend Ka Vaar" or for Monday known as "Somvaar Ka Vaar". In Seasons 16 and 17, the weekend episodes moved to Friday/Saturday ("Shukravar Ka Vaar" and "Shanivar Ka Vaar"), all broadcast on Colors TV, while the first season aired on Sony TV.
Each daily episode features key events from the previous day, while Saturday’s episodes focus primarily on the host's analysis of the housemates' performances and special tasks. Sunday’s episodes include a fun segment with guest appearances and the eviction of the housemates nominated that week. Notably, in Seasons 16 and 17, evictions took place on Saturdays instead of Sundays.
From Season 14 onward, "Bigg Boss" introduced a 24/7 Live Channel for Voot Select subscribers, and later for JioCinema Premium subscribers. This allowed viewers to enjoy direct engagement with the show’s happenings. Episodes were also aired 30 minutes earlier on Voot Select and JioCinema Premium until Season 17.
In Season 16, a new segment titled "Bigg Bulletin with Shekhar Suman" was introduced, airing on Sundays and hosted by Shekhar Suman. Season 17 saw the introduction of another segment, "Just Chill with Arbaaz & Sohail," hosted by Arbaaz Khan and Sohail Khan, also on Sundays. In Season 18, episodes included "Tandav Ka Overtime," extending the usual one-hour episode with additional content to cover the day's events. Season 18 also saw the launch of segment named "Haye Daiyaa With Ravi Bhaiyya Garda Udaa Denge," hosted by Season 1 finalist Ravi Kishan, again on Sundays.

## Series details

| Series | Host | House Location | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released | Originally released | Days | Housemates | Prize Money | Winner | Runner-up |
| Series | Host | House Location | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released | Network | Days | Housemates | Prize Money | Winner | Runner-up |
| 1 | Arshad Warsi | Lonavala | 87 | 87 | 3 November 2006 (2006-11-03) | 26 January 2007 (2007-01-26) | Sony TV | 86 | 15 | ₹1 crore (US$120,000) | Rahul Roy | Carol Gracias |
| 2 | Shilpa Shetty | Lonavala | 99 | 99 | 17 August 2008 (2008-08-17) | 22 November 2008 (2008-11-22) | Colors TV | 98 | 15 | ₹1 crore (US$120,000) | Ashutosh Kaushik | Raja Chaudhary |
| 3 | Amitabh Bachchan | Lonavala | 85 | 85 | 4 October 2009 (2009-10-04) | 26 December 2009 (2009-12-26) | Colors TV | 84 | 15 | ₹1 crore (US$120,000) | Vindu Dara Singh | Pravesh Rana |
| 4 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 98 | 98 | 3 October 2010 (2010-10-03) | 8 January 2011 (2011-01-08) | Colors TV | 97 | 16 | ₹1 crore (US$120,000) | Shweta Tiwari | Dalip Singh Rana |
| 5 | Salman Khan Sanjay Dutt | Karjat | 97 | 97 | 2 October 2011 (2011-10-02) | 7 January 2012 (2012-01-07) | Colors TV | 98 | 18 | ₹1 crore (US$120,000) | Juhi Parmar | Mahek Chahal |
| 6 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 96 | 96 | 7 October 2012 (2012-10-07) | 12 January 2013 (2013-01-12) | Colors TV | 97 | 19 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Urvashi Dholakia | Imam Siddique |
| 7 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 105 | 105 | 15 September 2013 (2013-09-15) | 28 December 2013 (2013-12-28) | Colors TV | 105 | 20 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Gauahar Khan | Tanishaa Mukerji |
| 8 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 105 | 105 | 21 September 2014 (2014-09-21) | 3 January 2015 (2015-01-03) | Colors TV | 105 | 19 | N/A | Declared in Bigg Boss Halla Bol | Declared in Bigg Boss Halla Bol |
| HB | Farah Khan | Lonavala | 27 | 27 | 4 January 2015 (2015-01-04) | 31 January 2015 (2015-01-31) | Colors TV | 28 | 10 | ₹25 lakh (US$29,000) | Gautam Gulati | Karishma Tanna |
| 9 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 104 | 104 | 11 October 2015 (2015-10-11) | 23 January 2016 (2016-01-23) | Colors TV | 105 | 20 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Prince Narula | Rishabh Sinha |
| 10 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 105 | 105 | 16 October 2016 (2016-10-16) | 29 January 2017 (2017-01-29) | Colors TV | 106 | 18 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Manveer Gurjar | Bani J |
| 11 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 106 | 106 | 1 October 2017 (2017-10-01) | 14 January 2018 (2018-01-14) | Colors TV | 106 | 19 | ₹44 lakh (US$51,000) | Shilpa Shinde | Hina Khan |
| 12 | Salman Khan | Lonavala | 107 | 107 | 16 September 2018 (2018-09-16) | 30 December 2018 (2018-12-30) | Colors TV | 105 | 20 | ₹30 lakh (US$35,000) | Dipika Kakar | S. Sreesanth |
| 13 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 139 | 139 | 29 September 2019 (2019-09-29) | 15 February 2020 (2020-02-15) | Colors TV | 141 | 21 | ₹40 lakh (US$46,000) | Sidharth Shukla | Asim Riaz |
| 14 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 142 | 142 | 3 October 2020 (2020-10-03) | 21 February 2021 (2021-02-21) | Colors TV | 142 | 22 | ₹36 lakh (US$42,000) | Rubina Dilaik | Rahul Vaidya |
| 15 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 121 | 121 | 2 October 2021 (2021-10-02) | 30 January 2022 (2022-01-30) | Colors TV | 120 | 24 | ₹40 lakh (US$46,000) | Tejasswi Prakash | Pratik Sehajpal |
| 16 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 135 | 135 | 1 October 2022 (2022-10-01) | 12 February 2023 (2023-02-12) | Colors TV | 134 | 17 | ₹31.8 lakh (US$37,000) | MC Stan | Shiv Thakare |
| 17 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 106 | 106 | 15 October 2023 (2023-10-15) | 28 January 2024 (2024-01-28) | Colors TV | 106 | 21 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Munawar Faruqui | Abhishek Kumar |
| 18 | Salman Khan | Film City, Mumbai | 106 | 106 | 6 October 2024 (2024-10-06) | 19 January 2025 (2025-01-19) | Colors TV | 107 | 23 | ₹50 lakh (US$58,000) | Karan Veer Mehra | Vivian Dsena |

## Spin-off

The series also has a digital version of the show called Bigg Boss OTT . Started in 2021, the first season was hosted by Karan Johar and broadcast by Voot for 24×7 coverage. The OTT series has rolled out its third season in 2024, hosted by Anil Kapoor and broadcast by JioCinema for the 24x7 live feed.