Superstar Salman Khan returns as the host of the eighth season of Bigg Boss but the actor says he was reluctant to be a part of the reality TV series this time around as the 2013 edition was extremely "tiring and painful".
The 48-year-old actor courted controversy last season when he was accused of being biased towards Tanishaa Mukerji and Armaan Kohli by other participants as well as the viewers. Salman, however, defended himself saying he was simply taking a stand and not anyone's side.
"I did not want to do Bigg Boss 8 because it is too tiring and painful. I have my own set of problems and here I am solving 10-12 problems of others. These people involve me and somehow I get involved. But if you see something you have to take a stand," Salman told PTI in an interview.
"I came back because I liked the format. You get to learn so much by seeing contestants' reactions, even though you know you might have reacted in the same manner," he said.
This is Salman's third stint as the anchor of the celebrity reality show, besides being a guest host on season 5, which was hosted by Sanjay Dutt. Bigg Boss 8 is set to premiere on September 21 on Colors.
The show has had its share of controversies in each season and Salman says it is a catch-22 situation for him. "The format of the show is such that there are controversies. If something does not happen then people, including my own family and friends say, 'The episode was thanda'. And if something happens, then they say it was too much, so at the end you don't know what to do," Salman said.
The actor, who faced a lot of online criticism from Bigg Boss 7 winner Gauhar Khan and boyfriend Kushal Tandon, said he will continue to take stand as that is the only way to save the contestants from embarrassing themselves on TV.
"As a host it is important to take a stand for the contestants. Sometimes it looks like you are taking a stand for yourself but it is for them because you know how they are being projected outside. These people have come in the house to get work. The fact is that if they are superb in the show, then they will not get work outside but they don't understand that," he said.
Salman said whatever is shown on Bigg Boss is the real reaction of contestants and not scripted at all. "The best and scariest part of the game is that it is not scripted. Whatever contestants do in the house is correct because that is what the game demands. So either you play it with whole heart or whole mind. They should play smartly," he said, adding that he would be a disaster inside the house as an inmate.
When asked if he will promote Shah Rukh Khan's upcoming Diwali release Happy New Year on the show, Salman said, "We will do enough promotions for Happy New Year, the team does not need to worry."
Bigg Boss is the Indian version of international reality show Big Brother. A number of contestants (known as housemates) live in a purpose-built house and are isolated from the rest of the world with cameras catching their every move. Each week, housemates nominate two of their peers for eviction, and the housemate who receives the most nominations would face a public vote. Of these, one would eventually get evicted from the House.
