Exclusive! Salman Khan on what went wrong with Dus Ka Dum, Bigg Boss 12, Priyanka Chopra's exit from Bharat and more

The finale of Dus Ka Dum 3 is yet to be aired, but Salman Khan has already moved on to his other TV show, Bigg Boss. The superstar will host the 12th season of the reality show, which was launched in Goa. Ask him if it was because he was shooting for his film in the sun-kissed beach city that the show was unveiled there and he says he is only chilling there! “Every time the show is launched either in a studio or at a hangar, so this time we wanted it to be different,” he shares. Here, he talks about what brings him back to the show, what went wrong with Dus Ka Dum, and Priyanka Chopra not doing Bharat.

What brings you back to host Bigg Boss consecutively for nine years?

I find it interesting to watch people’s behaviour in the house, and when I see something going wrong, I get involved in it, unlike the other hosts who play it right. Earlier in my life, a lot of things have gone wrong, takleef toh hoti hai. Not only for the person, but even the parents go through a lot of trouble and pain. That’s the reason, when things go wrong in the Bigg Boss house, I tell them to not get into that space. But, honestly, this is where our country is going. If they do something that is not in our culture or go overboard then I step in for their sake. If those under the cameras inside the house are okay with behaving like that (badly) and people are watching them making it one of the highest-rated shows, obviously everyone is enjoying it.

Has the show been advanced this year because you will get busy with your film shoots later?

It has nothing to do with my film schedules or dates. The channel wanted the show to get over before December so that the contestants can be free to celebrate the New Year.

This time the theme is jodis. Will we see anyone co-hosting with you later?

No. But when Katrina (Kaif) got to know that the show will have jodis, she said she wanted to host with me! But she said that in jest.

You returned as the host of Dus Ka Dum after nine years, but it did not live up to the expectations. What went wrong?

What happened was we slotted the show on Monday-Tuesday, but nobody knew that it was being telecast. Wahan thodasa maar kha gaye. Even I had thought it was a brilliant idea to slot it on those days because on weekends people have several things to do. I thought ki log ghar baithke dekh sakte hain at the beginning of the week. Lekin that didn’t happen because the awareness was not there. Even Atul’s (Agnihotri) mother did not know about it. When the show was in its fourth week, she asked me when was it starting.  Only when I told her (Atul Agnihotri’s mother) it had already begun that she started watching it... in the fourth week. The makers got to know something was amiss in the second or third week and they started checking. They decided to shift it to Saturday-Sunday, which was much riskier. But they got their promotions correct this time, even I created awareness about it in the show and it started rating 1.7-1.8.

Will you be hosting the next season?

Yes, why not?

Earlier at the press conference, you joked that one person who will not go into the Bigg Boss house will be Priyanka (Chopra). Has it got something with her not doing Bharat?

(Laughs) We were destroyed that she is not doing Bharat, we were devastated (he says placing his hand on his heart with a impish smile), but we had to handle it, and we did.

(On a serious note) No, she had a genuine problem at that point of time, but it’s just that we should have known it slightly earlier. But I am sure it’s okay, hope that film (with Chirs Pratt) works out for her.  She has got engaged and I am really happy. Arpita (Khan Sharma, his sister) had gone for the engagement. Now, we have Katrina in Bharat, she is looking beautiful and is working hard. But main waise dalte rehta hoon (about Priyanka), nahi toh boring ho jaata hai (smiles).