Rating: Two-and-a-half stars

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At the end of Bigg Boss 9, when the makers declared that the show will have commoners in the next season,  it frankly did not spark much interest. But a look at the motley of contestants the channel has culled from across the country is enough to pique your curiosity and tune in. From a wannabe Priyanka Chopra to a weird, self-styled godman, the bunch of commoners is as varied as it is interesting. And, they displayed more spunk and chutzpah than the celebrities! 

What is it about: This time the show has a mix of commoners and celebrities. The celebrities are mostly TV actors — Gaurav Chopra, Karan Mehra, Rohan Mehra — there’s  also Rahul Dev, VJ Bani and beauty queen Lopamudra Raut, while the commoners include Manoj Punjabi, Priyanka Jagga, Akansha Sharma who is Yuvraj Singh’s brother’s wife, etc. 

What is hot: It’s the commoners who seem to have the upperhand like this Delhi girl Lokesh Kumari, who speaks in an affected tone and already behaves like she is a star — she apsires to be like Priyanka Chopra. Then there’s S Sadachari Sai Baba Om Ji, the swami, who sees a devi in every girl, and yet flirts outrageously. He is also a motor mouth. He looks crazy enough to pull in the viewers. Within minutes of entering the house, the other inmates steered clear of him and Deepika Padukone who entered the house as a celeb guest was the only one politely listening to him. Manveer Gurjar, who owns a dairy farm, is as desi as can be with a tough physique and a crude way of talking. He is the kind of person on whom the show thrives on. He rubbed Lopamudra the wrong way with his comment on her dress and already there’s friction there.        

And, of course, Salman Khan who has a huge fan following scores with the aam aadmi again. He was not patronising or condenscending to the junta, which makes him a winner. 

What’s not: For once, the celebrities pale before the commoners. Or may be they are biding their time and giving aam admi the space and time to get used to them. In fact, while the makers have gone all out to get eccentric personalites from amongst the commoners, they have chosen non-controversial celebrities. Karan is the golden boy of TV with his image as the caring Naitik from Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata, while Naksh aka Rohan Mehra who played his son in the serial is a newbie. As for Gaurav, apart from his relationships with a couple of TV actresses, he doesn’t have any shady past. Ditto Rahul Dev, who has made a name for himself as the antagonist mostly in South films. Yes, there’s Monalisa, the Bhojpuri actress, known for her item numbers, but that's about it.    

Verdict: The tussle between commoners and celebrities apart — the latter are currently sevaks to the former, the show is worth a dekko just to watch the aam aadmi holding fort in the hugely controversial show.