Bigg Boss 16: Why is Sajid Khan never visible in the live feed? A look at the many possible reasons

Bigg Boss 16 has opened with a decent rating for the initial weeks and as of now, fans are mostly appreciative of the contestants - except, of course, Sajid - who is at the receiving end of brickbats as he continues to be in the Bigg Boss house. Apart from the furore and public anger around Sajid’s participation, several Bigg Boss fans have noticed something strange. Sajid, who is staying in the house round the clock like other contestants, is almost never seen in the live feed. For the uninitiated, Bigg Boss fans can watch the contestants living in the glass-walled house live on streaming platform Voot. While die-hard fans of the show have seen all their favourites either mopping floors, doing mundane activities and participating in high-octane tasks, Sajid is somehow missing from all the action. He is, however, seen in the episode which is aired on TV. Some fans on Twitter started speculating if the Humshakals director had a special clause in his contract to not show him in the live feed:

Did sajid khan sign a contract with the makers that they will not show him in the live feed? And they will use abdu to clean his image? Lol #BiggBoss16 #bb16

— Bigg bozz (@realsunnykicks) October 14, 2022

@ColorsTV I have very simple question.
Why is sajid khan never seen in live feed and he suddenly shows up in footage during any fight in episode?
Why are you hiding your gem contestant during live feed? #BiggBoss16 #BB16

— Diya (@blessedlife4ver) October 12, 2022

I am really curious to know why Sajid Khan is not shown in the live feed

— Mita Tyagi (@MitaTyagi) October 11, 2022

Fans were quick to ask Colors TV why they were trying to hide Sajid’s unfiltered self from the viewers. The outrage over Sajid ’s participation and the subsequent complaint by Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) demanding his ouster from the show, makes Sajid’s absence from live feed seem more suspicious. An entire Reddit thread dedicated to his absence takes a look at some of the many possible reasons why Colors and the streaming platform Voot are deliberately chopping off Sajid’s bits in live telecast.

An attempt to control the narrative

An obvious reason pointed out by many commentators in the thread was that the channel wants to control the narrative around Sajid. Speculations are rife that Sajid’s participation in Bigg Boss is meant to whitewash his image and make him come across as a more likable and endearing man. On the very first day in the house, shortly after Sajid entered, he was given a task by Bigg Boss to be Abdu Rozik ’s translator. Rozik, a 19-year-old from Tajikistan, who suffers from a Growth Hormone Deficiency, became a fan favourite on the very first day owing to his cute antics. Shortly after Sajid and Abdu’s pairing, it became obvious to many viewers that keeping Abdu around Sajid was an attempt to make Sajid seem more likeable and thus, undo some of the damage done to his image due to the #MeToo accusations,

The fans somehow made peace with Sajid-Abdu’s pairing but the former’s absence from live feed made it obvious that the showrunners wanted an airtight control around the way Sajid is projected on-screen. Bigg Boss, of course, is highly-edited and the viewers only get to see the highlights of 24-hours in a 50-minute episode. It won’t be surprising if many of Sajid’s problematic statements and politically-incorrect remarks are being censored and not shown in an attempt to whitewash his past (and present) wrongdoings.

‘Hush hush’ around Sajid’s crimes

“Also how come none of the contestants ever discuss Sajid’s crimes? Have they not read the newspaper or watched the news? I’m sure they’ve all been told by BB makers never to discuss it (sic)”, read one of the comments on the Reddit thread. It is indeed fishy why we do not see any contestant even obliquely address or refer to Sajid’s past controversies which are well-known. To be fair, contestants haven’t spoken about Shalin Bhanot ’s, who is another contestant in the house, domestic violence allegations either. There were many comments that pointed out that not showing Sajid in the live feed might be a wise decision by the channel to avoid any legal case against them - that is, in case Sajid ends up saying something controversial. However, all Bigg Boss fans who have followed the show for years know that the live feed is deferred by a couple of hours and is heavily edited - with all references to religion and politics censored. Why, then, is Khan not being shown in the live feed is a question that has left many puzzled. “Two days ago I saw him for almost a few seconds”, read one of the comments on the thread.

All in all, Sajid’s absence from the live feed only makes fans more suspicious as to what exactly is happening in the house. Is the disgraced director making controversial remarks that aren’t being aired? Are other contestants forbidden from talking about Sajid’s accusations? Will Sajid survive in the house for long?

Only time will tell.

Deepansh Duggal is an entertainment, pop-culture and trends writer based in New Delhi. He specializes in op-eds based on the socio-political and gender issues in the world of entertainment and showbiz. He also writes explainers and occasionally reviews shows in the OTT space. He tweets at @Deepansh75. 

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