Opinion: From mattress in pool to insults in air; Why 'Bigg Boss 19' feels like the first real season in years

A cast that does not care about optics

When the line up of 16 contestants was first announced, excitement was muted. Outside of a few recognizable names, there were not any headline grabbers. But that may have been the best thing to happen to this season. Instead of people entering with a pre approved brand strategy, what we have seen so far is contestants simply being their flawed and impulsive selves.

Tanya Mittal, for instance, instantly set the tone by demanding to be called “ma’am” or “boss.” In another season, that might have been dismissed as a gimmick. Here, it landed as a personality marker, quirky, bold, and unapologetic. She was not trying to charm the audience or polish her words, she was making her space in the house on her own terms. That kind of audacity has been missing from the show.

Farhana Bhatt’s arc has been even more striking. Sent to the secret room on Day 1, she observed the game before storming back with a bang. Her fiery clash with Baseer Ali, where he dragged her mattress and blanket into the pool and she retaliated with pillows, abuses, and a torrent of insults, was pure Bigg Boss gold. The fight escalated into name calling, with “gutter” and “B grade aadmi” thrown around, and reminded viewers that the house is supposed to be a pressure cooker, not a spa retreat. This was not polished drama. It was instinctive, raw, and messy.

Captaincy as a battleground:

Even the captaincy track, which in recent seasons has often been dull, has provided gripping content. Farhana’s bold move to disqualify Baseer from the captaincy task was both ruthless and clever. Kunickaa Sadanand’s brief captaincy ended with her resignation under pressure, clearing the way for Ashnoor Kaur to take over. Power has already shifted multiple times in a matter of days, and that volatility makes the house unpredictable. Contestants are not playing safe, they are taking risks, even if it means making enemies.

Flaws on display, not hidden:

What really makes this season stand out is the contestants’ attitude toward their image. They do not seem overly concerned with how they will be perceived outside. They are not sugar coating their personalities or trying to appear “camera friendly.” Instead, they are leaning into their flaws, their tempers, and their unfiltered selves. Whether it is Farhana dragging Kunickaa’s family into a fight by calling her a “flop actor” or Baseer losing his cool in full public view, no one is acting like their reputation is at stake. And that is exactly what Bigg Boss needs, people who are not afraid of being messy. It is this lack of PR polishing that has always made Bigg Boss compelling. In the earlier seasons, contestants became household names precisely because they showed sides of themselves that were raw and unpredictable. Over the years, the show lost that edge as housemates tried to curate themselves into brand ambassadors. Bigg Boss 19, at least so far, feels like a return to form, where people are allowed to be unhinged, impulsive, and imperfect.

Still early, but promising

Of course, it is just the first week. We have seen seasons start strong and fizzle out midway. There is always the danger of the show slipping back into routine arguments and forced romances. But right now, the energy inside the house feels different. The dynamics are volatile, the clashes are cutting deep, and the contestants are not holding back.

If this continues, Bigg Boss 19 may well succeed where recent seasons failed, by reminding us why we tuned in all those years ago. Not for manufactured love stories or recycled ration wars, but for flawed human beings locked together, reacting in ways they cannot always control. That unpredictability is the beating heart of the show. And for the first time in a long while, it feels like Bigg Boss has found its pulse again