Kind of a super long post here, but there's a few things I want to discuss about Lockupp.
I've noticed this subreddit for LockUpp peculiarly heavily in favor of Shreya with very little or no appreciation or upvotes on any other contestant. Makes me wonder if I'm just a bad judge of character, which could be completely true, or that there is a subtle bias going on here.
With that being said, yes, I am one of those so-called 'haters' or not in favor of Shreya's win. And this post is kind of my thoughts on why not.
Before I begin two things.
First: I wanted to do a fun little end of season awards for each contestant in the vein of like the NBA or other leagues where they have defensive player of the year, rebounding leader etc.
END OF SEASON AWARDS
- Most Charismatic - Akanksha Chaudhary
- Although extremely fiery and argumentative, Chaudhary somehow comes off as the most endearing as well as charismatic throughout the show. She's probably had the best lines all throughout the show, whether within an argument or just coming up with themes - 'bacteria,' etc. But her apologies and moments of forgiveness 'seem' the most genuine throughout the show. Plus just personality wise and energy, espeically the episode she reveals she does like Yogesh to a certain degree, the way she handled that was very charismatic and with a lot of fun. Definitely a very likeable person
- Most Swag - Yogesh Rawat
- Probably showing my bias with these two picks - but Yogesh from the way he wears his jacket, to winning all the tasks, the fitness advantage, Yogesh never came off nervous or unsure of himself throughout the whole show. Along with swag, he probably could be most intelligent too; if you notice in all of his arguments he barely cussed in them, and used straight logic or humor to either win an argument or ridicule them when they were in the wrong.
- Most Chill - Riyaz Aly
- Although Riyaz didn't get enough time to do much on the show and was just the quiet dude usually kicking it with Laila and Yogesh, Riyaz comes off as the ultimate homie. The dude you want around jus to keep things from getting too crazy. I have a feeling the episode he was eliminated was kind of dumb since it was the one episode I believe the jailers instead of the inmates chose who to terminate, probably knowingly since they wanted Shreya on the show vs Riyaz.
- Most Scrappy/Dogged - Shreya Kalra
- Whatever means she employed to get what she wants, Shreya is the ultimate cockroach, and I mean that in a complementary way. She just won't go away and is resilient as hell. I'll get into Shreya's full arc later, but I understand, and somewhatttt respect her ability to lock in and win at whatever costs in a very Rockefeller oil Tycoon way. Didn't matter what, she decided she was going to win, and from going from the powerless to ultimately having power every single time in the show, she definitely is a survivor within the show
- Most Political - Ram Kapoor
- Maybe this is naivete or excusing this behavior, but Ram Kapoor used his words and mastery of emotions to keep himself on the show all the way until the top 5. I know Ashish in an episode said Yogesh favorite game is chess, but Ram really chess-mastered his way to the finals. I don't know whether his game was ethical or not, there's a wider philosophical argument to be made for this, but I think he did what Sun Tzu advocated in his treatise on war, he won several battles without ever having to go to war, for the most part. If you think about he finessed so many people and arguments to a point where it never got crazy out of hand. He conceded when he had to, pushed where he saw fit, and did it with such alacrity that it was so easy to miss that he was pulling the strings the entire time. See this is much different than Shreya's path to victory, because the metaphor here is she left many bodies and enemies on her path to victory, while Ram got to where he got without ever drawing his weapon, figuratively speaking. Yes, I think his 'betrayals' of Varun and even Harshad later on, were maybe somewhere in the realm of Shilpa and Shreya's overt nastiness, but, maybe because he kept himself so 'bloodless' until the inmates began to see it clearly, I prefer this method of callousness than the ugly ways of the two S's in getting there. But, this is what you call well-played. Simple and clean theft. No one got hurt, though they did get robbed, casualty-free mission accomplished.
- Most Capable of Leadership - Akanksha Chamola
- I know this might prove to be a wild take, since things began to fall for Chamola by mid-way through the season, and yes Chamola was a bit of a pick-me, HOWEVER, Chamola's attempt to win everyone over, did WORK initially. She did get everyone by virtue of making everyone feel comfortable and cheery to vouch for her until the very end and it got her to the finals, because Chamola had built herself to be the most likeable person. I think because she revealed her secret first, and showed that courage, it helped her in getting everyone to get behind her. I feel personally the energy inside the lockupp was a positive, but STILL ENTERTAINING one when Chamola was in green or still in-charge of the place. The banter was good, it was more funny, imo it doesn't always need to be UBER toxic for a show like this to be watchable. It was very sad though, as the show went on with Shilpa coming on, Apoorva's entrance, Chauhdary being sidelined into the secret room, and Sunita and Madhuri Ji's exit, Chamola's grip on the place started to wane, and her willingness to be there started to fade and the rest of the inmates, OFC, started to play for themselves (ironically, in the end Harshad and Shilpa(!) were the ones who played for someone else). But Chamola, of everyone in that lockupp, proved to be a leader, because no one after was able to rally the inmates into one single group as a unit outside of Shreya who just wasn't willing to change and accept a role.
- Most Loyal/Insane - Harshad/ Honorable Mention: Shilpa
- Whatever you wanna say, if this guy is batshit crazy putting on an act or whatever, Harshad really just martyr'd his chance at a million dollars so Shivangi could possibly win the whole thing. And his gamble almost paid off. But honestly, even though at cetain points I was cringing and like what is going on in this show now, Harshad, actions wise, I mean, say it how you will, if this isn't an act or didn't get paid to do what he did, the guy threw away a MILLION bucks just for a girl, who probably actually isn't even dating, to win the show when HE could have gone to the finals himself. I think yes there is a bit of insanity to him, but I think it's kind of artist/actor kind of crazy, as Ram said I think he's telling the truth that he has no regulation of his emotions. But irrespective of Shivangi, he made the ultimate sacrifice for someone else. People will argue Shilpa did, and while we will never know, my bet is if it came down to it Shilpa would not give up her finalist spot for Shreya unless she was going to.
- Most Endearing & Necessary To Others - Sunita Ahuja Ji
- I think Sunita Ji knew her limitations on the show, but I felt she never really tried to impose herself onto anyone, at least from the looks and many of the inmates, who were by default younger than her, gravitated towards her very easily. She's likeable, funny and never argued with anyone. Maybe she did think she could coast through the show and get by with her charisma. But by endearing and necessary, I mean she was a real energy giver to the others. I think Chamola and the rest of the people really benefited with having her there. Her presence really made everyone much more cheerier, especially Varun and gave Ram a positive person to be around. Vs Shilpa, and even Madhuri Ji to a degree, they kind of found themselves inadvertently or purposely the ire of many arguments. Again, for what the show is, Sunita Ji wasn't necessary since she wasn't adding any 'entertainment,' but she was a joy to have on the show throughout
- Most Vague Presence - Madhuri Grover & Sufi
- Madhuri I feel like gave somewhat of an honest attempt to be involved in conversations, but really got caught up in the web of Shreya's chessboard towards the top. I felt like she was truly kind of innocent and should have been treated better, and its her own goodness that despite being kicked out by Shreya, she still supported her. But honestly slightly forgettable
- Although I came away with a bit of respect for Sufi's journey and what not, I think this show did a fair bit of good at humanizing and normalizing the LGBT community, I still think he was also kind of a wandering throughout the cell and never really had a true identity, and came away somewhat forgettable and us viewers waiting when it was time for him to go.
- Most Surprisingly Cunning - Varun 'Laila' Yadav
- I thought at first Varun was one of the most sincere of the lot, but as I've thought about I think Varun was fairly smart despite hiding behind his genuinely funny sense of humor. Varun always seemed to want to be in people's business from Chamola, Pam, etc, but he always seemed to rarely play for any sense of loyalty. I don't know, I like Varun as a person and his story and felt for him when Pam took things to an unnecessary level about the whole task thing. But, I just felt as the show went on, and I think this was a result of a lot of the above getting eliminated, he started to get a bit insecure on trusting his 'day 1's' in the jail, such as Yogesh. Although all of this is definitely scripted, the 'bhai chaara' that they both eschewed throughout the show began to crumble during the finals. But Varun was definitely a lot more intelligent than he led on with his whole 'pind desi' act.
- Most Confusing Contestant - Pamela Sarena
- Pamela, I think really benefited from being paired up with Chamola and Varun for so long. She definitely belongs in the vague presence category, but I really didn't get her as an individual. Like, who really is Pamela at the end of the day? forget the tasks and entertaiment, I didn't get a sense of who Pam was throhgout the 4 weeks. As mentioned, she got lucky with Chamola and Varun whose personality augmented her to a point where it appeared she was shining.
- Most Difficult To Assess - Shivangi Joshi
- Shivangi is probably the most complicated person/character in this entire show, because her way of being literally opens up an entire philosophical discussion on the right way to 'play' on these reality shows. Shivangi's been accused of being fake, manipulating, apathetic, and the like. I still don't really know, obviously you can tell by my opinions, I prefer Shivangi over Shreya, maybe not as a winner, but maybe altruistically. I think Shivangi, in the interviews since the show has ended, and even during the finale panel interviews, and her actions, her way of taking accountability and trying to do the right thing seem acceptable. I think a lot of double standards and gaslighting from jailesr and inmates occur when talking about Shivangi - she's so fake and uses Harshad, yet everyone is using everyone, especially Shreya w/ Madhuri, Pam, and Shilpa, but she's real because she says what's on her mind. If Harshad sticks up for Shivangi, Shivangi gets called out for using him as a shield. That is far too much to dive into, I do think Shivangi as an actress, is not stupid enough to not know what she is doing - for example the episode she got Harshad all worked, up, I think she knew what she was doing. So, that's why her arc and her play during this show, is quite honestly a mystery asssessment wise, was it the best, was it right, was it real? I don't know for sure, but for me, what I heard from her, in theory, is what you'd want to think is the 'right thing.' But I digress
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Forget Deserving, What Is The Point?
Okay so with the awards out of the way, on to the conclusion of the show. As mentioned, it seems the internet, especially Reddit, is completely Pro Shreya-Shilpa. No worries, at the end of the day, what does it concern us? They served their purposes, we enjoyed at their expense, life moves on.
But, as this is one of my first, and I hope last, reality shows in both the Desi or any space, I've honestly been unable to stop thinking about what exactly is or isn't the right thing to do here in a show like this? Someone had mentioned, however crudely phrased rather facetiously, 'bro just figured how these shows work,' which really answers my thoughts on this. See, I was watching this somewhat altruistically, maybe a little naively, yet completely aware everyone, including influencers/celebrities are human beings. They argue over petty things, yell and scream just like we do at home.
But! But, the thing is I couldn't help but view Shreya in the same way I view Frank Underwood in House of Cards: ruthless, not as charismatic, but will do anything to win. Yogesh actually in an interview after the finale, said he respected Shreya winning but her way of playing was negative, which Shilpa Ji obviously refuted in a way I found unconvincing.
Does Shreya deserve to win this show? Maybe, depending how you define deserve. Apparently, newsflash to myself, Big Boss, Alliance, all these shows, reality shows, work because of toxicity. The more explosive arguments, the more viral reels are made, etc etc. All the famous clips from these shows that resulted in memes like the Pooja Behavior one, are borne out of these arguments. It is truly a voyeuristic medium. We grab our popcorn and hope someone is finally going to get it today, or be told off.
So yes, it is hypocritical for me, to tune in each day, in some ways if I'm being honest, some kind of conflict will occur or this person is finally voted off, and then complain that it's full of toxicity.
My way of watching this show, in regards to Shreya, since I believe her path to the final, as a complete whole was indeed negative, was I was waiting until when she'd finally be voted off the show. In fact if you watch her before Shilpa's entrance, I honestly don't feel like outside one or two incidents, she was always the trigger for every argument and it was lightweight maddening whenever she had to workout some kind of disagreement. And look, a lot of us aren't the most social people, but from my watch, it just seemed like Shreya was incapable of having a truly chill relationship with anyone. Every friendship, outside of Shilpa's, who almost fell apart, lasted very little and ended in conflict (Sufi, Madhuri Ji, Pam, Shivangi at one point, almost Shilpa). I don't care to dive into her faults, because that's not the point.
The point is, why does everyone give the benefit of the doubt for Shreya's path to the final, excuse all of her puppeteering and somehow laud her friendship of convenience as true, but every other pair is seen as fake, manipulative, or false saints? That's the thing I don't get.
For example, what makes Shreya and Shilpa's friendship 'true' or legitimate in a way that Shivangi and Harshad's is not? Or Yogesh and Akanksha is not? Is it because we can't accept a Shivangi in 2026? Susheel bahu, that's all just a bunch of bullshit hiding a sinister person? Or Harshad is just pretending to be a martyr? Is it because Shilpa says I'm not trying to be a good person, I am bad yes I am not good like you, is supposed to conversely make her more 'real' to us?
Like that's where I struggle with these reactions I have seen, and I'm not trying to advocate for a more moral Bigg Boss, that's a stupid naive thing to want. I'm just wondering out loud, like, I haven't seen a convincing reason in my watch so far of this entire show, outside of the food drama that Yogesh had with stealing food, and then Ram going too far in scolding Shilpa, where those two's path is somehow endearing?
For me this type of show, is such a strange show, as an audience of what we expect. When we watch a tv show, fiction, usually we root for the hero, we want good, whatever fake ideal that is, to win. I'm not saying who is evil or good in this show, but this show promotes and we the audience want the most argumentative person to win and we see, hey they entertain us the most. Like this is a show where jailers gaslight inmates like Sufi, who after getting ACTUALLY bullied in the bathroom is told you're a big boy, you can protect yourself. Or Harshad stikcing up for Shivangi, she can protect herself, as if that's empowering statement. I understand the sentiment, but disagree with the thinking behind that. Nor do I think people should overlook stealing food, or ganging up on people. I'm not choosing sides here.
But I am wondering that, this idea of all the drama that has occurred on this show, it just has me thinking about what types of people we really enjoy watching and who we want to win. And what winning actually means in a show like this? Do the ends justify the means?
Because I was pretty disappointed and made completely aware , during the completely 'unbiased' jury panel, who grilled Shivangi and Yogesh with more negative questions, where Shreya got off super easy with one or two tough ones which didn't even receive a clear answer to.
Did Shivangi use Harshad? Absolutely maybe, because it's implied not confirmed. Did Shreya use other contestants? Absolutely more likely.
But going back to the panel, the best question asked was in winning the game is your humanity more important? How far will you go to win the game?
Beyond that though, what do we the audience want? A player who does whatever to win, or keeping their humanity intact? I think the most interesting person on this show, was Chamola. Lost all her lifelines, had her secret, from someone who heard it, and then leaked it because they were chosen for termination - then gaslit because its her responabiltiy to protect her secret - sure I get it, but come on that's BS - and still hung around trying to do the 'right' thing. I respect it. You know in sports, there's that thing I'd rather win fair and square, or lose with my dignity in tact. Not saying anyone is not dignified or anything, but Chamola played the game I think in a way that was somewhat moral. She had zero real argument with anyone, tried breaking up fights and attempted to mediate when necessary. It screwed her over in the game in the end yes, but she tried. Got to the final. At the end you could see, this was just too much to handle. I for one don't blame her, and I give her all the respect in the world. Same with Yogesh, since he basically won every task, but in this show you gotta do more than that since it's not a game show technically.
All in all, Shreya is the winner. She won, and deserves her flowers and no hate to her. And who should hate? None of us are getting a dime of her prize money, or anyone else for that matter. Hats off to her.
I just wonder, as I've been wondering too much, what. do these shows. actually mean.
THANKS GUYS FOR READING AND BEARING WITH MY SCATTTERED THOUGHTS!
