Abhishek Malhan on ‘Roadies’: I used to think back then, who's going to go there

Mumbai, Sep 8 (AHN) Social media star Abhishek Malhan’s journey to becoming a gang leader on ‘MTV Roadies’ is a classic case of life coming full circle as he recalled how, during the days of Raghu Ram and Rajiv Lakshman’s auditions, he had decided he would “do anything in life but never Roadies”.

Asked if he has ever seen an old version of Roadies, Abhishek, who will be seen serving as a "Gang Leader" in Roadies, told AHN: “Honestly, I haven't seen Roadies and like, a complete season I've never watched, but back then when Raghu and Rajeev used to host those auditions, I actually realized that I'll do anything in life but never Roadies.”

“See, that's how life goes, and a circle completes, and today I'm the gang leader, and I used to think back then, who's gonna go there.”

This season, the show gets six Gang Leaders, including Nikhil Chinapa, Neha Dhupia, Prince Narula v/s Abhishek Malhan, Bani J and Baseer Ali.

Abhishek is popularly known as “Fukra Insaan”. He gained fame through his YouTube content and later appeared as a contestant on reality shows such as Bigg Boss OTT, Playground Season 3, and Temptation Island India.

Talking about the show, the first two seasons of ‘Roadies’ had a daily budget cap for contestants, encouraging them to experience India's diversity while completing various tasks. However, after MTV took over in the third season, the show adopted a more competitive and aggressive format.

From the fourth season, a new segment was introduced to select wild card contestants, Battleground and Graveyard. In the fifth season, advantage tasks were introduced, allowing winners to gain benefits during vote-outs. It was also the first season where Roadies traveled international during journeys.

The tenth season featured a mentor-based competition, where a team of ex-contestants led by Raghu Ram competed against a team of new contestants mentored by Rannvijay Singha.

In the twelfth season, the format was revamped with the introduction of gang leaders.

The eighteenth season introduced a "buddy pairs" format, where ex-roadies and new contestants competed. It also marked the return of bikes, which had been a key feature in earlier seasons. Additionally, this was the first season without Rannvijay Singha.

Each season follows a theme and includes various twists, vote-outs, and eliminations. The contestant who survives all challenges and vote-outs is ultimately crowned the Ultimate Roadie in the finale.