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None of the original folks behind Roadies are involved with the show any more; the ongoing 19th season is hosted by Sonu Sood, who replaced Rannvijay Singha. Rannvijay was the longtime face of the show, which for many years was judged by Raghu Ram, Nikhil Chinapa and later, Raghu’s twin brother Rajiv Lakshman.
During the audition stage of the show’s fifth season, Raghu and Nikhil had a rather eventful encounter with a hopeful contestant named Kabir, who claimed that he was blind. Kabir said that he lost his eyesight a little over a year ago due to an accident. Almost immediately, Raghu and Nikhil were suspicious.
Nikhil asked him a series of logistical questions about the yoga studio Kabir claimed to visit frequently. Nikhil asked him how many steps are there in the staircase that he descends and seemingly dissatisfied with Kabir’s answer, he said, “I don’t think you’re blind.” Kabir asked, “What made you think so?” Nikhil replied, “Two things. One, the injury to your head is not severe enough to cause blindness. And second, I don’t think you go to a semi-basement level.”
When Kabir asked Nikhil how he could make such an accusation, Nikhil revealed, “Kabir main architect hoon. Isiliye main jaanta hoon, ek floor ko clear karne ke liye minimum 18 steps ki zarurat hoti hai (Kabir, I am an architect. I know that to clear one floor, a minimum of 18 steps is needed).”
He continued, “Have you every wondered, as a blind man, how many steps are there on an average in a flight of stairs?” Kabir said 12. It was now Raghu’s turn to question him. He said, “Kabir, you have been blind for one-and-a-half years. One thing that a blind man will always do is count steps.”
Kabir got flustered and told Nikhil, “You are lying. Firstly, you are lying that you are an architect…” Taking him by the hand, Nikhil walked Kabir to a flight of stairs and said, “We are now going to go from one floor to another floor. Will you count the steps with me?” As expected, they counted 18 steps. Leaving him at the top of the stairs, Nikhil walked away and said, “I think you can find your own way down.”
Back in the audition room, Kabir refused to confess. Raghu promptly summoned a doctor to examine him. After conducting a few basic tests, the doctor said, “I think he is feigning his blindness. Number one, his corneas are absolutely crystal clear. There is not a single iota of any kind of scratch on the cornea. His pupils are reacting very well to light. His retina, optic nerve are absolutely alright.”
Having twice been proved to be lying, Kabir refused to admit that he was trying to con the judges. Raghu and Nikhil kicked him out of the room with a volley of abuses. Raghu was apparently not pleased with the level of humiliation, and called Kabir back the next day for a second round of discussion about why he did what he did. Kabir told Rannvijay that he is an actor, and that in his opinion, he had delivered a good performance. An incensed Raghu got Kabir thrown out of the venue, and looking at the camera, said, “Tu kabhi dikh gaya na, bhag jaiyo wahan se. I don’t care kitne logon ke saath hai (If you ever see me, run. I don’t care how many people you have with you)…”
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