Expresso TV and OTT Shows News Update at 6:30 pm on 22 February 2023

Let's begin with our top story. The latest episode of MasterChef India has highlighted how contestants need to pull up their socks to improve the show's overall quality. The latest task had the top 9 contestants divided into two teams to participate in a farm-to-table challenge in Anand, Gujarat. While the two teams attempted to cook up a storm, chef Vikas Khanna was shocked when he was served a thin-crust pizza with no salt or seasoning. Despite this, the team managed to win because the other team had multiple issues with their dishes. Recently, MasterChef India found itself amid a controversy after it was alleged that the judges seemed to be favouring a contestant.

Up next. Anupam Mittal was not impressed with two founders, Karan Jindal and Taniya Dhirasaria, in the latest episode of Shark Tank India, season 2. They introduced their holistic health and wellness brand and also claimed they had a huge customer base. The ‘sharks’ tested their products and were rather baffled when the pitchers revealed their revenue has fallen from Rs 10 crore to Rs 3 crore. They explained they had to conduct several layoffs and reduce the strength from 40 employees to just seven, as they had two children consecutively. Aman Gupta expressed his disappointment and decided not to invest in their offer, as did Namita Thapar, who said she would rather drink fresh juice than a packaged one.

As a big send-off to the season, Shark Tank India is all set to air a special digital-only episode, ‘Gateway to Shark Tank India 2’. It will give selected aspiring entrepreneurs a second chance to present their business ideas to the celebrity entrepreneur judges. While Peyush Bansal of Lenskart and Anupam Mittal of Shaadi.com will skip the same, Happilo’s founder and CEO Vikas D Nahar will join the panel as a ‘guest shark’. Nahar comes from a family that’s engaged in growing pepper and coffee. With a natural inclination towards building brands, he started his company with just Rs 10,000 in 2017. Today, the Rs 500 crore business is a leading player in the dry-fruit and nuts segment offering healthy snacks.

Meanwhile, Shark Tank India 2 host Rahul Dua always stands out with his funny one-liners. The comedian replaced Rannvijay Singha this season; in his own words, it’s one of the biggest opportunities that has come his way. Hee told indianexpress.com, “It’s my first mainstream television experience. Also, I am happy that this could open doors for many other comedians. It’s a proud moment for me.” Rahul Dua, who rose to fame via Comicstaan further shared he was introduced to Shark Tank while studying engineering. His hostel friends would download the show, and he would join them to watch it.

Moving on, the Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards was held on Monday, Feb 20th, a night with stars from Bollywood and television gracing the event. Small screen star Tejasswi Prakash won Best Actor in a television series for Naagin 6. This award is different from the Dadasaheb Phalke award, India’s highest award in the field of cinema, which is presented by the Indian government. Tejasswi’s achievement left boyfriend Karan Kundrra and his father proud as they celebrated her big win. Karan's father said it was one of the ‘best awards’ in the film industry, adding, “She is lucky at this young age she has got this. God bless you Teju”. Karan Kundrra and Tejasswi Prakash met on Bigg Boss 15.

It’s been weeks since Neha Kakkar has been conspicuously missing from Indian Idol 13. Her absence had become a matter of worry for many fans. Many have speculated about her absence, with reasons ranging from discord with the production to her embracing motherhood. And now, trusted sources have shared with indianexpress.com that Neha is set to make a comeback to the show, however, it will be only for an episode. As per them, Neha will be coming in with her husband Rohanpreet Singh to promote their new single “Gham Khushiyan”. The episode will have contestants sing love songs as the couple will judge them along with Himesh Reshammiya and Vishal Dadlani.

In other news, Abhishek Nigam and Manul Chudasama have stepped in the shoes of Sheezan Khan and late actor Tunisha Sharma on the television show Ali Baba: Dastaan-e-Kabul. Abhishek, who will be replacing Sheezan on the show, spoke about the new vision of the show and described it as challenging. He spoke about Tunisha’s passing and said the loss is mutual for everyone. Talking about the mood on the set, he shared they try to keep a positive mindset on the set. He shared, “It is not like I have not known her. We remember her in our hearts. The cast and crew are working hard because it helps to keep at it.”

Lastly, television actor Shalin Bhanot emerged as one of the top five contestants of the Salman Khan-hosted reality show Bigg Boss 16. While Shalin was still in the Bigg Boss house, his ex-wife Dalljiet announced her wedding to businessman Nikhil Patel and revealed she will be tying the knot in March. Reacting to the same, Shalin told ETimes, “I am yet to meet and talk to her. I am very happy for her. May God bless her and give her all the happiness she deserves. It’s normal for people to move on, and they should give life another chance. Some adjustments need to be made and that’s okay.” Dalljiet and Shalin got married in 2009 but parted ways in 2015.

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