A contestant says he broke his knee during the show due to organisers' negligence, but didn't get compensation; another says she was made to abuse on air by MTV to boost TRPs
A contestant says he broke his knee during the show due tou00a0 organisers' negligence, but didn't get compensation; another says she was made to abuse on air by MTV to boost TRPs
AFTER MTV Splitsvilla contestants alleged corruption and sleaze by the organisers in MiD DAY and then on national television, two MTV Roadies contestants have now slammed the organisers. While an aspiring model told MiD DAY he got no compensation for a serious injury that happened during the show and was in fact humiliated, another girl said the organisers encouraged her to use abusive language to push up viewership.
MTV Roadies, incidentally, had been pulled up by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry in June end for promoting obscene and abusive language. For three days, the channel had to run a note apologising for its actions.
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Sufi Malhotra, a top contender of MTV Roadies 6, was an aspiring model and actor. His stint in the reality show seemed godsend for his showbiz career. However, not only was he voted out of the show, he says he was injured while shooting for it and humiliated.u00a0 The accident, he alleges, set his career back by months. He alleges his injury was caused by negligence on MTV's part but the company washed its hands off him once it realised he was of no further use for the show.
"I was unable to win Roadies because I fractured my leg. But I was not compensated for my injury. The fracture cost me many precious months of my career," said Sufi.
The mishap, Sufi says, happened when during an episode, he was made to fight professional wrestlers without adequate safety measures.
"The professional wrestlers wore knee caps for the task to protect their knees from injury but they (the MTV production team) forgot to give me one. Wrestlers picked me up about eight feet off the ground and threw me into the ring. I was seriously injured but they edited this part. I injured my right shoulder, right knee and almost the entire right side of my body. I tore a ligament in my leg too. I had broken bones. But the audience didn't get to see all this," said the contestant, who was touted as the winner.
"They immediately took me to a doctor who said the ligament tear would trouble me later, and hamper my leg movement. The doctors advised an MRI scan (an X-ray test for bones) of my leg." The test reportedly revealed that Sufi had broken a bone in his knee. "Doctors advised a surgery but said they did not have the required equipment," said Sufi.u00a0
He alleged when he returned to the doctors, they advised immediate surgery, but the MTV team washed its their hands off the issue.
"I was still a part of the show and decided to get my knee operated upon at the next destination. But the same day, at the time of voting they (the show producers) introduced a sudden twist and I got voted out."
Fake fight?
Sufi alleges another contender, Palak aka Gurmeet Kaur, was asked to pick a fight with him so that he could be evicted from the show. "On my last day in the show, Palak suddenly started a fight with me. She started abusing me and lied in front of everyone. But after the show was over, Palak told me that the MTV people had asked her to argue with me. She said my vote-out was planned. First, I ignored her but I believed her when I saw that the remaining tasks required a strong leg and this was something she had told me much before," said Sufi.
Allegedly, Palak told Sufi she was instructed to throw him out because heu00a0 "was of no use anymore". "Palak said MTV had said, 'Sufi toh ab langra ghoda hai (Sufi is of no use to us)'."
Sufi alleged he was disappointed once more on the show when MTV top bosses brushed his injury aside as frivolous. "I did a lot for this show. I always gave my 100 per cent in every task."
Paying for the knee
"I informed Raghu (senior supervising producer at MTV India and the executive producer of MTV Roadies) that I couldn't perform the task as I was injured. Rannvijay (Rannvijay Singh Singha, the MTV VJ who hosts the show) said: 'At least you should try.' Raghu was not aware of the extent of my injuries so he brushed it aside.
'Ligament toh tin ya char mahine main theek ho jata hai (ligament injury can be fixed in three to four months),' he said. I told him it was not just a ligament tear and that I had fractured my knee too. Raghu didn't believe me and confirmed it with the crew. But they all said I would recover fast. It showed how callous they were. They ignored my injury," said Sufi.
The contestant claimed he has received no help from MTV. "I visited the MTV office regularly for four months. But I didn't get any response from them."
He alleged the injury jeopardised his modeling and acting career. "I was unable to appear for auditions or report for outdoor shoots because of my leg injury. My monthly expenses run up to Rs 40,000, from where will I arrange the Rs 3.6 lakh required for my surgery? I asked MTV for help, said I was struggler. I said, 'Aap logon ka show chalna chaiye chahe kisi ka career kharab ho jaye. Aapko usse koi matlab nahinu00a0 (Your show should go on even if in the process someone's career suffers. You are not concerned about that).' But MTV employees were unmoved. They told me that my insurance was valid only in Australia, where a section of the show was filmed.
u00a0
They said I should have had my surgery done there. "They said, you forgot and so did we."
Allegedly, Sufi had an altercation with MTV after this show of apathy. "I asked them how could they forget my injury when during the entire shoot I was walking on crutches? After that they started ignoring me and stopped taking my phone calls. As the show was over so I was of no use to them."
"Others gained from Roadies but I lost a lot. I couldn't cash in on my television fame. Agar meri leg theek bhi ho gayi toh kya fayda? Kyunki ab toh naya Roadies shuru hone wala hai. (What's the use if my leg is cured? A new season of Roadies is about to start with new faces)."
Sufi revealed during another reality show shoot in Ludhiana, a contestant died. "The MTV called me and asked me not to comment on the safety practices followed in Roadies. They asked me not to make statements in the media. Also, I was promised a bike and cleared the stage required for it but haven't yet got it."
Palak's take"During Roadies, the audience saw a fake Palak. The show was tweaked to boost TRPs. In the final episode of Roadies 6, Kiri (Kiri Timung) said he wanted to compete with me. Interestingly, Kiri took an hour to decide but Raghu and Rajiv (Rajiv Laxman) forced him because they wanted Nauman Sait to win. They didn't want me or Kiri to win the show.
"In the last episode where Kiri and Nauman competed with each other, I clearly saw they let Nauman win. They always asked me to repeat all abusive statements in Hindi, to soar TRPs. They would beep out objectionable words when other contestants abused each other, not me. They gave me footage because they knew I was boosting the show. They used me. Main sone ke ande dene vali murgi thee, mujhe kaise chhod sakte the? (I was the hen that laid golden eggs). Yeh logo ko pagal banate hain (they fool people)"
Palak also alleged she hadn't received the bike promised to her.
When asked whether Sufi's allegations were true, Palak said it wasu00a0 true that MTV didn't pay him any money for the treatment. "They also asked me to get him out of the show as he was of no use after the injury," she said.
The Other Side
This is what MTV had to say about the allegations.
In response to Palak's allegations
"How can anyone believe what Palak says! Everything on our show is 'real' except for the situations that are scripted. As for Palak, whatever she says needs to be taken with a mountain of salt! Guess, after the shows are over, she needs a reason to stay in the news. Wish her all the best."
In response to Sufi's allegations
"Like any responsible company, we ensure that we take required and necessary protection and precautions to minimise accident incidents. You must also realise that Roadies is a show where contestants test their bodies by driving over 2,000 km and undertaking daunting tasks. While precautions are in place, some of these tasks can result in injuries. And we always have medical attention at hand to deal with that situation. In fact, the medical team travels with the Roadies crew, throughout the journey."
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