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EXCLUSIVE: Bigg Boss 14: Religion, age-gap a constraint in relation with Eijaz Khan? GF Pavitra Punia REACTS
In an EXCLUSIVE interview with Pinkvilla, Bigg Boss 14 contestant Pavitra Punia spoke candidly about her marriage plans with Eijaz Khan, how she deals with social media trolls, future projects (hopefully with Eijaz!) and much more.
Pavitra Punia is fierce and fiery, something that audiences saw during her stint in the 14th season of the reality game show, Bigg Boss. The actress, who absolutely does not believe in mincing words, speaks her mind out and is unapologetic about it. Pavitra, who is undaunted by the negativity thrown at her by a few, rather chooses to look at the brighter side in her life, and be grateful to her well-wishers for their unconditional love and support.
In an EXCLUSIVE tete-a-tete with Pinkvilla, the actress spoke her heart out. From breaking the stereotypical mentality back home to loving her boyfriend and actor Eijaz Khan with all her heart irrespective of belonging to different religions and having a 12-year age gap, Punia fearlessly spoke about it all:
How would you elaborate on life before and after Bigg Boss 14?
Life has been great. Bigg Boss has brought about a transformation, a major transformation in my personality, in my thinking. It has taught me to be more calculative, decisive. I would earlier be very apprehensive about reacting to certain things but BB has taught me to be calculative and not react to someone else's actions unnecessarily. It taught me all of it for good.
You began with a bang in the show, but somehow later were seen a little fizzled out...
I don't know what's been shown, and I moreover haven't seen a single episode. Also, what's to be out on television is in the hands of the makers. It's not a scripted show at all and they will show only what the audiences will like and will get entertained by. I don't think that I fizzled out at all except for my last week in the house. I was all the time on fire but within limits. I did not hit anybody below the belt or say anything that could affect their mental health. I would just blast out when it would really affect me. I was never manipulative.
I was just very disturbed during the last week because I saw my friends whom I knew before the Bigg Boss game show like Aly Goni, Nikki Tamboli turn against me in the game.
You had a showdown with Gauahar Khan in the BB house…(interrupts)
I really don't want to talk about it at all.
You have completed 11 years in the industry. How would you put it in a nutshell?
A beautiful journey without struggle. Very cleanly and polishedly, I made it through this industry. I began with Splitsvilla and had made it big, had established myself as Pavitra Punia. But after that, I got lost somewhere. My original name was lost somewhere amidst my reel names. It's now after Bigg Boss and after 11 years that I have got back my identity as Pavitra Punia and I am so happy about it!
How supportive or unsupportive was your family when you chose to enter Tinseltown?!
A lot of girls coming from North India, even today, have certain limitations or certain protocols that are laid by the family, especially in terms of her professional life. No! Not that the girls are suppressed as it is wrongly perceived by outsiders, but the girls have certain limitations put on them. It's a tradition that's been followed since years and years and suddenly when somebody tries to break that, they get all irked up. I never wanted to become a chain breaker in the family by doing what never had happened in my family up in Haryana. I wanted to become an IAS officer, but I was destined to be in the glam world and here I am. Also, the first show that I got, I had to don a bikini and that was a major blow to my extended family. They couldn't deal with it in the beginning. But somehow I had to balance it out so that both my personal life and professional life functioned in a smooth manner. So here both, them and I balanced it. Neither did they take a further stern action against my career nor did I go ahead and do things that they weren't comfortable with. Even today when I go to Delhi or my hometown I am dressed in full clothes. I try my best not to do any kind of intimate scenes or nudity wherein my family members would feel embarrassed or awkward.
How is it now after Bigg Boss?
After Bigg Boss, my entire family is so proud of me today. I am now receiving calls to come to small villages in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to empower women out there, and I feel so proud of it. They feel that though I have gone against the certain protocols by joining the industry, I have struck the right balance and have made them prouder and not awkward. So it is all fine at the end of the day. Balance is the key to everything.
In your entire career span of 11 years, did you ever encounter any casting couch experience?
Well, I don't believe in this actually. It's a mutual consent. It doesn't happen from one end. Also, you can't sell off your talent like this. I am a spiritual person and I believe that what is yours will always be yours. I will never ever compromise for anything or for any work. It's ok if I am out of work or left to lower my luxuries but will never ever compromise or sell my talent like this. I am so blessed to not have encountered any such incidents. Talking about life lows, I myself can't believe that I haven't faced any lows as such in life. Touchwood. Also, it is because I haven't ever held my head high unnecessarily or expected things like a greedy person. I have always balanced it all and been satisfied and grateful for whatever I have got.
This industry is full of ups and downs. How do you keep up with your mental health during lows?
In terms of being out of work, thankfully that has never happened. But yes, there have been days, almost during all shows that I did precisely when I would be a part of the running show but still would be sitting at home for days and weeks just because my track wasn't running in the respective show. Yes, that's a fact and it just happens with a lot of actors in the industry. That is the time when you feel really depressed and low. It's like you are in between where you are a part of the show but still not working. It's that time, that period when you feel low because you start calculating everything. It's a terrible time and I have been through it all. There are actors who go up to the directors and request and plead with them to start their story track soon as they have to manage the finances. But there are people like me who will not plead anybody and hold her self esteem higher than anything else in the world. So at times, such phases do get an actor to feel at his or her lowest. So you have to come to a middle ground with the show makers and figure out a way. You have to divert yourself else it can be traumatic.
You are currently trolls' favourite target on social media! How do you deal with such negativity?
It's the job of haters and trolls to keep trolling on social media. I know they will feel hopeless in life if their only job of trolling somebody is taken away. Let them do their job that gives them peace. A lot of people write a lot of unnecessarily and untrue things but at the end of the day, it's us who need to self analyse whether we are right or wrong. Our instinct should tell us whether we are going correct or haywire and that's what matters at the end of the day. I don't give two hoots to trolls who randomly talk about me and my life. You know actually, I love trolls and my haters. I love to see how they can't do anything without me or stop writing anything about me. It's a good feeling.
Trolls leave no stone unturned in targeting Eijaz Khan too. How do you react when you read negative comments about him on social media?
Trolls and haters have just one job and that is spreading hatred and negativity. I think Instagram should shut accounts that have just one follower and are even then busy spreading hatred. It's so important to put a stop to such lowlifes. If somebody tries to troll me, I can still take it but if somebody tries to troll Eijaz, I lose my calm and will NOT take it. I remember how this troll had tried mocking Eijaz and called him psycho and mental. I fumed with rage when I read that. I was like how dare somebody trolls him! It is at such times, I do not bother about my celebrity image. I do not think that I am a celebrity and that it would affect my image if I get into a verbal squabble with a troll on social media. I know it's all a herd mentality on the Internet but I choose to shut the troll especially if he's targeting Eijaz. It is wrong to mentally harass somebody on social media. Using words like mentally challenged, mentally ill, psycho on a huge platform is harassment and such trolls should be put in place. I make sure that I let the trolls know that I am complaining against them for harassment to the cybercrime space. Also, it feels good to know that I am not alone in this when my fans, my army jumps into my support and takes the battle ahead. I am so proud and grateful for such love. It's very clear that I will not take anything ill spoken about Eijaz especially on social media. I have a few people who DM me and ask me not to react to such trolls but then what are they doing to stop the hatred?! Aren't they choosing to ignore or rather sit back and enjoy reading all the arguments on my feed?! I am a very protective and possessive woman towards my man! I will always stand to protect him at any cost, anywhere!
You and Eijaz both come across as extremely sensitive beings. How do you guys balance out the practical aspects of life?
Eijaz and I balance out well when it comes to dealing with practicality and emotions. We space out and give time to each other to relax and also we are companions of each other, not therapists. Life is all about ups and downs, highs and lows and we totally understand and accept it as it comes. Yes, we do have our low moments but we have learnt to cope up with them together and I believe that's beautiful for a couple to do. As much as he is emotional, he is even more intelligent. When I am emotional, he takes the lead and shows me the practical aspect to it and vice versa.
Have you met each other's family?
Yes, we have met each other's families. Though we haven't met each other's parents as such but have been meeting each other's siblings, cousins, friends etc. We are taking it slow and in the flow.
Is religion a constraint in your relationship to you two or your families?
We respect each other's religion completely. I have nothing else to say on this.
Eijaz is more than a decade older than you. How much do you think the age factor matters in a relationship?
I don't think age is a constraint when it comes to love. Especially in olden times, men would marry girls younger than half their age and it was fine with the society back then. It is said that a man should be older to a woman because, by the time the girl turns into a woman, he matures too. So it doesn't matter if the man is a few years older to you. If you are destined to be together, age never is a hindrance.
Are your respective families also fine with the religion and age gap?
Yes, I think so. As far as now, all is ok. Had there been any problems, we would have already known. All of our family members know about us now.
We all know when Eijaz realised his love for you. When did you realise your emotions for him?
The feelings were there from Day 1. Right from the beginning, something was there in between us, there was a certain click. Eijaz had told me just on the second day itself of the game show that - "You and I are the hero and heroine of the house, mark my words." I mean, we weren't even friends then but still he said that which means that we both knew something was brewing between us, it's just that we didn't realise. Also, the universe was working towards getting us together, I am sure. But we just didn't realise because though our hearts had met, our minds were clashing. I fell in love with him in the red zone and I know he too fell in love with me there.
You spoke deeply of your past relationships in the Bigg Boss 14 house. How easy or difficult was it to talk about it on national television?
You should keep the past in the past only. It's like a ghost that's haunting you and nobody wants to personally invite it. I believe you should focus on your present now and make it beautiful.
Paras Chabra (her ex-boyfriend) had accused you of having hidden about your married life from him... (interrupts)
God bless him! People forget what they themselves have done in life and it's amusing. But I really hope God blesses him!
So is the news about you being married and also awaiting a divorce, true?
I don't want to comment on it at all. I really do not want to react to such unnecessary reports. What Eijaz and I need to know about each other, we know and we will let the haters talk whatever they want. I do not give any attention to such negativity.
So when can we expect marriage on cards?
Fingers crossed! If everything is good and falls into place, then by this year end. But you know how the industry works. Due to work commitments, a lot of marriage dates get pushed so many times. So we aren't rigorously planning for it. When it has to happen, when it is destined to happen, it will automatically. Both of us are focusing on work and giving our relationship the time and also to know each other better.
Will you be open to opting for more reality shows?!
Why not! I haven't been approached for Khatron Ke Khiladi but yes if given an opportunity, I will love to be a part. Same is with Nach Baliye. Why wouldn't I want to dance with my baliye who is such a terrific dancer? He is a legend and I keep telling him. He is THE Eijaz Khan and I am so proud of the fact that I am with such a man! I feel so respectful about him and his journey. I remember I was in college when the song Dilli Ki Sardi was released and I would dance to it, remembering all the steps. Little did I know I would be dating the same man a few years later, who wooed millions with his dance moves in the song! Such is life!
Tell us something about your upcoming projects?
I have been reading a few scripts for web series and also have a few reality show offers on the table. But we are not wanting to jump on it all. We are taking it slow and I haven't as such given any nod. We also have a few music video offers. But honestly, I don't want to do them just for the sake of it. Aisa gaana hona chahiye jo saalon tak logon ko yaad rahe, like Dilli Ki Sardi. We have been approached for couple music videos and for my solo music videos too. Eijaz, too, has been getting a lot of offers but we both are taking a little time to fix onto something really concrete that will genuinely be loved by all of the fans and stay in their minds and hearts forever. But having said that I would love to feature with Eijaz and work with him.
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