KBC 18: Amitabh Bachchan-hosted Kaun Banega Crorepati 18 saw Pragati Dinesh Kalpekar from Amravati, Maharashtra, take the hot seat in the August 28 episode. A junior clerk at the Divisional Information Office in Amravati, Pragati came on the show with her father and younger brother and reached the Rs 12 lakh question before a question about the Komagata Maru ended her game.

The daughter of a tea seller, Pragati spoke about her family’s struggles and her journey from dealing with disappointment over her earlier dream of becoming a doctor to now aspiring to become an IFS officer. Pragati eventually took home Rs 5 lakh.

Check this space tomorrow to learn more about the toughest question on the latest episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati 18. We will be bringing you the question and the story behind it.

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Pragati Kalpekar on growing up away from her younger brother

Pragati came to KBC 18 with her father and younger brother and shared that visiting Mumbai and appearing on the show was her first experience of visiting a big city.

Her father runs a tea stall, while Pragati now works as a junior clerk in the government’s Divisional Information Office in Amravati.

She also spoke about the financial difficulties her family faced while she and her brother were growing up. Her parents prioritised her education and sent Pragati to live with her maternal grandparents. As a result, the siblings did not grow up together, and her younger brother did not know he had a sister until he was around five years old.

‘After so many failures, it is difficult to regain confidence’

Pragati said that she had once dreamed of becoming a doctor and prepared for NEET with the hope of getting into an MBBS course.

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However, she was unable to secure an MBBS seat and got admission to BDS instead. Watching many of her friends get into MBBS courses left her feeling disappointed.

“I was very depressed. After so many failures, it becomes difficult to regain your confidence,” she said.

Pragati credited her younger brother for helping her move past the difficult period.

“My younger brother guided me like an elder brother and motivated me to prepare for other exams,” she said.

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An avid reader, Pragati said she wants to continue her studies and eventually become an IFS officer.

“That is my dream,” she said.

Pragati Kalpekar reaches Rs 7.5 lakh

Pragati had a strong run on the hot seat and reached Rs 25,000 without using either of her lifelines.

She used the audience poll for the eighth question, worth Rs 2 lakh, and later used the MahaFlip lifeline for the Rs 5 lakh question.

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Pragati then played the Super Sandook round, where contestants have 90 seconds to answer 10 questions and win Rs 10,000 for every correct answer. Contestants who answer at least five questions correctly can either take the money earned in the round or choose the 50:50 lifeline.

Pragati chose the 50:50 lifeline.

For the 11th question, worth Rs 7.5 lakh, she used the Sanket Suchak lifeline and answered correctly.

She then moved on to the 12th question of the game, worth Rs 12 lakh.

Pragati gets Rs 12 lakh question wrong

Pragati was asked: Who chartered the Komagata Maru in 1914 to challenge Canada’s immigration restrictions?

The options were:

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A. Sohan Singh Bhakna


B. Lala Har Dayal


C. Baba Gurdit Singh


D. Kartar Singh Sarabha

Although she still had the 50:50 lifeline, Pragati decided not to use it and chose option D, Kartar Singh Sarabha.

However, the correct answer was Baba Gurdit Singh.

After getting the Rs 12 lakh question wrong, Pragati’s winnings dropped to Rs 5 lakh, which was the amount she ultimately took home.

Why Baba Gurdit Singh chartered the Komagata Maru

Baba Gurdit Singh chartered the Japanese steamship Komagata Maru in 1914 in an attempt to challenge Canada’s restrictive immigration laws.

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The ship carried 376 passengers, most of them Sikhs from Punjab, when it arrived in Vancouver. However, Canadian authorities refused to allow most of the passengers to enter the country because of the government’s “continuous journey” regulation, which effectively restricted immigration from India.

The ship was eventually forced to return to India. When the passengers arrived near Calcutta, several were killed in a confrontation with British authorities. The Komagata Maru incident is now remembered as an important episode in the history of Indian migration and the struggle against discriminatory immigration policies.