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Mumbai · Wednesday, 23 September 2026

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Salman Khan’s take on body-shaming breaks record, Bigg Boss 20 crosses 20 mn viewers

By Sohail Khan 23 September 2026, 4:41 pm

Bigg Boss 20: Just over two weeks after its premiere, Bigg Boss 20 has crossed a major digital viewership milestone. The Salman Khan-hosted reality show has crossed the 20-million mark in weekly streaming viewership, registering a sizeable jump from the previous week’s numbers.

According to Ormax Media’s StreamView data, Bigg Boss 20 recorded 20 million-plus unique viewers in the week ending September 20, becoming the first non-cricket property to cross the 20-million mark in a single week in 2026. Ormax’s metric counts unique viewers in India who watched the show for more than 30 minutes during the measurement period.

The jump becomes more significant when compared with the previous week’s figure. For the week of September 7-13, Bigg Boss 20 had recorded 16.8 million viewers, according to Ormax’s weekly OTT rankings. The show added more than 3.2 million viewers in a week.

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Did Salman Khan’s Weekend Ka Vaar help?

One of the biggest talking points of the week came from Weekend Ka Vaar, where Salman Khan took aim at the culture of trolling and, unusually, used himself as an example.

The conversation began around contestant ScoutOP and his comments about trolling, but soon moved to the kind of abuse celebrities routinely face online.

Salman pointed out that he is regularly trolled for his changing appearance and age, including comments about him having gained weight or looking older. The actor, who is 60, sarcastically challenged those trolling him to do it openly. He removed his hat and jacket and then took off his shirt on camera, showing his current physique and essentially telling the trolls to comment if they wanted to. He said that he cannot remain the Maine Pyaar Kiya version of himself forever and questioned why someone’s weight, looks or age should become a reason for ridicule.

Salman said that people had been speculating that he had gone bald or undergone a hair transplant. He clarified that the look was actually for a film project. He also revealed that a close friend had died around two months earlier. The actor said that while such comments may not affect him personally, similar trolling can have a serious impact on others.

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Without naming Katrina Kaif, Salman questioned why a woman should be trolled for gaining weight after becoming a mother. He pointed out that pregnancy naturally changes a woman’s body and argued that she should be allowed to spend time with her family rather than being subjected to scrutiny over her appearance.

The timing of the remarks led viewers to connect them with the trolling Katrina has faced over her post-pregnancy appearance

The ‘chest pain’ promo created another wave of curiosity

There was another Salman Khan moment that week that had viewers talking. A promo showed the actor apparently clutching his chest and collapsing, prompting concern among contestants and viewers about his health. Salman later clarified that he was fine and that the sequence was actually a prank directed at Qazi Touqeer.

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He also criticised the way the promo had been edited, saying the cut made it appear as though he was genuinely experiencing a health problem. The incident was linked to Qazi’s earlier prank inside the house, when he had pretended to be unwell and subsequently revealed that he had been acting. Salman used the incident to demonstrate how disturbing such a prank could be for people who genuinely believe that someone is in danger.

Other talking points

Salman, however, isn’t the only reason the season has been generating conversation. The week measured by Ormax also saw the contestants’ equations becoming more complicated. Mahhi Vij and Amrapali Dubey were involved in disagreements, while captaincy and ration-related tasks created fresh divisions in the house.

Qazi Tauqeer, meanwhile, has been gaining quite a lot of buzz due to his antics and is becoming audience favourite.

About Bigg Boss 20

Bigg Boss 20 has added substantially to its weekly streaming audience as the season moved deeper into its house dynamics. The show’s premiere had already been billed by JioStar as the biggest opening day for a reality show on JioHotstar, setting the tone for the 20th season. The next week saw the show at 16.8 million, before it climbed past 20 million in the following measurement period.

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Bigg Boss 20 premiered on September 6, 2026, and airs on Colors TV and streams digitally on Jio Hotstar.

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