Petition Filed to Ban Big Boss Hosted by Salman Khan

Now widely synonymous for more than a decade among a mainstream Indian audience, Bigg Boss is another reality-based programme, hosted by Bollywood celebrity Salman Khan.

The controversial content combined with over-the-top dramas and celebrities from the star-studded industry attract million viewers each season. Although the show is very famous, it has been on the receiving end of harsh comments with each passing year.

Many viewers, experts, and groups of society have expressed their concern over the growing influence of the show upon societal values, especially that of the younger generation.

So, The Philox-the collective of media ethics, social responsibility-has filed a public interest litigation demanding that the show Bigg Boss must be banned for some action, staged fights, and unethical behavior.

Rising Controversies Surrounding Bigg Boss

Since its launch in the year 2006, Bigg Boss has been one big topic for both appreciation and condemnation. Of course, the show can be deemed to be really successful, in terms of viewership and ratings; however, its social impacts have raised quite a debate.

All it basically promises is: a set of contestants living in a house who are all under the nose of camera lenses all through performing different activities and getting outvoted by the masses.

But it is the interpersonal drama—the constant bickering, personal attacks, and even fights—that usually holds the center of the show.

Reality shows have been charged with promoting the wrong kinds of behavior and values. Aggressive confrontations, emotional breakdowns, and exploitation of contestants’ personal lives raise questions about the ethical value of such content.

Most people say that it encourages toxic behavior rather than creating positive, respectful relationships.

Critics further argue that these flashpoints of violence and strife are sometimes dramatized and even invented for the sake of an entertaining show, raising suspicion about the genuineness and influence of the TV show.

The Philox Files the Petition

As an organization devoted to the cause of responsible media content, The Philox has taken a strong stance by filing a petition to ban Bigg Boss.

According to The Philox, the show is crossing all ethical boundaries and producing content that is harmful for viewers, especially the youth. Some of the grounds on which the petition requests the banning of Bigg Boss are:

1. Promotion of Violence: Another important issue that the petition raises is the way the show promotes violence.

It has fights, verbal as well as physical, between contestants. These fights mostly take a very short period to become intense, with one contestant shouting at another and sometimes even throwing objects or getting into a physical altercation.

The violence is seen as a form of entertainment, which critics say conveys the wrong message to viewers. It says that the show normalizes aggression especially towards the viewership of the show who may start living such life on their own.

2. The use of faked and manufactured fights: The other factor that is raised by this petition is that the actual fights on Bigg Boss are fake and have a lot of dramatization as if the people on stage are doing some kind of stunt for fun.

Several contestants have confessed that the producers would often push them to get into some drama or even create conflicts just to keep the audience glued.

The petition states that this manipulation of content is unethical as it misrepresents reality and deceives the audience into believing that those conflicts are spontaneous when in fact they are orchestrated for entertainment.

3. Exploitative Content: Bigg Boss has been criticized for exploiting contestants’ personal lives. The show often focuses on the private matters of contestants, including their relationships, past trauma, and emotional struggles.

This intimate exposure, combined with the pressure to perform for the cameras, can have detrimental effects on the well-being of participants. Many contestants have reported feeling emotionally drained after their time on the show, and some have faced public backlash due to the portrayal of their personal lives.

The petition argues that Bigg Boss exploits these personal moments for financial gain without considering the psychological or emotional impact on the contestants.

4. Promotion of Toxic Behavior: The format of the show encourages some toxic behaviors that can have lasting impacts on viewers, especially the young ones.

Manipulation, backstabbing, and betrayal are very common aspects of the game. The petition from The Philox indicates that normalizing such toxic traits might lead to real-life implications where the young viewers might be imbibing these traits in their personal relationships and interactions.

The Impact of Bigg Boss on Viewers

Another significant point that The Philox raised in their petition was the impact of Bigg Boss on its viewers. Bigg Boss has massive viewership, especially amongst teenagers and young adults.

According to research, reality television, especially shows like Bigg Boss, can influence the attitude and behavior of young viewers. A 2019 study published by the Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media reported that exposure to aggressive reality TV content increases aggressive behaviors among viewers, especially violence without consequences.

In addition, the display of unhealthy relationship and toxic interactions in Bigg Boss may hamper viewers perceptions of relationships. For instance, many young people would think that argument and emotional blackmail is always a part of every relation.

It can lead towards a kind of behavior pattern which undermines the healthy ability to develop respect based and healthy relations in the outer world.

In addition, reality shows such as Bigg Boss often give a false sense of reality. The audience is made to believe that the events that are happening on the screen are real, even though they are edited and manipulated.

This gives a distorted view of reality, which can have long-term effects on how young viewers interpret their own lives and relationships.

Role of Salman Khan as Host

Salman Khan, hosting the show since its inception, also plays a very important role in shaping the public view.

While Khan’s stardom has undoubtedly catapulted the show to unparalleled heights, some critics do opine that his participation somehow gives legitimacy to some of the controversial content on display here.

As one of the most powerful celebrities in Bollywood, his influence on public opinion is crucial, and the role of being a face for Bigg Boss may lend the show legitimacy despite all the criticism that it receives.

Some believe that Khan could leverage his platform to advocate for more responsible content on the show, less drama and conflict, and more positive messages. Instead, the show often relies on Khan’s charisma and larger-than-life persona to distract from the underlying ethical issues at play.

Public Reaction to the Petition

Mixed responses were elicited by a petition that the show has put up through The Philox.

People supporting the movement claim that Bigg Boss has gone too far into toxic behavior portrayals and has reached the point when their negative influence must be shown to have an effect through the cancellation of the program.

In this, some believe it will set in a stronger message of accountability towards the ethics of the programme and society at large.

But then again, the other side says, it’s all for entertainment only, and that one can avoid watching if one wants.

They claim the controversies built around Bigg Boss happen to exaggerate the stuff, which portrays a real kind of human emotion and confrontation. In such a world, Bigg Boss proves to be a break through from this daily routine cycle, filled with drama, excitement that the normal world of TV will not provide for them.

The petition filed by The Philox to ban Bigg Boss hosted by Salman Khan raises very important concerns about the content of reality TV shows and their impact on society. By promoting violence, staging confrontations, and exploiting contestants’ personal lives, Bigg Boss has faced widespread criticism for its lack of ethical responsibility.

The Philox believes that this sort of content harms the audience more, especially younger audiences, and thus, there should be a review of this kind of program in Indian media.

As reality television grows in popularity, it is crucial to take into account the long-term implications of such shows on society and what values they instill. Whether the petition will indeed lead to a ban is yet to be seen, but one thing is sure: Bigg Boss has set off a very significant conversation about the role of media in the molding of public perception and behavior.