Tanya Mittal, Amaal Mallik Involved in BB 19 Captaincy Task Controversy

The Bigg Boss 19 house, already simmering with alliances and rivalries since the show's October 6 premiere, erupted into another controversy on Thursday as wildcard entrant Malti Chahar alleged that contestant Tanya Mittal kissed a puzzle piece featuring singer Amaal Mallik's image during a captaincy task. The claim, made amid a heated post-task conversation, has deepened fractures among housemates, with Mittal's supporters labelling it "character assassination" and fans online rallying against Chahar's motives.

Hosted by Salman Khan on Colours TV, the season—featuring a mix of influencers, actors, and musicians—has drawn peak viewership of 15 million since its theme of "Time Ka Tandav" kicked off, but incidents like this underscore the show's penchant for amplifying personal jabs into viral scandals.

The drama unfolded during a jigsaw puzzle challenge designed to determine captaincy contenders, where pairs of housemates donned oversized shoes to assemble images of fellow contestants within a time limit. Mittal and Chahar, the sister of cricketer Deepak Chahar who entered as the second wildcard on October 5, were teamed up to complete Mallik's portrait—a pairing that fans noted given Mittal's evident admiration for the composer, whom she has likened to an ex-boyfriend in earlier episodes. As the task progressed, Chahar tossed a puzzle piece toward Mittal, teasingly asking if she wanted to "kiss it", a moment captured on the 24/7 live feed.

Mittal won the round, advancing to the final captaincy poll, but tensions boiled over afterward when Chahar confided in Neelam Giri and Shehbaz Gill that she had "literally seen" Mittal kiss the photo while picking it up. "Mere saamne usne Amaal ke photo ko kiss kiya... Bade smartly karti hai woh cheezein," Chahar insisted, dismissing suggestions it was a misinterpretation. Giri, a vocal ally of Mittal, rebuked her, urging caution: "Don't make baseless claims unless you're 100% sure—this could backfire on Weekend Ka Vaar."

Chahar's entry has polarised the house into Team Mallik—comprising Mittal, Giri, Zeishan Quadri, and Baseer Ali—and Team Abhishek Bajaj, including Gaurav Khanna and Ashnoor Kaur, with her bold style exacerbating divides. Prior clashes saw Chahar grill Mittal on her "struggle stories", questioning her vegetarian claims with old video clips and refusing kitchen duties until tasks were done, leading to a showdown with captain Farhana Bhat.

Mallik himself intervened during one spat, advising Chahar against abusive language to avoid Khan's weekend reprimands—a pattern echoing past seasons where host interventions have evicted contestants like Sidharth Shukla in BB13. Mittal, a Gwalior-based content creator and businesswoman known for her emotional narratives, has faced scrutiny for her fixation on Mallik, with shippers dubbing them "AmaTanya" on social media, amassing 500,000 posts on X since Week 1.

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Netizens erupted on platforms like Instagram and X, with #MaltiLies trending at 200,000 mentions, as users accused Chahar of jealousy over her budding rapport with Mallik. "This is disgusting—why target Tanya's personal space? Malti is a cheap player," one fan tweeted, while defenders countered, "Malti spoke facts; Tanya's obsessed." The incident risks escalating during Saturday's Weekend Ka Vaar, where Khan typically dissects viral moments with footage reviews, potentially swaying evictions in a season already marred by low TRPs from early monotony.

As alliances shift—Chahar is now at odds with multiple groups—the controversy highlights Bigg Boss's formula of manufactured intimacy, drawing parallels to BB17's Isha Malviya-Jabaz affair that boosted ratings by 30%. With 12 contestants left, including Pranit More and Kunickaa Sadanand, viewers anticipate Khan's verdict could realign loyalties before the next nomination round.

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