Bigg Boss is an Indian Telugu-language television reality show of the Bigg Boss franchise which airs on Star Maa and streams on JioHotstar in India. It follows the format of the Dutch reality show Big Brother, which was first developed by Endemol in the Netherlands.
Starting in 2017, the show has rolled out nine seasons so far; Jr NTR and Nani hosted Season 1 and Season 2 respectively, while Nagarjuna is hosting the show from Season 3 onwards. Season 2,[1] Season 6[2] and Season 9[3] featured general public along with celebrities as housemates.
Overview
Bigg Boss is based on the Dutch series Big Brother format developed by John de Mol Jr.. A number of contestants known as "housemates" live in a purpose-built house and are isolated from the rest of the world. Each week, housemates nominate two of their fellow housemates for eviction, and the housemates who receive the most nominations would face a public vote. Eventually, one housemate would leave after being "evicted" from the House. In the final week, there were five housemates remaining, and the public voted for who they wanted to win. Unlike other versions of Big Brother, the Indian version uses celebrities as housemates, In season two, Bigg Boss team selected three common people as contestants from the auditions.
Rules
While all the rules have never been told to the audience, the most prominent ones are clearly seen. The housemates are not permitted to talk in any other language except Telugu.
They always have to wear a label and They cannot leave the House premises at any time unless they are evicted or decided by Bigg Boss. They can not discuss the nomination process with anyone. They are not allowed to sleep without the permission of Bigg Boss.
House
The house for season one was set up at Lonavala.[4] From season two onwards, the house was set up in Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad.[5] The house is well-furnished and decorated. It has a variety of modern amenities, but just one or multiple bedrooms and four toilet bath rooms. There is a garden, pool, activity area, gym, jail and lounge room in the house. There is also a Confession Room, where the housemates may be called in by Bigg Boss for any kind of conversation, and for the nomination process. In season three, courtyard part was added and in season seven, balcony was added in the house.
Broadcast
Bigg Boss is aired on Star Maa and also available on JioHotstar. Everyday episodes contain the main happenings of the previous day. Every Sunday episode mainly focuses on an interview of an evicted contestant by the host. The unseen episode will be available as Bigg Boss Buzzz on Star Maa Music and JioHotstar.
Series details
Housemate pattern
| Clique | Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4 | Season 5 | Season 6 | Season 7 | Season 8 | Season 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film / TV actor | Aadarsh Balakrishna | Amit Tiwari | Ali Reza | Abijeet | Hamida Khatoon | Arjun Kalyan | Amardeep Chowdary | Abhay Bethiganti | Ayesha Zeenath |
| Archana Shastry | Bhanu Sree | Hema | Akhil Sarthak | Lahari Shari | Baladitya | Arjun | Aditya Om | Bharani Shankar | |
| Ashwini Sri | Avinash | ||||||||
| Dhanraj | Kaushal Manda | Himaja | Avinash | Maanas | Chanti | Gautham Krishna | Gautham Krishna | Emanuel | |
| Diksha Panth | Faima Sheikh | ||||||||
| Hari Teja | Kireeti Damaraju | Mahesh Vitta | Divi Vadathya | Priyanka Singh | Inaya Sultana | Kiran Rathod | Hari Teja | Flora Saini | |
| Jyothi | Keerthi Bhat | Pooja Murthy | Naga Manikanta | ||||||
| Mumaith Khan | Nandini Rai | Punarnavi Bhupalam | Karate Kalyani | Shailaja Priya | Marina Abraham | Priyanka Jain | Nikhil Maliyakkal | Gaurav Gupta | |
| Navdeep | Pooja Ramachandran | Ravi Krishna | Kumar Sai | Siri Hanmanth | Rohit Sahni | Rathika Rose | Prerana Kambam | Nikhil Nair | |
| Prince Cecil | Shani Salmon | Prithviraj Shetty | Sanjana | ||||||
| Sameer Hasan | Samrat Reddy | Rohini Reddy | Monal Gajjar | VJ Sunny | Sri Satya | Shakeela | Rohini Reddy | Srinivas Sai | |
| Sampoornesh Babu | Tanish | Varun Sandesh | Swathi Deekshith | Swetha Varma | Sudeepa Pinky | Shobha Shetty | Seetha | Suman Setty | |
| Siva Balaji | Tejaswi Madivada | Vithika Sheru | Syed Sohel | Uma Devi | Vasanthi Krishnan | Sivaji | Sonia Akula | Thanuja Puttaswamy | |
| Vishwa Raj | Subhashree | Yashmi Gowda | |||||||
| TV Host / Presenter | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | Syamala | Shilpa Chakravarthy | Ariyana Glory | Lobo Khayyum | Neha Chowdary | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | Vishnupriyaa | Rithu Chowdary |
| Sreemukhi | Lasya Manjunath | Ravi Kiran | |||||||
| News Reader | Kathi Karthika | Deepthi Nallamuthu | Jaffar Babu | Devi Nagavalli | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | Arohi Rao | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | rowspan="2" Template:N/a |
| Siva Jyothi | Sujatha | ||||||||
| Music personality | Kalpana Raghavendar | Geetha Madhuri | Rahul Sipligunj | Noel Sean | Sreerama Chandra | L. V. Revanth | Bhole Shavali | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | Ramu Rathod |
| Madhu Priya | Roll Rida | Damini | |||||||
| Radio Jockey | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Kajal Seelamsetty | Surya Narayana | Template:N/a | Shekar Basha | Template:N/a |
| Model | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Jaswanth | Raja Shekar | Prince Yawar | Template:N/a | Template:N/a |
| Film Critic / Humanist | Mahesh Kathi | Babu Gogineni | Tamanna Simhadhri | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a |
| Choreographer | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | Baba Bhaskar | Amma Rajasekhar | Anee | Abhinayashree | Sandeep | Nainika Anasuru | Shrasti Verma |
| Nataraj | |||||||||
| Film Director | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Surya Kiran | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a | Template:N/a |
| Internet personality | rowspan="6" Template:N/a | Deepthi Sunaina | Ashu Reddy | Alekhya Harika | Sarayu Roy | Geetu | Nayani Pavani | Gangavva | Divvala Madhuri |
| Madhoo Nekkanti | |||||||||
| Gangavva | Pallavi Prasanth | Mehaboob Shaikh | |||||||
| Shanmukh Jaswanth | Shrihan | Nabeel Afridi | Ramya Moksha | ||||||
| Mehaboob Shaikh | Teja | Nayani Pavani | |||||||
| Teja | |||||||||
| Commoner | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | Ganesh | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | Adi Reddy | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | rowspan="7" Template:N/a | Demon Pavan |
| Divya Nikhita | |||||||||
| Nutan Naidu | Harita Harish | ||||||||
| Kalyan Padala | |||||||||
| Sanjana Anne | |||||||||
| Maryada Manish | |||||||||
| Priya Shetty | |||||||||
| Srija Dammu | |||||||||
| Total | 16 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 21 | 19 | 22 | 22 |
| Template:Color box Winner Template:Color box Runner-up Template:Color box Finalist | |||||||||
Spin-offs
Bigg Boss Non-Stop
The series is also set to roll out a digital version of the show called Bigg Boss Non-Stop, which was also hosted by Nagarjuna and broadcast by Disney+ Hotstar for 24×7 coverage.[6][7][8]
Bigg Boss Agnipariksha
Bigg Boss Agnipariksha is a digital pre-show of Bigg Boss 9. It will feature 15 contestants from 40 selected commoners to earn their spot in the Bigg Boss Telugu 9 house. This show is scheduled to premiere on 22 August 2025 on JioHotstar with former contestants Sreemukhi as host and Abijeet, Bindu Madhavi, Navdeep as judges.[9][10][11]
Reception
Season 1
Bigg Boss Telugu programme is regarded as the most expensive Telugu television show.[12] The launch of season 1 opened with 16.18 TVR and became as the most watched Telugu television show.[13]
Season 2
The launch of season 2 opened with 15.05 TVR.
Season 3
The launch of season 3 opened with 17.9 TVR, which is bigger than the previous seasons.[14] The grand finale of season 3 of duration four and half hours scored 18.29 TVR being the highest ever rating achieved by the Bigg Boss Indian franchise. The last hour of telecast, featuring Chiranjeevi as chief guest, alone garnered 22.4 TVR.[15]
Season 4
The launch of season 4 opened with 18.5 TVR[16] higher than previous seasons. On Week 7, Samantha Akkineni hosted the show, while main host Nagarjuna is in Manali for his movie shooting and the episode was also extended to 3 hours, from the usual 1½ hours and the episode opened with 11.4 TVR,Template:Citation needed which was higher trp among all the weekends. The grand finale of season 4 became most watched and created a record with viewership as it garnered highest TRP rating of 21.7 TVR among all seasons of Bigg Boss editions.[17]
Season 5
The launch of fifth season has received about 17.7 TVR in general and 18 TVR with HD viewership and also, the latest rating proves that show's popularity has remained intact.[18] The grand finale episode had secured 18.4 TVR and millions of views on Disney+ Hotstar.[19]
Season 6
The launch episode opened with 8.86 TVR, while finale episode received 8.17 TVR and recorded has lowest TRPs in the history of the reality TV series in Telugu. The week's average TVR for this season failed to surpass the bar set by its predecessors, too.[20][21]
Season 7
The grand finale of season 7 garnered TRP ratings of 21.7 TVR.[22][23]
Season 8
The launch episode received TRP ratings of 18.9TVR.
Season 9
The launch episode received TRP ratings of 13.7 TVR .The weekly average TRP of the season crossed 11 TVR and weekends got a 14 TVR which is highest among the previous five seasons as per the BARC Ratings.[1]
Companion shows
Bigg Boss Buzzz
Bigg Boss Buzzz is an Indian Telugu-language Television talk show with evicted housemates of reality television series Bigg Boss Telugu. From season 3 onwards, the show features evicted housemates interview with previous season contestant as a host and also unseen portions of episodes that were not aired on television will be aired on Star Maa Music.
| Season | Title | Host | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Bigg Boss 3 Buzzz | Tanish | Second runner-up of Season 2[24] |
| 4 | Bigg Boss 4 Buzzz | Rahul Sipligunj | Winner of Season 3[25] |
| 5 | Bigg Boss 5 Buzzz | Ariyana Glory | Third runner-up of Season 4[26] |
| 6 | Bigg Boss 6 Buzzz | Shiva | Second Runner-up of BB Non-Stop 1[27] |
| 7 | Bigg Boss 7 Buzzz | Geetu | Contestant of Season 6[28] |
| 8 | Bigg Boss 8 Buzzz | Ambati Arjun | Fifth Runner-up of Season 7[29] |
| 9 | Bigg Boss 9 Buzzz | Sivaji | Second Runner-up of Season 7[30] |
BB Cafe
BB Cafe is an review based show about the reality television series Bigg Boss Telugu. From season 6 onwards, The show features previous seasons contestants as host and will discusses all the topics of Bigg Boss episodes. The show will continue to give more clarity on war, love and other interesting topics between the contestants and it premiers on Star Maa Music.
| Season | Title | Host | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | BB Cafe | Ariyana Glory | 3rd Runner-up of Season 4 and BB Non-Stop 1 |
See also
Notes
References
- ↑ Common man entry in Bigg Boss Telugu season 2.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu Season 6: You Can Be A Part Of The Show. Details Inside. News18. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 9: Nagarjuna announces reality show is open to commoners; here's how you can apply. Hindustan Times. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
- ↑ Tollywood drug case: Mumaith Khan leaves Bigg Boss Telugu house in Lonavala. Hindustan Times(27 July 2017).
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 3: From launch date to probable contestants, all you need to know about the upcoming season. The Times of India(8 July 2019).
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu: New Season in Two Months. The Hans India. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
- ↑ Nagarjuna Akkineni-hosted Bigg Boss Telugu OTT announced; here's what the Telugu superstar has to say - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Non-Stop to premiere on February 26; host Nagarjuna Akkineni confirms with a teaser, watch - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 9 Agnipariksha: The real test starts now!. Times of India. Retrieved 2025-07-25.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 9: Abijeet, Bindu Madhavi, and Navdeep to handpick commoner contestants. Times of India. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ↑ Bigg Boss 9 Telugu twist: Commoners to compete for entry through a special show, Sreemukhi to host. OTTplay. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
- ↑ Junior NTR's Bigg Boss Is The 'Most Expensive' Telugu Show. NDTV. Retrieved 2017-07-07.
- ↑ N. T. Rama Rao Jr.'s Bigg Boss Telugu tops TRP charts making Star Maa No. 1 Telugu TV channel, Hooli, Shekhar H.. www.ibtimes.co.in(2017-07-27). Retrieved 2020-12-13.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 3 launch ratings: Samantha Akkineni hails host Nagarjuna - Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-12-31.
- ↑ Finale of Bigg Boss 3 Telugu hits 18.29 TRP ratings, Chiranjeevi episode 22.4 ratings. www.tollywood.net(14 November 2019). Retrieved 2020-12-31.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu records highest TRPs among all editions. The News Minute(20 September 2020). Retrieved 2020-09-23.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu grand finale becomes the biggest show of 2020. Indian Television Dot Com(January 2021). Retrieved 2021-01-02.
- ↑ TV Ratings: Bigg Boss 5 Telugu Gets Good Start | greatandhra. www.greatandhra.com(16 September 2021). Retrieved 2021-09-16.
- ↑ Bigg Boss 5 Telugu Finale episode acquires record breaking TRP but fails to beat 4th season. Tollywood(2021-12-30). Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- ↑ Bigg Boss 6 Telugu TRP Rating: Here Is The Reason Behind A Huge Drop In Akkineni Nagarjuna's Show!. www.filmibeat.com(2022-09-15). Retrieved 2023-08-19.
- ↑ Bigg Boss 6 Telugu Finale TRP Ratings Out!. Sakshi Post. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu 7 TRP report: Nagarjuna - hosted show sets a new record. Pinkvilla.
- ↑ Bigg Boss Telugu Season 7’s TRP hits the sky, the grand finale garners the highest viewership. Filmify.
- ↑ Bigg Boss 3 Buzz: యాంకర్గానూ తనీష్ అట్టర్ ఫ్లాప్.. డిస్ లైక్స్ మోత. Samayam Telugu. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
- ↑ Star Maa Launched 'Bigg Boss 4 Telugu Buzz' Who Will Host?, Sherry. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
- ↑ Ariyana Glory To Host Bigg Boss Buzz Telugu 5, Bellamkonda. The India Media(6 September 2021). Retrieved 2021-09-06.
- ↑ Former Bigg Boss Telugu contestants Ariyana Glory and Shiva team up for 'BB Cafe'; watch promo - Times of India. The Times of India(2022-09-01). Retrieved 2022-09-01.
- ↑ BiggBossBuzzz - Watch Geetu's Exclusive Interviews on Recent Bigg Boss Evictions | Daily 10AM & 6 PM.
- ↑ Template:Cite AV media
- ↑ Template:Cite AV media
External links
Template:Big Brother Template:Bigg Boss (franchise) Template:Bigg Boss Telugu