From Roadies to Splitsvilla and now stepping into Bigg Boss 19, actor Baseer Ali has lived through every shade of reality television. But for him, the Bigg Boss stage isn't just another show; it's a make-or-break moment in his journey.
In an exclusive conversation with The Free Press Journal, Baseer opens up about his strategy, fears, reasons for taking up the show, and the image he hopes to create under host Salman Khan's watchful eye. Excerpts:
From winning Splitsvilla to entering Bigg Boss 19, what do you think is tougher?
Winning Splits was not difficult, I think, because that show happened right after Roadies and I was in the zone. I was doing the same things, just performing, moving ahead, performing, winning, moving ahead, but getting Bigg Boss was not. It was years of waiting, doing other work, still surviving the industry, being relevant, being able to do bigger projects, and still being able to be around social circles. From there to coming to Bigg Boss has also been a journey of its own.
Did you watch previous Bigg Boss seasons to prepare yourself, or are you going in completely raw and unfiltered?
I wouldn't say it's completely raw and unfiltered because I watched a lot of seasons before.
What is your Bigg Boss strategy? Splitsvilla gave you a lover-boy image, Roadies gave you a fighter image...what image do you want Bigg Boss to give you?
A perfect man image, like this is the guy you should go for. This is the kind of image that I want from this show.
Some contestants join Bigg Boss for fame, some for money, some for controversy. What’s your honest reason?
A better life, that's all I want. I've always, since the day I stepped into the industry, the only one thing I always wanted was a better life. I also want to provide a better life for my family. Whatever I am doing today, is for my future.
Did Salman Khan personally being the host play a role in you saying yes to the show?
Definitely. If it was not Salman Khan, I probably wouldn't have done it.
In Splitsvilla, you had Sunny Leone as a mentor, in Bigg Boss, you will have Salman. Who do you think is scarier?
Hey, why is Sunny scary? She's such a sweetheart, I've had such a beautiful time with Sunny Leone, I'm not gonna lie. Even before she became a mother, we were on the sets of Splitsvilla and I was not even a contestant. I was shooting food content for the show. We used to have a lot of time, so in the evenings Rannvijay sir, Sunny, their entourages, me, my co-host, we all used to have the maddest pool parties in Jim Corbett National Park. So Sunny is not scary at all. Salman sir is lovely but scary as hell.
One thing Baseer Ali can’t survive without outside, will you be able to survive without it inside the house?
I would have loved to have my PlayStation with me the whole time.
You found love in Splitsvilla. Are you open to falling in love again inside the Bigg Boss house?
I've been single for a lot of months now and the reason why I was single was because I was emotionally unavailable and I was not happy in my own space. I wanted to be busier, I wanted to be doing bigger and better projects. Now I've got that. So definitely now the door opens up to relationships and being in love.
Bigg Boss is often called a 'career gamble.' Are you worried this show could break your image instead of making it?
Absolutely, I'm standing at a make or break pedestal right now.
You’ve been called overconfident in reality shows before. Do you think that tag will follow you into Bigg Boss?
Yes, because people like me are not the masses, people like me are maybe the 0.1 per cent. So it's obvious that everybody's gonna think I am extra or say, 'Oh my God he's too much', 'Oh my God his attitude is too much', 'Why does he behave like this?', 'Why does he talk like this?' Because I am like this. So now because of that thing, I've been around for so many years, I know no matter how people perceive me, I'm going to be like this.
Many ex-Splitsvillans entered Bigg Boss but didn’t make it to the finale. Do you think you can break that curse?
I don't want to say this because in the last show I was boasting a lot that I was going to be in every show finale. Suddenly, I got voted out just before the finale and somehow the finalists got me to perform and then they won. Without me performing, that team wouldn't win. So I have kind of been a finalist on that as well.
In previous shows, you’ve had fights, friendships, and flings on-screen. What are you open to repeating in the Bigg Boss house, and what’s totally off-limits?
All of the above. Fights, friends, girls, love, breakups, patch-ups. That is life, right? This is exactly what life is. You give chances to people, people end up disappointing you. Then you give another chance. If you're done, then you don't. So I think that's exactly what's going to happen on Bigg Boss with me.
