Varun Badola Fills in for Sachin Pilgaonkar in Yeh Hai Jalwa

9X’s new reality show, Yeh Hai Jalwa, has some of the most popular faces of the industry participating in it, right from Prachi Desai to Rakhi Sawant and Shweta Tiwari and Ronit Roy, Rohit Roy, Sharad Malhotra to Hussain Kuwajerwala. But rumor has it that one of the stalwarts of the industry, Sachin Pilgaonkar who was to participate in the celebrity dance show, has backed out due to date issues. The Telly Buzz team got in touch with Sachin to find out if it’s the truth and also got to know who’ll be stepping in his shows.

Speaking about why he backed out of the show, Sachin says, “I had to opt out of the show, Yeh Hai Jalwa, because of my film. The post production work has started and dubbing will start on the 5^th of March.” Elaborating further, he says, “The film is slated for release on the 11^th of March. And this film is like my baby and requires me more than anything else as it is directed, produced and distributed by me and I am acting in it too. I am disappointed that I will not be able to do this show, as dance is one of my passions, but I will be under constant stress with my film. If it was judging I would have gladly done it but with the pressure of my film I will not be able to do justice to my performances in the show.”

Who then will be replacing Sachin in the show? Sources reveal that Varun Badola has been approached to fill in the spot vacated by Sachin. When contacted, Varun said, “I haven’t made a decision as yet. Talks are still going on and nothing is finalized as yet.” But are you interested in doing another reality show after all the controversies associated with your previous show? Varun replies, “I do not have aversion towards reality show. It’s just that the schedule gets very hectic. And I want to understand the whole concept of the show before I make a decision.”

Although Varun says he hasn’t made a decision as yet, our reliable source confirms that he has taken up the offer. Well, Varun sure made a name in singing, now it remains to be seen if he can conquer the hearts of the audience yet again, after Nach Baliye with his dancing skills.

Reporter and Author: Melanie