Tanishaa Mukerji Says Bigg Boss Manipulated Her Relationship With Armaan Kohli

Tanishaa Mukerji has described Bigg Boss as a game of manipulation, claiming the reality show’s format encouraged her to develop feelings for fellow contestant Armaan Kohli. Speaking on the YouTube channel Unfolding Humans, the actor reflected on her experience during Season 7 in 2013 and said she had not understood the psychological impact of the situations created inside the house.

Tanishaa Mukerji on her relationship with Armaan Kohli

Tanishaa admitted that she had entered the show without fully understanding what to expect. She said the makers placed contestants in situations that encouraged them to see each other as allies, creating a sense of loyalty and emotional closeness.

"They manipulate you into these things. They put you together in dump situations, in jail together, so again you are sympathising with each other over your misery. All these experiences build fake emotions in you which are not really yours. The emotions that have been built up are because of the experiences you have had together, which, again, you didn’t choose to have. These are the situations determined by the people controlling the game show. These are the things I realised later," she said.

The actor also claimed that being placed on the same team as Armaan gave them more opportunities to interact. She said she felt familiar with him because both came from film industry families.

Tanishaa says it took six months to move on

Reflecting on the aftermath, Tanishaa said the relationship involved what she described as trauma bonding. She also revealed that she sought professional help after leaving the show.

"And then the situations put us into those moments where there was a lot of trauma bonding. After I came out, I had to go to a psychiatrist. It took me six months to break out of Bigg Boss brainwashing. You have to be very careful when you go into these reality shows, and today kids are a lot more sorted. I think it is because of the background I come from, as I was living in a bubble. I was in a very live-and-let-live, easy space. I didn’t experience manipulation until I entered the Bigg Boss house," she said.

Tanishaa and Armaan’s relationship

Tanishaa and Armaan grew close during Bigg Boss 7 in 2013. Their relationship continued to attract attention after the show, but they reportedly parted ways in 2014 after dating for about a year. Tanishaa later said they had different ideologies and were very different people