Shilpa Shinde praises Salman Khan, says he'd have 'sorted out' Shivangi Joshi
Synopsis
Shilpa Shinde's Instagram video is one part fan appreciation, one part score-settling. By praising Salman Khan's handling of Bigg Boss 20 trolls and wishing he had hosted Lock Upp — where Shivangi Joshi, cryptically called 'Annabella', was runner-up — Shinde keeps a reality-TV rivalry simmering while simultaneously boosting underdogs Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij.
Key Takeaways
Shilpa Shinde praised Salman Khan for his conduct on the latest Bigg Boss 20 Weekend Ka Vaar episode.
She cryptically said she wished Salman had been on Lock Upp so he could have 'sorted out' Shivangi Joshi , whom she calls 'Annabella'.
Shinde threw her support behind Bigg Boss 20 contestants Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij , calling them 'real' and 'straightforward'.
Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa ended on 5 August 2026 — Shreya Kalra won ₹1 crore ; Shivangi Joshi was runner-up.
Bigg Boss 20 launched on 6 September 2026 with 16 contestants on Colors TV and JioHotstar .
Actress Shilpa Shinde has heaped praise on Salman Khan for his handling of trolls during the latest Bigg Boss 20 Weekend Ka Vaar episode, while cryptically expressing regret that the superstar was not present on the reality show she recently participated in — suggesting he could have 'sorted out' fellow contestant Shivangi Joshi, whom Shinde obliquely refers to as 'Annabella'.
What Shilpa Shinde Said
Shinde shared a video on Instagram, openly backing Bigg Boss 20 contestants Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij, calling their gameplay 'very straightforward' and 'real'. In the clip, she said: 'I hope you are watching Bigg Boss. I watched Bigg Boss, especially the weekend episode. The episode I watched last Saturday, my God, my heart is so cold.'
She added: 'I wish I had played Salman Khan in the show I just did. Then I would have beaten Anabella. I would have never said that your game is very good. But what can I say, I enjoyed it so much. My heart is so cold after watching the weekend episode.'
Shinde also remarked, 'I don't know why, the whole house is behind me with Qazi and Mahhi,' indicating a perceived bias against the two contestants inside the house.
The Lock Upp Connection
Shinde's comments are widely understood to be directed at her experience on Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa, the rival reality show that was hosted by Farah Khan and Riteish Deshmukh. The grand finale of Lock Upp streamed on 5 August 2026, with Shreya Kalra winning the season and taking home a cash prize of ₹1 crore. Shivangi Joshi finished as the runner-up.
Notably, Shinde's use of the codename 'Annabella' for Joshi suggests an ongoing, if veiled, rivalry — and her praise for Salman Khan's no-nonsense hosting style on Bigg Boss reads as a pointed contrast to how she felt her own show was handled.
Shinde's Support for Qazi and Mahhi
Beyond her remarks about Lock Upp, Shinde used the video primarily to champion Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij in the current Bigg Boss season. 'These people are not bad at all. They are playing very straightforwardly. So I want everyone to like them, support them because they are real,' she said. She added that the rest of the contestants appeared to be 'hiding something from themselves — there is something and show something else.'
She concluded by directly addressing the host: 'Salman Ji, you made my heart happy. I missed you a lot in this lock-up show. And this is especially for you, for Salman Ji.'
About Bigg Boss 20
The 20th edition of Bigg Boss launched on 6 September 2026 on Colors TV and JioHotstar, with a lineup of 16 celebrity contestants including MC Mary Kom, Kanika Mann, Mahhi Vij, Kushal Tanwar, Aman Gandhi, Isha Rikhi, Arishfa Khan, Qazi Touqeer, Asif Khan, Aamrapali Dubey, Rhiti Tiwari, Uditi Singh, Tanmay Singh aka ScoutOP, Yung DSA, and Love Gill. The long-running franchise is the Indian adaptation of the Dutch Big Brother format.
With audience interest in Bigg Boss 20 running high and Lock Upp fresh in memory, Shinde's remarks are likely to keep fan debates alive well into the season's upcoming episodes.
Point of View
Yet the 'Annabella' framing ensures fans do the work. More significantly, her open endorsement of Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij, two contestants widely seen as underdogs, could meaningfully shift viewer voting patterns in a format where celebrity backing carries weight. The deeper story here is the contrasting reception to Lock Upp and Bigg Boss: a winner-takes-all format with ₹1 crore at stake still could not generate the host-loyalty that Salman Khan commands. That is a branding gap no rival show has yet closed.
NationPress
29 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Shilpa Shinde criticise Shivangi Joshi?
Shilpa Shinde did not name Shivangi Joshi directly but cryptically referred to her as 'Annabella' while expressing regret that Salman Khan was not present on Lock Upp to 'sort her out'. Joshi finished as runner-up on Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa, which ended on 5 August 2026.
Who won Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa?
Shreya Kalra won the Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa grand finale, which streamed on 5 August 2026, taking home a cash prize of ₹1 crore. Shivangi Joshi was the runner-up.
Why is Shilpa Shinde supporting Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij on Bigg Boss 20?
Shinde called Qazi Touqeer and Mahhi Vij 'real' and 'straightforward' in her Instagram video, contrasting them with other contestants she implied are inauthentic. She urged viewers to support them because 'they are real'.
When did Bigg Boss 20 start and who are the contestants?
Bigg Boss 20 launched on 6 September 2026 on Colors TV and JioHotstar, featuring 16 celebrity contestants including MC Mary Kom, Kanika Mann, Mahhi Vij, Qazi Touqeer, Arishfa Khan, Aamrapali Dubey, and others.
What did Shilpa Shinde say about Salman Khan?
Shinde praised Salman Khan for 'making her heart happy' with his conduct on the Bigg Boss 20 Weekend Ka Vaar episode, specifically applauding him for slamming trolls. She said she 'missed' him on Lock Upp and dedicated her video message directly to him.
