Every season of Bigg Boss brings its share of drama, but it also quietly does something else — it puts India’s diversity on full display, right down to the classrooms and colleges its contestants once walked through. Bigg Boss 20 is no different. Behind the glamour, the game strategies and the midnight arguments, this year’s housemates carry résumés that range from elite sports academies to fine arts degrees to self-made hustle stories with no formal degree at all. As Salman Khan welcomes this eclectic bunch into the house, here’s a closer look at what shaped them long before the cameras started rolling.
Amrapali Dubey
Top Bhojpuri actress wanted to become a doctor, as per reports. She was born in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, and later moved to Mumbai with her grandfather to complete her studies. She attended Bhavan’s College in Mumbai, where she graduated.
Rohed Khan
Rohed Khan is an Austrian actor and model whose career spans Bollywood, European and international productions. He is fluent in German, English, Dari/Farsi and Hindi. Rohed did several international advertising campaigns for brands including Gillette, Doritos, Harley-Davidson and Sony Camera, among others, as per Siasat. Rohed made his Bollywood debut with Tejas, the 2023 action film starring Kangana Ranaut.
Qazi Touqeer
Qazi Touqeer won Fame Gurukul, India’s version of Fame Academy, along with Ruprekha Banerjee in 2005. Qazi had no formal training before Fame Gurukul.
Isha Rikhi
Isha Rikhi made her screen debut with Punjabi film Jatt Boys Putt Jattan De (2013). She was part of Happy Go Lucky and then appeared in Bade Changay Ne Mere Yaar Kaminey and What the Jatt in 2014 and 2015 respectively. In 2016, she played a role in the movie Ardaas. She completed her high school education in Chandigarh and earned a bachelor’s degree from Panjab University.
Rhiti Tiwari
Rhiti Tiwari is the daughter of Bhojpuri actor, singer and politician Manoj Tiwari and his first wife, Rani Tiwari. She is known by the nickname Zooni. According to Economic Times, she has reportedly completed her schooling at Jamnabai Narsee School in Mumbai. She is trained in Indian classical music and also plays the guitar.
Kanika Mann
Kanika Mann made her television debut in Badho Bahu and web debut with Roohaniyat. In 2022, she participated in Khatron Ke Khiladi 12 and was also seen in Naagin. She completed her graduation from Panjab University, Chandigarh.
Aasif Khan
The Mirzapur actor attended an English-medium school in Rajasthan. According to Indian Express, the actor stopped formal education after finishing the 11th grade, around the time of his father’s passing in 2008. After doing professional theatre with many eminent theatre groups and personalities, he shifted to Mumbai in 2016.
Love Gill
Lovepreet Kaur Gill is a famous Punjabi actress who began her career in modelling and Punjabi music videos. She hogged attention after featuring in Karan Aujla’s hit song ‘Facts’ in 2019. She completed her graduation at Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.
Mary Kom
Mary Kom is an Olympic boxer. She is the only woman to win the World Amateur Boxing Championship six times, the only female boxer to have won a medal in each one of the first seven World Championships, and the only boxer (male or female) to win eight World Championship medals. She hails from a Christian Baptist family.
Mary Kom studied at the Loktak Christian Model High School in Moirang up to her sixth standard and thereafter attended St. Xavier Catholic School, Moirang, up to class 8. Went to Adimjati High School in Imphal for the 9th and 10th standards, but did not pass her matriculation exams. Cleared her high school examinations through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) in Imphal.
Kom earned her college graduation degree from Churachandpur College in Manipur.
Harsh Machare aka Yung DSA
Harsh Vijay Machare, widely known as Yung DSA, grew up in Yerwada, Pune, where he began writing and performing rap at the age of 12. He rose to regional prominence with his 2024 breakout track ‘Yeda Yung’ released via Gully Gang Records, leading to his appearance as a contestant on Bigg Boss 20.
Tanmay Singh aka ScoutOP
Tanmay Singh, better known to millions of gamers as ScoutOP or Sc0ut, is an Indian professional esports athlete, streamer and content creator. He became a top gun in the gaming arena during the rise of PUBG Mobile in India, before he continued competing in BGMI. He was born in Valsad, Gujarat. Before esports, he was training in football at state level in Kolkata, reportedly. He completed his schooling in Gujarat.
Arishfa Khan
Digital content creator Arishfa Khan did not complete traditional high school due to her early acting career as a child artist, opting instead for private and online schooling to manage her work schedule. According to Humans of Bombay, Arishfa was 7 when she got her first role in a serial. Arishfa got her first leading role in 2018, in the show Papa By Chance, followed by Uttaran among others.
“Because of my hectic schedule, I had to quit school at an early age but during the lockdown, I’ve started taking online classes. At 17, I’m preparing for my 8th standard exams,” she told Humans of Bombay.
Kushal Tanwar aka Gullu
Kushal Tanwar, popularly known as Gullu, holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Management from the Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition (IHMCT) in Pune. He even co-founded a local café in Gurugram.
Aman Gandhi
Aman Gandhi is a known face on television. Before starting his acting career in TV, he completed his education and worked as an assistant manager at a global automobile company. He later left his corporate job in Mumbai to pursue acting, appearing in shows like Kundali Bhagya, Bhagya Lakshmi, and Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.
Uditi Singh
Actress Uditi Singh hails from Chandigarh. She went to Coventry University, London Campus and also holds a degree in Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Global Business. Uditi made her acting debut with the 2023 Netflix film Jaane Jaan, where she played Young Maya D’Souza.
Mahhi Vij
Famous television actress Mahhi Vij completed her secondary schooling at Lilawati Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School in New Delhi and later attended the University of Delhi for further studies. She moved to Mumbai at the age of 17 to start her career in modelling and acting.
Bureau Report
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