TV actor Gaurav Khanna wins 'Big Boss 19'
Mumbai (PTI): TV actor Gaurav Khanna is the winner of the popular reality TV show “Bigg Boss” season 19 after he beat rival Farrhana Bhatt to claim the trophy.
Show host and Bollywood superstar Salman Khan presented Khanna with the prize money of over Rs 50 lakh and the trophy.
"It is yet to sink in. It is very surreal for me now. I received so much of love. What I love about it that I didn't change a bit. I am the same when I went inside the house and came out and people like that (quality) a lot. I didn't change or faked anything," Khanna told PTI in an interview,
The TV star, known for his roles in "Anupama" and "CID", said the turning point was when the the superstar host expressed his desire to work with him.
"I cried at that very moment," he added.
Asked what he will do with the winning amount, Khanna said he will take the advantage of his MBA degree and invest it wisely.
The season 19 of the show, which kickstarted on August 24, saw Bhatt emerge as the first runner-up.
Bhatt, who has acted in movies like "Laila Majnu" and "Notebook", said she is happy that she got a chance to win many hearts while on the show.
"I never had my eyes on trophy. I was just going with the flow, doing my best and trying to contribute 100 per cent. When I came out and saw the love of the people, I didn't feel the sadness of not winning the trophy. I was like whoever wants to win trophy can win, I have won hearts outside. So I am very happy and I not sad at all," she said.
The stand-up comedian Pranit More ended up in the third spot.
Content creator Tanya Mittal was at the four position and composer Amaal Malik settled at the fifth place.
The highlights of “Bigg Boss 19” was the spiritual content creator Mittal who found a new fame inside the house due to her distinct equation with each housemates.
The grand finale also saw Bollywood star Kartik Aryan promote his upcoming film "Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri" along with the co-star Ananya Pandey. TV actor Karan Kundrra and Sunny Leone, and Bhojpuri star Pawan Singh also marked their attendance.
At the beginning of the show, Khan thanked “Big Boss” fans and followers for their love and support for the contestants.
Khan also paid tribute to late superstar Dharmendra. Khan, who shared a personal bond with Dharmendra, said there won't be any one like the late superstar who gave 60 years of entertainment.
An emotional Khan said he lost Dharmendra on his father Salim Khan's birthday which was on 24th October.
This season of "Bigg Boss" had a blend of actors, influencers, musicians, and reality stars.
Awez Darbar, Ashnoor Kaur, Kunickaa Sadanand, Mridul Tiwari, Basheer Ali, Abhishek Bajaj, Zeishan Quadri, Nehal Chudasama, Nagma Mirajkar and Neelam Giri were also among the participants of season 19.
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Rupee rebounds from record low; gains 1.6 pc to 93.19 against US dollar
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee recovered 151 paise from its record low level to trade at 93.19 against the US dollar in early deals on Thursday, backed by the Reserve Bank's move to restrict banks' net open position in the onshore forward delivery market.
The domestic unit, however, faced pressure due to unabated withdrawal of foreign capital, strengthening dollar and rising crude oil prices amid volatile geopolitical situation, forex analysts said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 94.62 and rose sharply to 93.19 against the US dollar in early deals, registering a gain of 151 paise or 1.6 per cent from its previous close.
The local currency breached the 95 level on Monday before closing at 94.70 versus the greenback. It had settled at a historic low of 94.84 against dollar on Friday, prompting the RBI to intervene.
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Through its circular dated March 27, 2026, RBI capped the net open position on the Indian rupee for banks at USD 100 million, mandating compliance by April 10.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.32 per cent higher at 99.77.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading at USD 106.06 per barrel, up 4.84 per cent, in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex tumbled 1,312.91 points or 1.80 per cent to 71,821.41 in early trade, while the Nifty slumped 410.45 points or 1.81 per cent to 22,383.40.
Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 8,331.15 crore on a net basis on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
"The high crude price, the widening trade deficit, the fear of declining remittances and sustained FPI selling are acting cumulatively to put high pressure on the rupee," said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited.
Since the beginning of the West Asia war on February 28, 2026, the rupee has depreciated over 4 per cent. During the fiscal year ended March 2026, the currency has declined nearly 10 per cent against the US dollar.
Government data released on Wednesday showed that the government's GST revenues grew about 9 per cent in March, scaling to the pre-tax cut level of over Rs 2 lakh crore, the third highest monthly collection in the 2025-26 fiscal, buoyed by mop-ups from imports as well as domestic sales and purchases.
