Bigg Boss Malayalam Season 5 concluded on Sunday, July 2, with Akhil Marar emerging as the title winner and walking away with the prize money of Rs 50 lakh. Actor Reneesha Rahiman of Seetha Kalyanam TV serial fame was the first runner-up. Out of the five contestants who rose up to the top after the 100-day game show, social media influencer Junaiz VP came third, followed by social entrepreneur Shoba Vishwanath and actor Shiju Abdul Rasheed.
The finale, headlined by actor Mohanlal who has been the host of the show for the past five seasons, also featured dance performances by contestants who were previously evicted from the house. Some popular contestants from the previous seasons also made appearances in comedy skits, intended to cheer the finalists and engage viewers.
Akhil Marar, the current title winner, is a public speaker and writer/director of the Malayalam film Oru Thaathvika Avalokanam (2021). He sparked many controversies inside the Bigg Boss house, making problematic statements about domestic violence, women entrepreneurs, and political correctness. Despite this, he was an audience favourite for his comic comebacks, performances, and game strategies. This also led to public discourse about how season after season misogynistic candidates often garner traction with social media armies defending them.
Shobha Vishwanath, designer and founder of Weavers Village in Thiruvananthapuram, was Akhil’s nemesis throughout the show, with the two locking horns several times. Shobha, who is a survivor of domestic violence, wore her wedding saree for the finale, which she said was for her to rewrite the bad memories of her abusive marriage.
Other popular contestants of the season among others were Nadira Mehrin, a transgender woman who grabbed the ‘ticket to finale’, and Rinosh George, a popular Malayalam singer and rapper known for his trending song ‘I’m a Mallu’. While Nadira exited the show by choice with an additional prize money of Rs 7,75,000, Rinosh had to quit the show due to ill-health.
In the previous season of the show, dancer Dilsha Prasannan emerged winner, becoming the first woman title holder of Bigg Boss Malayalam. Dilsha garnered a huge fan base with her competitive performances and striking personality, marking herself as a spirited artist and entertainer.
Bigg Boss Malayalam Season 5 started rolling on March 26 with host Mohanlal welcoming 18 contestants from varied backgrounds into the house. Bigg Boss is an endurance game show where contestants are supposed to survive in a house for 100 days, cut off from the outside world and surrounded by over 60 cameras that constantly capture all their moves. The show will return next year with a new batch of contestants.