Stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui was declared the champion of the 17 th season of reality television ‘Bigg Boss’ after a gripping finale in which he defeated actor Abhishek Kumar after a protracted battle.

Faruqui, in an exclusive interview with ANI after the win on Sunday, recounted a time when it appeared that he would lose the game, but managed to tide over the difficult situation with the help of the host Salman Khan, his friends, and supporters.
“There are situations when you become nil. It is normal to feel that way in such circumstances. Then your brain says that perhaps you will not be able to concentrate on the game right now and this also happened, but by facing it, I got a lot of courage from Salman Bhai, Karan(Johar) sir and my fans” Faruqui said.

Faruqui said he was sure of his victory, “My heart was beating a lot but somewhere it was saying that I will be the winner. My fans always supported me and whenever I was left behind, they pulled me by holding my hand, so I am very grateful.”
The stand up comedian soon after his win took to social media to share a photo that he captioned, “Bohot Bohot shukriya janta aapke pyaar aur support ke liye aakhir kar trophy Dongri aa hi gayi (Thank you my fans for all the love and support. Finally the trophy is here). Special thanks to bade Bhai @beingsalmankhan sir for all your guidance. Saari ‘Munawar ki janta aur Munawar ke warrior’ ka dil se shukriya (thanks to all of my fans from the bottom of my heart).”

During his journey on the show, Munawar became close friends with fellow contestants Abhishek Kumar, Ankita Lokhande and Mannara Chopra- whom he said motivated him and stood by his side during his time of difficulty.

“People who were around me, my friends Abhishek, Ankita, Mannara, all motivated me. My sisters love me a lot and God is always there to support me” he said
Although Faruqui has a lot of memories from the show that will always remain with him, one of the most important things that he said he picked up after spending more than 100 days in the House was how to cook food.
“I always missed food. I am fond of food. I never knew how to make food, and learned it inside the Bigg Boss house,” he said.

Faruqui underwent a significant transformation in his journey inside the Bigg Boss house. He went from being dubbed “the mastermind” to being the most boring contestant on the show.
Munawar’s catchphrase, ‘tujhe tunnel tak chhod dunga’, quickly became a show highlight. However, things changed dramatically with the entry of Ayesha Khan a wild card contestant which brought into limelight several personal revelations about Munawar’s relationships. Munawar often broke down in tears as a result of his background. He got upset and even expressed his wish to leave the show.

Faruqui was seen crying on the show after a conversation with Ayesha in which she blames him for cheating on her. He experienced several highs and lows throughout the game and displayed both his powerful and sensitive sides on camera.
However, despite going through all these stages, he said he has no regret and for him, it was a journey full of experiences.

As he mentioned, “Everything was an experience and I will not regret anything, I am happy that I had to experience that too…be it bad or good things, I have experienced everything and somewhere there is something to learn from them. I don’t regret anything.”
The win in ‘Bigg Boss 17’ follows Faruqui’s victory in a previous reality show titled ‘Lock Upp’ that was hosted by Kangana Ranaut.

The stand up artiste gave all the credit for his wins to his fans. “It is all love of Munawar’s fans. The reality show comes once in one and a half to two years, however, the hard work I do to keep my fans happy is all because of that,” he said.
After his Bigg Boss 17 win, Faruqui has taken home a coveted trophy and cash prize of Rs 50 lakh.