Akanksha Chamola has responded to the criticism she received over her comments about her husband Gaurav Khanna on Lock Upp 2. The actress and television personality became one of the most discussed contestants of the season after revealing that her marriage to Gaurav was heading towards divorce. While she spoke openly about their relationship during the show, one of her later comments sparked strong reactions online. Akanksha had said that she would have preferred her parents or even her dog to visit her on the show instead of Gaurav. The remark led to criticism from some viewers, but Akanksha has now explained what she meant and hit back at those who, according to her, were judging her selectively.
In an interview with Zoom, Akanksha explained that her situation with Gaurav was already complicated when he visited her on the show. She said that at the time, they were in the process of separating, and therefore she did not want the person she was separating from to come into the show and appear as a source of support. She also claimed that she felt Gaurav had come mainly to clear his own name rather than to encourage her during the game. Akanksha said, “At that point, I was getting divorced from Gaurav, so I didn’t want the person you are separating from to come and support you. Because you don’t know, right, in what way they have come. And vo apna naam clear karne ke liye vaha pe aaye the (He came to clear his name). He was not there to support me because he didn’t give me any information for me to feel that ‘Oh, I am doing really well with the game’. No, that was not the thing that had happened.”
Akanksha also questioned why people were focusing only on the part of her statement involving Gaurav. She pointed out that she had mentioned her parents and her dog in the same sentence, yet the reaction was largely centred on her comparison with her husband. Calling it “selective moral policing”, she said, “Don’t moral-police everything so much. And if you are going to do it, then do it for everything. Don’t do it selectively.” She further said that she was willing to apologise if people could show her why her statement was wrong.
The controversy goes back to the third week of Lock Upp 2, when Gaurav entered the show as a guest. He told Akanksha that her divorce revelation had shocked both families and that he had to deal with the situation with relatives from both sides. Later, near the finale, Akanksha told a fellow contestant, “I would have preferred agar meri mummy ya papa koi aate, ya mera kutta hi aa jata (if my parents had come or even my dog).”
Akanksha and Gaurav reportedly met during an audition and eventually fell in love. They married on November 24, 2016, in a three day wedding celebration in Kanpur. The couple have reportedly been living separately for almost a year, although their divorce papers have not yet been signed.
