Bigg Boss 20: Stepfather Ekam Bawa challenges Rhiti Tiwari's Rs 25K allowance claim

Bigg Boss 20 contestant Rhiti Tiwari’s claims of financial hardship inside the house have sparked a controversy, with Punjabi singer Ekam Bawa — who identifies as her stepfather — publicly challenging her account. While Rhiti recently shared on the reality programme that she receives a modest monthly allowance of Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000 from her father, actor-politician Manoj Tiwari, and once managed on two Rs 10 vada pavs a day, Bawa has alleged that her actual lifestyle paints an entirely different picture.Expanding on his claims in a video circulating on Instagram, Ekam raised questions about her declared financial situation, alleging that her personal possessions and maintenance expenses far exceed what she described on the show. Questioning her narrative, he alleged, "Jiske paas Rs 4-5 lakh ke handbags ho... Uske baad aapke paas badi badi gadiyaan hain. Range Rovers ka toh 2.5-3 lakh ka kharcha hai khali. Aap Rs 25,000 keh rahe ho? (You own handbags worth Rs 4–5 lakhs... and then there are the big cars you have. Just maintaining a Range Rover costs Rs 2.5–3 lakhs. And you’re talking about Rs 25,000?)." None of these claims have been independently verified.Further challenging her account, Ekam highlighted Rhiti's alleged commercial ventures and property holdings in Mumbai. He claimed that she owns a sports business associated with prominent cricketers and collectors, alongside high-end residential properties. "Sports company hai aapki, jiska itna bada turnover hai ki collectors ka naam bhi juda hai uske sath. Kitne saal se chal rahi hai? Woh bhi toh paisa aapke paas aata hai. Kahan jaata hai? Bombay me bhi toh bade bade flats hain; woh kaha se aaya? (You own a sports company with such a massive turnover that even collectors are associated with it. How many years has it been running? That money comes to you, too. Where does it go? You have huge apartments in Mumbai as well; where did the money for those come from?)" he said.Providing context to his connection with the family, Ekam shared that he lived in the same flat with Rhiti and her mother, Rani Tiwari, from 2020 to 2025. He alleged that after being in a live-in relationship with Rani from 2020, the two married on February 18, 2022, releasing photographs alongside Rani and Tiwari to substantiate his timeline.Ekam also addressed Rhiti's recent argument inside the house with co-contestant Qazi Touqeer, which occurred after Qazi staged a fake medical emergency as a prank. Rhiti had labelled him a "fraudster", "dhongi baba", and "disgusting", accusing him of mocking mental health. Disapproving of her conduct, Ekam argued that she used inappropriate language and said, "You go and abuse a man? You are hurling abuses at Qazi, using swear words involving his mother and sister," before adding that he felt naturally angry watching the broadcast.Urging her to exercise restraint on national television, Ekam called on her to stop misleading viewers and said, "Logon ko paagal banana band kariye aap. Bigg Boss mein jake aap logon ko gaali de rahe hai... bachchey, nahi karte aisa. Yeh shobha nahi deti baatein (Stop fooling people. You go on Bigg Boss and abuse people. You are a child; you shouldn’t behave like this. Such things don’t suit you)." Expressing distress over his time with the family, he added that he dislikes falsehoods and hoped "no one ever has to go through" what he experienced.In contrast, Rhiti has shared a different account of her upbringing on the show. Discussing her parents' divorce, she shared that she grew up largely without her father's presence, seeing Manoj Tiwari only about once a year. She recalled that her father had explicitly made it clear that he would not assist her in building her career, leaving her to navigate her professional journey independently.- Ends