The Traitors has kept audiences hooked ever since it made its digital debut. Among the twenty celebrity contestants who entered this high-stakes psychological game, two names stood out not just for their strategies but also for their candidness Apoorva Mukhija and Elnaaz Norouzi.
Elnaaz Norouzi, who took on the role of a Traitor, was especially praised for her calm deception and sharp mind. Yet behind the composed façade, she battled mental exhaustion. In a recent vlog uploaded by Apoorva Mukhija, famously known as Rebel Kid, the two reflected on their emotionally charged journeys inside the show. Elnaaz shared that the experience left a lasting scar. She confessed, “The constant lying, the constant acting, and constant deceiving everybody on that show was very, very heavy on me. I came out and I had PTSD. I was crying for 2 weeks. I was emotionally really down. It’s not an easy thing.”
The actor spoke about the crushing burden of playing a role that demanded continuous betrayal, especially when fellow Traitor Purab Jha failed to follow the strategies they’d secretly planned. It wasn’t just a game of outsmarting others; it became a fight to keep one’s own sanity intact.
Before the contestants even stepped into the mansion, the show’s makers had subjected them to rounds of psychological testing. At the time, it seemed excessive, but Elnaaz now understands why. She recalled thinking, “These people were doing 1000 psychological tests with us. Which I thought ‘Yeh logo ka dimaag kharab hai. 600 sawal puch rahe hai. Legit 600 questions.’” It was only after leaving the show’s isolated and tense environment that she realised the purpose behind those relentless questions.
Apoorva, still part of the ongoing season, nodded in agreement. The YouTuber confessed, “I couldn’t get the show out of my system for months. That is all I would talk about it. It became my entire personality. I could not get out of it.” The mental strain, according to her, lingered far longer than expected.
Apoorva also compared The Traitors to Bigg Boss, a reality show known for its intense psychological challenges. She pointed out how it must be infinitely harder for Bigg Boss contestants, given their lengthy isolation and relentless surveillance. She remarked, “You were there in 8 days, and people stay in Bigg Boss for how long. Being without your phones, not knowing, not having anyone to talk to, constantly being followed by your shadows, the wind chimes, constantly fighting with people, not having the food that you want to eat, it was all just too much.”
Elnaaz agreed with the difficulty but highlighted the key difference between both shows. In Bigg Boss, contestants had the comfort of interacting with fellow participants, even if those interactions turned sour. In contrast, The Traitors isolated them completely once the cameras stopped rolling. “We used to go back, get into our rooms, and we were not allowed to leave our rooms. We were all by ourselves. We were all isolated. It’s very different. The way you are not allowed to open your door and look out,” Elnaaz recalled.
As the grand finale draws closer, scheduled for July 3, audiences are waiting to see how this psychological battle concludes. The conversations sparked by Elnaaz and Apoorva’s honest confessions have shed light on the emotional cost of such reality formats.
