The first season of Smart Jodi wrapped up on Sunday with Ankita Lokhande and Vicky Jain emerging as the winners. The couple, who tied the knot last year in December, took home the ‘golden gathbandhan’ and a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh. Comedian Ballraj and his wife, singer Deepti, were announced as the first runners-up. The Star Plus show, which lasted 8 weeks, was hosted by Maniesh Paul. While Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia Dsouza came as special guests on the finale, singer Udit Narayan also enthralled the audience with his performance.
Arjun Bijlani-Neha Swami and Bhagyashree-Himalaya Dassani were also contesting in the grand finale episode but were eliminated early on. The final task had the couples putting together a jigsaw puzzle while on a moving platform. Ankita and Vicky went first and completed the task in nine minutes. Ballraj and Deepti faced some trouble and eventually completed the task in 12 minutes.
After winning the show, Ankita and Vicky could not hold their excitement and were seen jumping with joy. Sharing that she was eyeing the ‘gathbandhan’ frame to put in her new home, the Pavitra Rishta actor said, “I had been having sleepless nights for the past few days. While Vicky is always passionate about tasks, I am a little laid back. However, today, I put in all my efforts and focus to make sure we win. I really really wanted this and I am so excited.”
An unique show, Smart Jodi saw popular celebrity couples competing in a number of tasks each week. Other than the finalists, the other contestants included Neil Bhatt and Aishwarya, Ankit Tiwari and Pallavi, Kris Srikanth and Vidya, Gaurav Taneja and Ritu, Rahul Mahajan and Natalya and Monalisa and Vikrant.
