MUMBAI: Shweta Tiwari has opened up about the emotional moment that left her in tears during a recent task on Traitors 2, explaining that her reaction stemmed from feeling hurt by a decision involving Abhishek Malhan and Rhea Chakraborty.
Shweta acknowledged that betrayal is part of the format of The Traitors, where contestants are expected to deceive one another as part of the game. However, she said the circumstances surrounding this particular mission affected her because she believed she had made a decision for the team based on what Abhishek and Rhea had told her.
“Everyone is asking me why I cried in that mission. There was no need for me to cry. It is a traitor show and everyone has to betray each other. So, I want to tell you the whole story of why I cried,” she said.
Why Shweta Tiwari became emotional
According to Shweta, contestants were told at the beginning of the mission that the person who placed their portrait last would receive the shield.
With everyone interested in securing the shield, the contestants discussed who should enter first and check which portrait had been placed first. There was also an element of uncertainty because the contestant entering the room could potentially change a portrait.
Shweta said Abhishek and Rhea told her they trusted her and believed she was not a Traitor. They therefore asked her to enter the room first and check the portraits.
“I said, ‘Okay, if you guys are saying so, I will go first.’ But Krystal was not ready to go first. I convinced her and said, ‘Come, Krystal, come with me.’ At that time, I thought, ‘Poor Krystal, she came first because of me,’” Shweta recalled.
Shweta says she chose the team over her own advantage
After entering the room with Krystal D’Souza, Shweta said she decided not to change the portrait because she wanted to play for the team.
Krystal, however, advised her to focus on her own game instead of following the instructions of the other contestants.
“Krystal said, ‘Why are you listening to them? They are playing their game, you play yours. Change it. You have to get the shield.’ I said, ‘No, let it be. For the team, let’s do it. We won’t change it. Let it be,’” Shweta said.
Shweta’s decision was based on her understanding that she and the other contestants were working together at that stage of the mission.
‘I felt so cheated’
The situation changed when Abhishek and Rhea ultimately changed the portrait.
Shweta said she was particularly upset because she believed the two contestants had initially encouraged her to go first and had told her not to change the portrait.
“Abhishek and Rhea, who had sent me first when I did not want to go first, changed it. They were the ones who sent me first and told me not to change it. And I felt so cheated,” she said.
Her disappointment soon turned into anger, leading to a confrontation with Abhishek.
Shweta recalls confrontation with Abhishek
Shweta admitted that she became extremely angry during the exchange and scolded Abhishek.
She also clarified that Abhishek did not aggressively argue back and that she was the one who raised her voice.
“I got very, very angry with Abhishek. I scolded him a lot and we had a little fight. Poor guy did not say anything during the fight. I was the one shouting at him,” she recalled.
The confrontation, according to Shweta, was driven by her belief that she had been asked to make a particular decision for the team and was then left feeling that the understanding had changed.
Abhishek reassured Shweta
Shweta said the situation softened when Abhishek held her hand and explained his side.
“He held my hand and said, ‘You are like my mother, you are like my sister. I would never use you or cheat you,’” she recalled.
According to Shweta, Abhishek told her that he believed other contestants had changed the portrait, which was why he agreed to change it.
“He actually thought that other people had changed it, so we changed it. Otherwise, we would have never changed it,” Shweta said.
After hearing his explanation, Shweta said she eventually forgave him, although she remained upset for some time.
Why Shweta told Abhishek to stay quiet
Shweta also explained her behaviour during the Circle of Trust, where she told Abhishek not to speak.
She said her reaction was still influenced by the earlier disagreement.
“I forgave him, but I was still angry. In the Circle of Trust, when I scolded him and told him, ‘Don’t speak. You stay quiet,’ it was all because of that,” she said.
Shweta added that she eventually calmed down and moved past the incident.
Shweta says viewers did not see the full context
The actress concluded that viewers had not been shown the complete context surrounding the task, which may have made her emotional reaction appear difficult to understand.
Her explanation suggests that the tears were not simply about losing the shield. Instead, Shweta said she felt hurt because she believed she had acted in the team’s interest after trusting what Abhishek and Rhea had told her.
The incident also underlines the complicated nature of Traitors 2, where contestants have to balance personal relationships with a game built around deception and strategic betrayal.
For Shweta, what initially felt like a personal betrayal was eventually resolved after Abhishek explained his understanding of what had happened.
