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Mumbai: ‘Rise and Fall’ winner Arjun Bijlani recently opened up about the controversy surrounding Dhanashree Verma’s revelations about her personal life on the reality show, and said it was a moment of empathy for him and nothing more than that.

In the Ashneer Grover-hosted ‘Rise and Fall’, Dhanashree alleged that her ex-husband Yuzvendra Chahal cheated on her just two months after their marriage.

Arjun was often seen offering Dhanashree moral support when she teared up during their conversations.

“She was crying and sharing some things about her past life. I was listening and voiced my opinion calmly because it was just a normal conversation. I didn’t do anything for the game. For me, it was a moment of empathy. She spoke about her personal life out in the open — I would have never done that,” Arjun shared.

Maintaining that his intentions were pure, Arjun said, “Sometimes people forget that even in a competitive environment, we’re still human. Showing care shouldn’t be seen as weakness,” he said, adding, “She said quite a few things — about parties and more. I want to understand, why is it such a taboo for guys to hang out and party? Having said that, even if she was lying or doing all that for the game, how would I know? I was just being considerate.”

Speaking about the hug controversy involving Dhanashree and Arbaaz Patel, Arjun clarified, “When I got to know what all he had said, I told him, ‘She’s not your girlfriend or someone important to you.’ Arbaaz doesn’t get to make such comments. But when I saw that Dhanashree herself wasn’t reacting, who am I to interfere?”

“I knew certain things, but who am I to say anything or come between them? As a friend, I wanted to clarify misunderstandings but also respected their wish to keep certain things private. I made sure nobody told that particular part to others. That was the way they wanted to play the game, and I never interfered because it wasn’t my zone,” Arjun added.