Roadies Rebirth: Why Allen Chaudhary Was Rejected After the Abhishek Malhan Face-Off
Most Roadies auditions are about strength, speed, or a story that makes the panel sit up. Allen Chaudhary's audition in the very first episode of Roadies Rebirth turned into something else entirely — a long, uncomfortable talk about what he had posted online before he ever walked into the room. By the end of it, he had apologised, the panel had said its piece, and he was out. Here is what happened in that sitting, step by step, and what the show itself made of it.
Quick answers first
| What | Details |
|---|---|
| Show and episode | MTV Roadies Rebirth, Season 21, Episode 1 — aired October 16, 2026 |
| Who was in the room | Host Rannvijay Singha, plus gang leaders Prince Narula, Neha Dhupia and Nikhil Chinapa (OGs) and Abhishek Malhan, Bani J and Baseer Ali (NewGs) |
| Who was auditioning | Allen Chaudhary, a YouTuber, in the second audition set of the episode, alongside Hrietik Walia |
| What the row was about | Allen's past online content, including a video thumbnail that used a morphed image of a woman, as discussed on the show and reported afterwards |
| What Abhishek said | As per reports of the episode, he said Allen had portrayed him online as a gangster-type figure, called the content the worst thing he had seen on the internet, and described the morphed image as vulgar |
| What Rannvijay said | As per KhabriBhai's written update, Roadies is not a platform for redemption — Allen should take a year, work on himself, and try again next year |
| Result | Allen was not selected. Hrietik, who auditioned in the same sitting, was also rejected |
How a normal audition turned into a confrontation
Episode 1 opened with personal interviews for contestants who had cleared the group discussion round, as per KhabriBhai. The first set — Sneha, Shine and Preet — all got through to the OG team. Then came the second set, and the tone of the episode changed.
As per KhabriChachi, Allen's audition did not stay on his Roadies potential for long. The talk moved to his online behaviour and to past comments he had made about Abhishek Malhan. When Rannvijay asked Abhishek whether he had met Allen before, Abhishek answered that he had not. He then said, in his own words on the show, that he was taken aback because Allen had shown him online in a gangster-like light. That is the personal thread that ran through the whole exchange: this was not just a panel judging a stranger, it was a gang leader reacting to content made about him.
From there, the other gang leaders joined in with their own questions. KhabriChachi notes that what stood out was the way Abhishek handled it — he laid out his objection directly instead of turning it into a shouting match. Flickonclick's review makes the same point from the other side: even under heavy criticism, Allen stayed calm and composed, and Abhishek appreciated how he handled the room.
The thumbnail at the centre of it
The sharpest part of the discussion, as per both KhabriBhai and KhabriChachi, was a video thumbnail from Allen's past content that used a morphed image of a woman. Reports describe the panel's reaction in strong terms: the gang leaders became angry after learning about what they called vulgar and explicit content made for views, including past instances of morphing images of girls for engagement.
Allen, as per the reports, spoke about a difficult phase in his life and explained the controversy around that thumbnail. Abhishek objected to the image and described it as vulgar. We are keeping this section to what the episode reports themselves state, because the underlying image is not something that needs to be described in any more detail for readers to understand why the panel reacted the way it did.
Allen apologised in the room and promised not to repeat that kind of content, as per KhabriBhai. The apology did not change the outcome, but it did change the tone of how the sitting ended — with advice rather than a row.
Rannvijay's verdict, and what it really meant
The line that stuck with viewers came from the host. As per KhabriBhai, Rannvijay told Allen that Roadies is not a platform for redemption, and advised him to wait a year, improve himself, and return next year. Flickonclick reports the same message in slightly different words: Roadies is not the place for a reset, and Allen needs to prove himself in the outside world first.
That matters because it drew a line for the whole season. IWMBuzz's review of the premiere reads the episode the same way, saying the show came out with zero tolerance for problematic mindsets and that Rannvijay and the panel called the contestants out, sending a message that the show rewards genuine grit over shock value made for clicks. In other words, the rejection was not framed on the show as a punishment for one old video. It was framed as a test Allen had not yet passed: show the change first, then come back.
The other rejection in the same sitting — Hrietik, in brief
Allen was not the only one sent home from that set. Hrietik Walia went into the personal interview room first, and his own audition form became the problem. As per KhabriBhai, his form said he rated Allen the worst content creator because he found his content cringe — and then the panel turned to Hrietik's own views, which they were unhappy with.
Reports say the gang leaders objected to remarks on his form about girls and their clothing, including an indecent remark linking what girls wear to harassment. They told him such views have no place on the show, called Hrietik and Allen two sides of the same coin, and asked him to leave. Neither man from that set was selected, so the episode's second audition ended with zero picks — a sharp contrast to the three selections just before it.
We have kept Hrietik's part short on purpose. This article is about the Allen-Abhishek face-off; Hrietik matters here only because his rejection, in the same sitting, shows the panel was applying the same standard to both men, not singling one out.
Why this moment became the season's first talking point
There are a few reasons it travelled beyond the episode. First, Abhishek Malhan is not a regular gang leader — he is Fukra Insaan, one of India's biggest YouTubers, and this was his first season on the panel. A row between two creators, one judging the other, was always going to get clipped and shared. Second, the row was personal in a way most audition clashes are not: the gang leader was reacting to content about himself. And third, Rannvijay's line gave the moment a clean, quotable ending that summed up the season's pitch — Rebirth, but only if the change is real.
It also set up the OGs vs NewGs battle in an odd way. The NewGs, Abhishek's own team, did not pick up any of the first four selected contestants in Episode 1 — all four went to the OGs. So the team that had just delivered the episode's biggest talking point started the season behind on the scoreboard, which is a neat bit of irony that fans picked up on quickly.
Where to watch Roadies Rebirth in India
Roadies Rebirth airs on MTV India at 7 PM IST on Fridays and Saturdays, as per KhabriBhai and Filmibeat's scheduling reports. If you missed the TV telecast, the episodes stream on JioHotstar and Netflix, as per Latestly and IWMBuzz. Episode 1 is the one with the Allen audition; if you only want that sitting, it is the second audition set of the premiere, after the Sneha-Shine-Preet selections.
Our verdict
Confirmed: Allen Chaudhary auditioned in Episode 1 on October 16, 2026; the panel, led by Abhishek Malhan's objections to his past online content and the morphed-image thumbnail, questioned him at length; he apologised; Rannvijay told him Roadies is not a platform for redemption and to return in a year; he was not selected, and Hrietik Walia was rejected in the same sitting. All of that is in KhabriBhai's written update and KhabriChachi's episode report, and the broad shape is backed by the Flickonclick and IWMBuzz reviews.
Buzz: anything beyond that — theories about a personal beef between the two creators, claims about Allen's past that go further than what was discussed on the show, or talk of a comeback that has not been announced — is not confirmed. Allen has not been announced as returning, and no gang leader has said anything about him since the episode beyond what was said in the room. If he does come back next year, as Rannvijay suggested he could, that will be news in its own right. Until then, this stands as the season's first real test of what Rebirth is supposed to mean.
