Mumbai pretends to sleep, but we all know it doesn’t. Not really. Last night was proof. Somewhere between Worli and that stretch of the city where the streetlights always flicker for no reason, a birthday party was humming like it had its own pulse. Gaurav Khanna’s pulse, to be exact. The man walked into his new year with the glow of someone who won Bigg Boss 19 and still hasn’t quite gotten used to people cheering every time he enters a room.
The place was already warm when I walked in. Not temperature warm, the other kind. The good kind. The kind where conversations float in pockets, and music melts into everything, even the walls. Gaurav wasn’t doing the dramatic celebrity entrance, nothing like that. He just slipped in with this easy grin, the sort that tells you he started his day in a quieter place. And he did, at Siddhivinayak, holding his trophy like a slightly bashful kid presenting a school project. That morning softness somehow stayed with him all night.
People came in waves. Mridul Tiwari showed up first and immediately changed the mood, without even trying. He has that energy, bright but not blinding. Pranit More arrived looking like he’d already had five conversations on his way in. Then Abhishek Bajaj, who talks with his whole body, even when he’s just saying hello. Amaal Mallik slipped into the room like a low-volume melody, calm, observant, nicely underplayed. And Kunickaa Sadanand, who always carries herself like she’s already in the most interesting corner of the party, even before she finds it.
Seeing them together again was strangely soft. Reality shows make everything so loud that you forget these people might actually like each other in a normal setting. Here, nobody was plotting, nobody was waiting for a cue, nobody was performing for unseen millions. They just stood around with their drinks, remembering what it feels like to be regular humans with shared history.
At the center of everything was Gaurav and Akanksha Chamola, who had that calm couple energy that comes from weathering a few storms together. Every time someone pulled him aside for a selfie or a hug, she watched with this little smile, not the performative “look at us” kind, but something gentler. At one point, someone played the finale clip on their phone. The cheers, the confetti, all that shiny chaos. Gaurav looked almost embarrassed watching it, which made Akanksha laugh and lean into him. It was a small moment, but probably the truest one in the room.
People noticed Tanya Mittal wasn’t there. Or they pretended not to notice, depending on who you asked. Someone murmured something about her reasons, which floated through the group for a minute and then dissolved. Parties are funny that way. Some absences stay loud. Hers just hovered and moved on.
The bar area eventually turned into a slow-motion video studio, because of course it did. It’s 2025, and every gathering eventually becomes content. Guests exaggerated their movements, hair flips got an extra two inches of drama, and someone pretended to blow a kiss like a film star from the nineties. Gaurav joined in badly, which made everyone lose it. Winning a reality show apparently frees you from the fear of looking ridiculous.
Then, around midnight, one of his favorite songs came on. Not the polished dance track they probably planned for a “moment”, just an unexpectedly good beat. People circled up. Shoulders loosened. Shoes came off. It was messy in the best possible way, the kind of dancing people do when they’re happy but not trying to prove it.
Eventually, the place thinned out. The goodbyes stretched too long, which is usually a sign that the night worked. Gaurav stayed back with a couple of close friends, cake crumbs still sitting on a table that staff kept politely passing by. When he finally stepped outside, cameras flashed, and he laughed like he still couldn’t believe this was his life.
Some birthdays go by unnoticed. Others make you pause. This one felt like watching someone shift into a new chapter without making a big announcement about it. Just a man who won something huge, visited a temple, danced badly with his friends, and let himself have a genuinely good night.
Mumbai kept moving, of course. It always does. But if you were in that room, even for a little while, you walked out feeling lighter than when you walked in.
Stay updated with the latest in fashion, lifestyle, and celebrity stories—straight from the world of Debonair. Follow us on Instagram, X (Twitter), Facebook, Youtube, and Linkedin for daily style and culture drops.
Sana has been covering film, fame, and everything in between for over a decade. From red carpets to rehab rumors, she brings nuance, wit, and an insider’s edge to every story. When she’s not reporting, she’s probably watching Koffee With Karan reruns or doom-scrolling celebrity IG feeds.
