After Abhishek "Shake" Chatterjee spoke about being edited as the villain on Love Is Blind season 2, creator of the Netflix series Chris Coelen spoke out against him. Shake began the season as a villain as soon as he started asking the women in the pods questions pertaining to their physical appearance. He would ask the women whether or not he would be able to hold them on his shoulders or if they were in shape. Most of the women saw this as a red flag, but Deepti Vempati wanted to give Shake a chance.
The pair got engaged in the pods after developing a seemingly strong connection. Despite only seriously dating white, blonde women in the past, Shake seemed ready to be with someone who wasn't his usual type. However, once he and Deepti got to Mexico, Shake realized he wasn't physically attracted to Deepti. When it was time for them to tie the knot, Deepti decided to call off the wedding and leave Shake at the altar. While Shake is single, Deepti might be dating Kyle Abrams from Love Is Blind season 2.
In an exclusive interview with Variety, Love Is Blind creator Chris wasn't afraid when Shake blamed editing for looking like a villain on the show. "If we were afraid of that comment, we could have taken it out. [...] we want to give people the opportunity to say whatever they want to say," he told the publication. Chris double-downed by saying, "Every other member of the cast seems to think that he got a pretty good edit." The creator even got some backup from fellow Love Is Blind season 2 contestant Natalie Lee during the reunion when she claimed the show gave "a very watered-down version" of the things Shake said to ex-fiancé Deepti.
"He says at the end of the reunion that he owns his actions. He’s doubling down on it, and I think all of that speaks for itself," Chris added. At the reunion, Shake got into some intense arguments with not only his fellow Love Is Blind season 2 cast members but also hosts Nick Lachey and Vanessa Lachey. Vanessa was very blunt with Shake, saying how she didn't understand why he joined the show when he clearly wasn't looking for marriage. Both Vanessa and Nick came to the conclusion that Love Is Blind wasn't the right reality show for Shake, who defended his physical attraction views. While the hosts don't usually get involved in the drama, the producers weren't going to stop them from giving their opinions. Chris added that "Shake was jumping in from the word ‘go,'" and didn't blame either Nick or Vanessa for speaking up. "We don’t tell them what to say or not to say, it’s their thing," he concluded.
Overall, Love Is Blind creator Chris does not believe the show edited Shake as the villain, but that he did it to himself. From the pods to the reunion special, Shake was disrespectful to the women and even some of the men. What was shown is a true reflection of who Shake really is.
Source: Variety