Vivek Sabbarwal, the 25-year-old software developer from Saint John, N.B., was the latest houseguest to be evicted on Big Brother Canada. The TV Watercooler had the opportunity to chat with Vivek following his eviction to discuss his remorse for putting up Dinis last week, why Anthony and Victoria are controlling the house, and his favourite moment from the Big Brother Canada house.
You’ve already said that you regret putting Dinis up last week. Can you discuss a bit about the decision process behind that? Who influenced you in making that decision?
With the whole Dinis situation, I love that guy with all my heart. He is an incredible human being and I really wanted to go far in the game with him.
But, it really came down to the numbers at the end of the day. I mean, as much as I wanted to go far with him, I wouldn’t have made it very far with just me and him. We couldn’t have been winning all the P.O.V.’s and H.O.H.’s [just the two of us].
When I was H.O.H., I was able to have a conversation with each one of the houseguests, they all wanted Dinis out of there. He was rubbing them the wrong way. I would have been on the block next to him [that week] had I not won the H.O.H.
So, when Kayla, Victoria and Anthony came into my room and told me, “Hey, if you get Dinis out, that’s showing us your loyalties, and this is going to be cementing it.” In the back of my mind, I’m like, “Yeah, I don’t want to do this. I really don’t want to. But, if I want the numbers – with Spicy V and Dougie controlling the house – this is the way to do it. Even if they’re manipulating me. I felt that if they thought they could manipulate me, it would have given me a few weeks of safety.
But again, making the decision where I had to put Dinis up, as much as I loved him, it sucked because I thought that they would have my back the next week. But obviously they didn’t, which is why I’m sitting here talking to you. That’s why I regret [putting Dinis up], because they didn’t have my back and they were going to put me up anyway. Had I known, I would have put them up – Spicy V and Dougie.
Are you still going to try to reconcile with Dinis?
Of course! He even told me multiple times, “Hey, it’s going to be really hard for me to forgive you, but I hope you reach out every day and keep trying.”
And that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’m going to reach out every single day to that guy and I’ll tell him, “I love you so much. I’m so sorry. It was just a game.” I’m going to keep trying until he’s annoyed by me! He will give in. I promise!
What led to Anthony and Victoria having so much control over the house? There were more newbies than “All-Stars.” If feels as if you guys just handed them control of the house.
I think the really big thing that happened was during week one, where we saw that Anthony or Victoria were going to be H.O.H. and nobody wants to talk badly about the H.O.H. from the get-go. They initially got that power. And then the example was made out of Janine, Donna, Dinis, and myself – where if anybody talks badly about them, somehow, they’ll find out and you’ll be gone.
That instills fear into the houseguest. And even if somebody says, “Screw that fear! I want to put them up.” It’s the doubt that comes in, where you wonder, “If I put them up, do I even have the numbers to get them out because they’re so close with everybody?”
That’s the difficult part and even outside the game, I’m still thinking about it. The only way to actually do it is to almost throw away your own game, knowing that one of them is going to stay and come after you. But then there’s at least some room for negotiation with that one person. So, the best move anybody in the house, I feel, can make, is to put Victoria and Anthony up on the block.
Who do you think is going to take that shot?
That’s a tough question. Nobody right now. Nobody. I think it’s going to come down to if Anthony or Victoria have to show their hand by somehow winning an H.O.H. or P.O.V. where they have to pick sides. Once they pick sides, then someone will feel comfortable putting them up. But right now, everybody’s too afraid of it.
Who do you think they’ll target next?
Bayleigh or Tola. Victoria will probably target Tola and then Anthony will go for Bayleigh.
When did you realize something was up during the Executive P.O.V. meeting? Others were going in to talk to Victoria. Did you try to speak with her?
Yeah, that one was really tough because I tried and every single time I would try, somebody cut me off. Matthew, surprisingly, would get in front of me and cut me off from talking.
Then, as soon as it was my turn, more people would go in there, like without even asking. I was like, “Wow. This is ridiculous.”
In the back of my head, I was like, “We still have the ‘V Squared’ alliance. And then we also had the four of us.” I hoped that Victoria had my back, but as soon as I saw Tola come out of the pantry eating something, super relaxed, I was like “Oh my gosh…” And then Anthony came out and I looked him in the eyes and he just shrugged.
That’s when I knew I was in a terrible situation. I pulled Anthony aside and asked him, “Me or Tola,” and he gave me a vague answer. I asked him again who they’d keep and he said Tola. I think it’s because he can’t show his hand. He’s thrown every competition because he doesn’t want to show his hand, but still wants to make sure the power is in his hands, so that’s why Matthew and Tola are perfect [for him]. They’re both competitors.
It couldn’t have been easy to see each houseguest open up their envelope with your name on it. Bayleigh also came at you pretty hard earlier in the game. How did you remain so level-headed in both of these situations?
It’s the level-headedness that I get from previous experiences. I’ve been in sticky situations before and maintaining a cool head is so important because once you let your emotions get the best of you, you could make mistakes sometimes.
It’s ironic because I wish my emotions took over during the situation with Dinis, rather than my head. I wish that I had put the people I wanted on the block instead and got one of them out. It’s a lesson that I’ve learned, for sure.
I think with the Bayleigh situation, it was pretty obvious that she was losing it and there was no way that anything I was going to say was going to make sense to her, so I let her blow up – and the whole house saw it.
With the eviction, going off and asking why is not really how I wanted to leave this house. I love this game with all my heart. I actually love every single person even though they’re playing the game and they might have said some bad things. I still love each and every single one of those houseguests.
Do you think Bayleigh could offer you an apology once she has a chance to watch how certain things were orchestrated?
Possibly. Even though Bayleigh wears her heart on her sleeve, she knows when she’s wrong. I’m sure I will apologize to her and she will apologize to me. I still love her very much. It was just game.
When we spoke before you entered the house, you mentioned that you had tried out for this game three times. It was a dream for you. What was your favourite memory from your time in the Big Brother Canada house?
It’s going to get me emotional! But it’s definitely getting to know the people. As much as I love the game and all those aspects, of the house, the whole thing, and Arisa – it’s the people that were in the house. For some of them, I got to know all of their life stories, their childhood, and how long it took them to get here. Every little detail about how they were, their breakups, their happiest moments.
I was able to find a brand new family with these people. I genuinely love each and every single one of them. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. There are some great things that we shared, and I wish them nothing but the best!
Big Brother Canada airs Tuesdays at 7 p.m. EP/MT, Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. EP/8MT, and Sundays at 9 p.m. EP/10MT on Global.
