Rise & Fall Season 2 Cast: Full List of Contestants, Release Date, Host & Streaming Details
Virender Sehwag takes the mic, Ashneer Grover exits, and 15 celebrities are about to find out whether they’ll sleep in a penthouse or scrub floors in a basement. Here’s every confirmed name, the premiere date, and exactly where to watch for free.
Some reality shows ask you to survive. Rise & Fall asks you to climb and then watches, gleefully, as you fall.
After a debut season that turned Amazon MX Player’s viewership charts upside down, the Rulers-versus-Workers experiment is back. And this time almost everything at the top has changed. There’s a new host in the chair. There’s a new streaming home. There’s a brand-new set of 15 faces ready to betray each other over 42 days.
If you’ve been hunting for a clean, no-nonsense list of who’s actually confirmed and not just another screenshot from an anonymous fan page you’re in the right place. Let’s break it all down.
Rise & Fall Season 2: Everything in 30 Seconds
Short on time? Here’s the cheat sheet.
| Detail | What We Know |
| Show | Rise & Fall (Season 2), Hindi |
| Host | Virender Sehwag (replacing Ashneer Grover) |
| Premiere date | 26 September 2026 |
| Release time | 12 noon IST, daily |
| Duration | 42 days |
| Contestants | 15 in total 15 |
| Where to watch | Prime Video & MX Player by Prime Video free |
| Produced by | Banijay Asia |
| Format origin | Adapted from the UK series created by Studio Lambert |
| Season 1 winner | Arjun Bijlani (₹28.1 lakh prize) |
Who Is Hosting Rise & Fall Season 2?
Virender Sehwag is the host of Rise & Fall Season 2, stepping in for Ashneer Grover, who fronted the first season.
It’s a genuinely surprising bit of casting and arguably a smart one. Season 1’s biggest criticism was that the host never quite matched the show’s ruthless energy. Sehwag comes with a different toolkit entirely: a cricketing legend with a reputation for deadpan one-liners, zero filter on social media, and an instinct for the joke that lands hardest.
Put a man famous for smashing a Test triple century into the fifth day of a power struggle between a Bollywood actor and a political spokesperson, and you can see why the makers said yes.
The takeaway: New host, new tone. Expect the commentary to be sharper and a lot more quotable this season.
Rise & Fall Season 2 Cast: Full List of Contestants
Here’s where the line-up currently stands. Eleven names are confirmed, two more are strongly reported but not yet locked in by the makers, and a couple of slots in the 15-member house remain a mystery.
| Contestant | Occupation | Entry | Exited | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gautam Gulati | Actor | Day 1 | Ruler | |
| Kaira Anu | Reality TV Personality | Day 1 | Day 21 | Evicted by Rulers |
| Kajal Raghwani | Actress | Day 1 | Worker | |
| Karan Patel | Actor | Day 1 | Day 11 | Walked |
| Niharika Tiwari | Actress / Content Creator | Day 1 | Ruler – Newly Risen | |
| Priyanka Chahar Choudhary | Actress | Day 1 | Worker | |
| Raj Grover | Content Creator | Day 1 | Day 21 | Evicted by Rulers |
| Sara Gurpal | Actress / Singer | Day 1 | Worker | |
| Shehzad Poonawalla | Political Commentator | Day 1 | Ultimate Ruler | |
| Swara Bhasker | Actress | Day 1 | Ruler | |
| Tej Pratap Yadav | Politician / YouTuber | Day 1 | Day 14 | Walked |
| Anish Bhagat | Content Creator | Day 1 | Day 7 | Evicted by Rulers |
| Siwet Tomar | Reality TV Personality | Day 1 | Day 2 | Ejected |
| Irina Rudakova | Actress | Day 1 | Ruler | |
| Manish Kashyap | Politician / Youtuber | Day 1 | Worker |
*All contestants are expected to enter on Day 1 unless the makers introduce wild-card entries later in the run, as happens in most long-format Indian reality shows.
Rise & Fall Season 2 Wild Card Contestants
| Jashwanth Bopanna | Reality TV Personality | Day 14 | Worker | |
| Rishabh Jaiswal | Content Creator | Day 14 | Ruler | |
| Sonam Malik | Actress | Day 14 | Worker |
Rise & Fall Season 2 Contestants: Full Bios
1. Swara Bhasker – Actress
If the house needed someone who will not back down from an argument, it found her. Swara Bhasker has spent a decade being outspoken in public life, and she arrives with a filmography spanning Tanu Weds Manu, Raanjhanaa and Veere Di Wedding.
Speaking about signing on, Bhasker said it was the clash of very different personalities combined with the show’s shifting power dynamics that made the experience compelling for her. Expect her to be at the centre of the first big ideological flashpoint.
2. Shehzad Poonawalla – Political Commentator
Best known for holding his own in prime-time television debates, Poonawalla walks into a format that rewards and punishes persuasion in equal measure. In a house where you must ally with the same people you’re trying to beat, a debater’s instincts can be an enormous asset right up until someone decides he’s too good at it.
He’s flagged that tension himself: contestants enter as strangers, end up on the same side one day, and find themselves opponents the next.
3. Priyanka Chahar Choudhary – Actress
Arguably the biggest fandom magnet in the line-up. Choudhary finished as second runner-up on Bigg Boss 16, and her announcement drew the loudest reaction online of anyone in the first promo.
She’s already survived one long-format reality grind, but has said the Ruler-to-Worker mechanic makes this a different beast entirely there’s no single house hierarchy to learn, because the hierarchy keeps resetting.
4. Karan Patel – Actor
Nearly a decade as Raman Bhalla in Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, then Rishabh Bajaj in Kasautii Zindagii Kay 2, plus a stint on Khatron Ke Khiladi 10 Karan Patel is one of Hindi television’s most recognisable leading men and no stranger to unscripted pressure.
This time there’s no script to hide behind. Patel has said it’s the competitive edge, and the pressure of making calls as the game shifts underneath you, that pulled him in.
5. Gautam Gulati – Actor
The single most dangerous signing on paper. Gulati won Bigg Boss 8 and followed it with Bigg Boss Halla Bol, meaning he has already beaten the most cut-throat reality format in the country twice over.
Add to that his work in Azhar and Radhe, plus years as a gang leader on MTV Roadies, and you have a contestant who understands exactly how alliances are built, used and discarded. If anyone walks into the penthouse with a pre-written playbook, it’s him.
6. Tej Pratap Yadav – Politician / YouTuber
Easily the most unexpected name on the list. A former Bihar cabinet minister and son of RJD patriarch Lalu Prasad Yadav, Tej Pratap Yadav has become a fixture of political news cycles and, more recently, an active presence online.
He brings something no other contestant does: genuine experience of real-world power, its machinery and its loss. In a show whose entire premise is who sits above whom, that’s either a masterstroke of casting or a very short stay. Either way, viewers will tune in to find out.
7. Kajal Raghwani – Actress
One of Bhojpuri cinema’s biggest female stars, Raghwani commands an audience that most Hindi television names simply don’t reach. She has headlined a long run of regional hits and enjoys enormous loyalty across Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh.
On a free-to-stream platform chasing mass reach, her casting is strategic. On a voting-adjacent format, that fanbase is a weapon.
8. Sara Gurpal – Actress / Singer
A Punjabi singer and actor who previously entered Bigg Boss 14, where her exit became one of the season’s more talked-about moments. She returns to reality television with unfinished business and a considerably thicker skin.
Her Punjabi music and film following gives her a separate, regionally distinct voter base the kind that quietly carries contestants deep into a season.
9. Kaira Anu – Reality TV Personality
A Splitsvilla winner, which makes her one of the very few contestants entering with an actual reality-show trophy already on the shelf.
Splitsvilla trains you for exactly the skills this format demands: reading a room fast, forming partnerships that expire, and staying composed while cameras document every mistake. She is unlikely to be rattled in week one.
10. Niharika Tiwari – Actress / Content Creator
Tiwari has a full reality résumé of her own, starting with MTV Roadies: Real Heroes in 2019 and continuing into Splitsvilla X6.
Both of those are fast, high-adrenaline formats. Rise & Fall is the opposite slow, psychological and won over weeks rather than in a single task. Watching her adapt from sprint to marathon is one of the more interesting sub-plots on offer.
11. Raj Grover – Content Creator
A popular digital creator making his reality-television debut. Audiences already know his online persona; what they haven’t seen is how it holds up without edits, retakes or a delete button.
That leap has worked spectacularly for several creators recently Season 1’s own runner-up Aarush Bhola came from YouTube. Grover arrives with a built-in audience and something to prove.
12. Anish Bhagat – Content Creator
Bhagat began creating in 2018 and has built a following of over a million on the strength of personal, relationship-driven storytelling the kind of content built on empathy rather than provocation.
That makes him a fascinating fit. A show designed to reward ruthlessness is an unusual home for someone whose entire brand is warmth. His participation is reported but not yet officially announced.
13. Siwet Tomar Reality TV Personality
Tomar finished as runner-up on MTV Roadies: Karm Ya Kaand and has since become a recognisable face in the Roadies-Splitsvilla ecosystem, with a following that is young, loud and highly online.
He’s built for confrontation-heavy television. His name has been reported by multiple outlets, though the makers haven’t confirmed it.
Still to come: That’s 13 names against a 15-member house. Two slots remain unaccounted for, and wild-card entries mid-season are always a possibility.
14. Irina Rudakova – Reality TV Personality
The most enigmatic name on the confirmed list. Irina Rudakova is credited as a reality TV personality, though detailed public information on her background is still limited ahead of the premiere.
Expect her introduction episode to do most of the heavy lifting here – the makers have kept her profile deliberately low-key in the pre-launch promotion, which is often a sign of a planned big reveal.
15. Manish Kashyap – Politician / YouTuber
A Bihar-based YouTuber-turned-politician with one of the region’s largest digital followings, built through his channel Sach Tak News. Kashyap first drew national attention in 2023 when he was arrested over videos related to attacks on migrant workers, a case that made headlines across multiple states before the matter moved through the courts.
He later entered electoral politics, contesting as an independent candidate before joining a mainstream political party. His combination of a massive grassroots following, a controversial public history and zero television polish makes him one of the least predictable entrants in the house.
Rise & Fall Season 2 Release Date and Time
Rise & Fall Season 2 premieres on 26 September 2026, streaming daily at 12 noon IST.
The season runs for 42 days, with a new episode dropping every single day the same relentless daily-release rhythm that made Season 1 impossible to catch up on if you skipped a week.
| Release Detail | Confirmed Information |
| Premiere date | 26 September 2026 |
| Episode drop time | 12 noon IST |
| Release schedule | Daily |
| Total run | 42 days |
A note on the confusion: a handful of outlets ran with 23 September before the official announcement. The date confirmed by the makers and reported alongside the Prime Video announcement is 26 September 2026.
Where to Watch Rise & Fall Season 2
Rise & Fall Season 2 streams free on Prime Video and the MX Player Android app, which now operates under its refreshed identity as MX Player by Prime Video.
No subscription required which is a large part of why the first season pulled the numbers it did. You can watch across:
- Supported mobile devices (Android and iOS)
- Connected TVs
- Fire TV
- The Amazon Shopping app
That’s a meaningful upgrade from Season 1, which premiered on Amazon MX Player and also aired on Sony Entertainment Television. Season 2 consolidates everything under the Prime Video umbrella.
What Is Rise & Fall Actually About?
If you’ve never watched, the premise is brutally simple and that simplicity is why it works.
Fifteen contestants are split into two groups. The Rulers live upstairs in a luxurious penthouse, making the decisions. The Workers live downstairs in a bare basement, grinding through tasks to build the prize pot that the Rulers may or may not let them touch.
The twist: nobody’s position is permanent. A Ruler can be dragged down to the basement. A Worker can climb into the penthouse. Every alliance you make on the way up becomes a liability on the way down and everyone remembers exactly how you behaved when you had power.
Why it hooks people: It’s less a game show than a live experiment in how quickly ordinary decency collapses when there’s a nicer bed involved.
| Rulers | Workers |
| Live in the penthouse | Live in the basement |
| Make the decisions | Carry out the tasks |
| Control the prize money | Earn the prize money |
| Can be demoted | Can be promoted |
What Happened in Rise & Fall Season 1?
Season 1 premiered on 6 September 2025 and ran 42 episodes through to 17 October 2025, hosted by Ashneer Grover with 16 contestants.
Arjun Bijlani won the season and took home ₹28.1 lakh. Aarush Bhola finished as first runner-up, Arbaaz Patel as second runner-up, and Akriti Negi as third.
The wider top six also featured Dhanashree Verma and Nayandeep Rakshit. Along the way, the season lost Sangeeta Phogat and Pawan Singh to walkouts, and eliminated names including Aditya Narayan, Kiku Sharda, Kubbra Sait, Manisha Rani, Aahana Kumra and Anaya Bangar.
The reception was split in a way that probably helped it. Trade coverage noted a strong opening week that outperformed several major titles on the platform, while some critics found the concept muddled early on. Either way, people watched and argued which is precisely the outcome a format like this wants.
| Season 1 Snapshot | Details |
| Host | Ashneer Grover |
| Aired | 6 September – 17 October 2025 |
| Episodes | 42 |
| Contestants | 16 |
| Winner | Arjun Bijlani |
| Runner-up | Aarush Bhola |
| Prize | ₹28,10,000 |
Season 2 vs Season 1: What’s Actually Changed
| Season 1 | Season 2 | |
| Host | Ashneer Grover | Virender Sehwag |
| Contestants | 16 | 15 |
| Platform | Amazon MX Player / Sony TV | Prime Video & MX Player by Prime Video |
| Premiere | 6 September 2025 | 26 September 2026 |
| Run length | 42 days | 42 days |
The format stays intact. What’s genuinely new is the tonal shift at the top and a casting philosophy that leans much harder into friction. Look at the mix: an outspoken Bollywood actor, a political spokesperson, a sitting political family name, a Bigg Boss winner, a Bhojpuri superstar, two Splitsvilla graduates and a handful of digital creators. Nobody assembles that room by accident.
Rise & Fall Season 2: FAQs
It premieres on 26 September 2026, with episodes dropping daily at 12 noon IST.
Virender Sehwag, taking over from Ashneer Grover.
Swara Bhasker, Shehzad Poonawalla, Priyanka Chahar Choudhary and Karan Patel.
Fifteen. Four have been officially revealed; 11 are still to be announced.
Free on Prime Video and MX Player by Prime Video, across mobile, Connected TV, Fire TV and the Amazon Shopping app.
42 days, with daily episodes.
No. The show streams free.
Arjun Bijlani won Rise & Fall Season 1, with a prize of ₹28.1 lakh.
The Bottom Line
Season 1 proved the format travels. Season 2 is the test of whether it can grow and the early signs are promising: a bigger streaming footprint, a host with far more mainstream pull, and a cast built for collision rather than comfort.
Eleven names are locked. A couple are still hidden. And on 26 September, fifteen people walk into a building where one lift ride can cost you everything.
Rise & Fall Season 2 premieres 26 September 2026, streaming free and daily at 12 noon IST on Prime Video and MX Player by Prime Video.
We’ll update this page the moment the remaining contestants are confirmed.
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