In the latest sneak peek for the Love Is Blind season 2 reunion special, Abhishek “Shake” Chatterjee is doubling down on his controversial stance on physical attraction. Shake has become rather infamous online for his behavior in the latest season of Love Is Blind. Starting out in the pods, he rubbed women the wrong way by constantly asking them questions that alluded to their weight. The show doesn’t ignore physical attraction but tries to create an environment where it comes secondary to a couple’s core connection, something Shake was trying to skip over as he kept asking woman after woman if he would be able to lift them, in an effort to see if they were skinny enough for him.
No one was more offended by this than his soon-to-be fiancé, Deepti Vempati, who called it out right away. Once Shake realized his tactic wasn’t as subtle as he hoped, he began to apologize to Deepti. The two did find common ground within their cultural background and ended up getting engaged. When they met for the first time, Shake even seemed overjoyed by how beautiful Deepti was, but this didn’t last long. Seemingly out of nowhere, Shake began telling everyone from the cast and the crew and even to his own mother that while Deepti was pretty, he wasn’t sexually attracted to her. This did not sit well with Shake’s mother, who clearly sided with Deepti, saying, “She doesn’t deserve someone who gives her even half a percent less.” This line of conversation continued all the way up until the wedding day, with Shake even telling his groomsman about the problem. Despite Shakes’ issues, it was Deepti who rejected him at the altar, instead deciding to choose herself over someone who makes her feel less-than.
Shake has faced a lot of backlash for his treatment of Deepti, and in a new sneak peek for the Love Is Blind season 2 reunion on Netflix, he’s coming to his own defense. The sneak peek, which was released by People, begins with show host Nick Lachey asking Shake why he even came onto Love Is Blind, with Shake replying, “I want the emotional connection, everything that we know the show is supposed to do. But there’s also certain criteria there that goes beyond the emotional connection…Love is not purely blind to me.” Shake goes on to explain that for him, “love is blurry” more than blind. After this, the second show host, Vanessa Lachey, tries to give Shake the benefit of the doubt and begins talking about the change Shake went through in the pods when he began valuing connection over physical appearance. She says she believed he was going through this realization, to which Shake’s now-ex Deepti chimes in, “There’s no change.“
Rather than accept the compliment and out Vanessa was trying to give him, Shake instead chooses to double down on his controversial actions at the beginning, stating, “Listen, every woman in here is beautiful. I think you’re all beautiful. I’m not attracted to all of you. Unfortunately, the only one I’m attracted to is Vanessa—and I wish I wasn’t!” This clearly doesn’t sit well with anyone, including Vanessa’s husband, Nick, who is sitting right next to her. Amid the shocked and disturbed expressions, Shake adds, “You don’t choose. It’s nature, baby. We’re animals,” to which a disgusted Nick Lachey responds, “No, you treat animals. We’re human beings. There’s a big difference,” alluding to Shake’s veterinarian background and effectively ending the clip.
While there’s nothing wrong with physical appearance playing a bigger role to someone when it comes to searching for a partner, going on a show that prioritizes a connection when you know physical attraction is your main priority is a problem. Shake should understand his own limits and realize there are plenty of other dating shows that allow him to see and search for his person without the hassle of the pods. Fans have already been anticipating the Love Is Blind reunion episode, and if this clip is any indication, things might be even juicier than they were expecting.
The Love Is Blind season 2 reunion streams Friday, March 4 on Netflix.
