Season 6 of Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa is often remembered as one of the franchise’s most star-studded runs, with a 20-contestant cast pulled from television, Bollywood, cricket, and comedy. Airing on Colors TV from June to September 2013, the season built toward a closely fought finale between two of the show’s strongest performers. Here’s the full breakdown.
Season 6 at a Glance
The season premiered June 1, 2013, and ran for 31 episodes before concluding on September 14, 2013. It was hosted by Manish Paul and Kapil Sharma, with a judging panel of Remo D’Souza, Madhuri Dixit, and Karan Johar — the same trio that would continue judging the following season as well.
Who Won Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa Season 6?
Actress Drashti Dhami, paired with professional partner Salman Yusuff Khan, was crowned the winner, taking home a cash prize of ₹50 lakh. Dhami’s win came after a season of consistently strong scores, and it later opened the door for her own hosting stint on Season 7.
Runner-Up and Top Finishers
Lauren Gottlieb, paired with Punit Pathak, finished as runner-up. The duo of Sonali and Sumant, with choreographer Vivek Chachere, placed third, while singer Shaan and partner Marischa Fernandes rounded out the top four.
Full Contestant List
Season 6’s 20-person cast was one of the largest in the franchise’s history:
- Drashti Dhami with Salman Yusuff Khan — Winner, September 14, 2013
- Lauren Gottlieb with Punit Pathak — Runner-up, September 14, 2013
- Sonali & Sumant with Vivek Chachere — Third place, September 14, 2013
- Shaan with Marischa Fernandes — Fourth place, September 14, 2013
- Mukti Mohan with Altaf Iqbal, later Shashank Dogra — Eliminated, September 7, 2013
- Sana Saeed with Tushar Kalia — Eliminated, August 24, 2013
- Sidharth Shukla with Sonia Jaffer, later Mohena Singh (after Sonia’s injury) — Eliminated, August 17, 2013
- Karanvir Bohra with Sneha Kapoor — Eliminated, August 10, 2013
- Karan Patel with Sharmishtha Rao — Eliminated, August 3, 2013
- Mantra Dasgupta with Ankita Maity — Eliminated, July 20, 2013
- Aarti Chhabria with Cornel Rodrigues — Eliminated, July 13, 2013
- Shweta Tiwari with Sushant Pujari, later Savio Barnes — Eliminated, July 7, 2013
- Ekta Kaul with Tushar Kalia — Eliminated, June 29, 2013
- Meghna Malik with Savio Barnes — Eliminated, June 22, 2013
- Krishnamachari Srikkanth with Amrita Maitra — Eliminated, June 15, 2013
- Suresh Menon with Suchitra Sawant — Eliminated, June 8, 2013
- Eijaz Khan with Bhawna Khanduja — Withdrew, June 1, 2013
Rochelle Rao, Rohit Roy, and Vatsal Sheth were also announced as part of the season but ultimately not selected to compete.
Judges and What They Brought to the Panel
Remo D’Souza continued to anchor the technical side of the judging with his choreography background, while Madhuri Dixit brought both classical dance expertise and Bollywood star power to the panel. Karan Johar rounded things out with his characteristically sharp, entertainment-savvy commentary — a combination that had already worked well enough to be carried over into the following season.
Hosting Duties
Manish Paul and Kapil Sharma shared hosting duties throughout the season, bringing a comedic dynamic to proceedings that contrasted with some of the show’s more straightforward past hosting pairs.
Final Thoughts
Season 6 stands out for both its sheer scale — 20 contestants is among the largest cast in the show’s history — and the strength of its finale, with Drashti Dhami and Lauren Gottlieb delivering what many fans still consider one of the franchise’s closest title races. The season’s mix of soap actors, a cricketer, and reality show veterans like Shweta Tiwari also helped set the template for the increasingly eclectic casting the show would lean into in later seasons.