MUMBAI: The shadow of Sidharth Shukla simply looms large in the house of Bigg Boss 14, long after his departure. Whenever, whoever needs to add extra spice to their action, they invoke his name in an argument to grab the audience by the eyeballs.

The latest instance is Nikki Tamboli and Devoleena Bhattacjarjee. A catfight they engaged in became interesting only when Sidharth's name cropped up.

Nikki, who seems to have lost the plot lately, and Devoleena Bhattacharjee, who has stepped in as proxy for contestant Eijaz Khan, bared their claws and had a massive showdown in the recent episode. Name calling to using bizarre words followed. Nikki and Devoleena were seen yelling at each other, during a task when the former stepped inside and sat in the house to give points to the opposite team, as she wanted to support her friend Rubina Dilaik.

The fight got worse as Devoleena made comments about Nikki that she was using Rubina and Abhinav because the couple has lots of fans outside. On hearing this, Nikki said that she is at least better than Devoleena because she doesn't accuse people of MeToo.

For those who came in late, last year during the 13th season, Devoleena had threatened to accuse television actor Sidharth Shukla of inappropriate behaviour if he touched her amid a task.

As a "toofani senior" in the house, Sidharth hugged the limelight and was also the centrepiece of all tasks, duties and housemates this season. In fact, he ended up being more of a star than the housemates of the current season.

The first eviction, Punjabi singer Sara Gurpal, had Sidharth's influence in a big way. The outcome drew heavy criticism on social media.

A task involving only Sidharth and all girls of the house took all viewers by surprise. Titled as "Sid Island", the task required the girls in the house to woo Sidharth. From making tattoos to close dancing, the actor became the centre of attraction.

He also had a favourite in the 14th season -- Nikki Tamboli.

Sidharth may not be in the show currently but his presence is still made felt, as some contestants use his name to better their prospects in the games.