Roadies Rebirth: Gang Leaders, Timings and Who's Really In

MTV Roadies is back for its 21st season, and this one is called Roadies Rebirth. The season premieres tonight, 16 October 2026, at 7 PM on MTV, with Rannvijay Singha back as host and a new twist at the top: six gang leaders split into two rival camps, the OGs and the NewGs. Here is what is confirmed so far – telecast days and time, the gang leaders, the format, the audition tour, what we know (and don't know) about the contestants, and how to watch.

Roadies Rebirth quick facts

• Show: MTV Roadies, Season 21 – Roadies Rebirth
• Premiere: Friday, 16 October 2026
• TV telecast: MTV, every Friday and Saturday at 7:00 PM
• Streaming: on JioHotstar alongside the TV run
• Host: Rannvijay Singha
• Gang leaders: six, in two teams of three – OGs vs NewGs
• Auditions: Delhi, Chandigarh, Kolkata and Pune, September 2026

The name, season number and date check out: trade site Best Media Info, Filmibeat, LatestLY, The Hans India and Daily Jagran all report Season 21, titled Rebirth, starting on 16 October. One Filmibeat line mentions "January 16", but the same article gives 16 October everywhere else, so that looks like a typo.

Premiere date and telecast time on MTV

The first episode airs on MTV at 7:00 PM on 16 October. After that, new episodes come every Friday and Saturday at 7 PM. Best Media Info described these as "new telecast days" for the show, so if you are used to catching Roadies on a different day from earlier seasons, note the change. Episodes also stream on JioHotstar, so you can catch up later if you miss the TV slot.

Some reports, including Esquire India and Daily Jagran, add Netflix as a second platform. Most outlets, and the announcements quoted in the trade press, name only one streaming partner along with MTV, so treat the second-platform claim as unconfirmed for now.

Host: Rannvijay Singha returns

Rannvijay Singha is the face most viewers connect with Roadies. He has hosted most seasons from Season 2 onwards. Season 18 and Season 19 were hosted by Sonu Sood, and Rannvijay came back for Season 20, Double Cross. He continues for Rebirth, and was confirmed as host before the auditions even began.

Introducing the season, he summed up the new set-up like this: "Three OGs will face three NewGs." He also called it "a dynamic we've never seen before on Roadies", explaining that "there are two gangs but six people running the game."

Gang leaders: the OGs vs the NewGs

In past seasons each gang leader ran a separate gang. This time the six leaders are grouped into two camps of three.

The line-ups above match across Best Media Info, Filmibeat, LatestLY, The Hans India and Daily Jagran. A launch promo introduced the leaders through gym challenges – a bench press and a push-up contest – with Rannvijay checking in on both teams over a video call.

Format and theme of Roadies Rebirth

The big change is structural. Instead of six gangs, there are effectively two gangs, each run by three leaders, who pool their contestants and strategy. The theme is a straight contest between experience and new energy: the OGs bring years of Roadies know-how, while the NewGs are pitched as the fresh, unpredictable side.

The Rebirth name is reflected in the branding. The new logo, unveiled in August, uses a phoenix, the bird that rises again, and an early teaser showed three red and three yellow helmets reflected in Rannvijay's sunglasses – a hint at the two teams of three. Beyond that, expect the usual Roadies mix: physical and adventure tasks, eliminations, alliances and plenty of arguments.

The makers have not officially announced where the journey is being shot, so we have left that out rather than guess.

The audition journey

Auditions ran in September 2026 across four cities: Delhi, Chandigarh, Kolkata and Pune. The process followed the familiar Roadies pattern, ending with the personal interview in front of the leaders.

The Chandigarh stop got extra attention: a Roadies-themed bike rally of 55 riders went through the city before the auditions, and gang leader Neha Dhupia joined in to encourage participants.

Confirmed contestants: what we actually know

As of premiere day, MTV has not released an official contestant list, and we could not find a single contestant name reported by two reliable outlets. Several sites carry "contestant lists", but these are mostly guesses drawn from audition clips – and getting through an audition room does not mean someone made it onto the journey.

The audition episodes usually introduce the selected Roadies one by one, so the real line-up should become clear over the first few weekends. We will stick to names the show itself puts on screen.

Prize and finale: what is known

No finale date or prize for Rebirth has been announced yet. For reference, Season 20, Double Cross, ended on 1 June 2025. Kushal "Gullu" Tanwar from Elvish Yadav's gang won, with Hartaaj Singh Gill from Prince Narula's gang as first runner-up. Gullu reportedly took home ₹10 lakh and a motorbike. Gullu later went into the Bigg Boss house – read about his fight with Nakul Dhull in Bigg Boss 20.

Where to watch Roadies Rebirth

• On TV: MTV, every Friday and Saturday at 7:00 PM.
• Streaming: episodes are available on JioHotstar for on-demand viewing.
• Live on NoWireTV: MTV is part of our live TV line-up, so the 7 PM telecast plays as it goes out – on the website, the Android app and Android TV / Fire TV, with no set-top box needed.

Watch MTV HD live for the best picture, or MTV live if HD buffers on a slow connection. NoWireTV carries the live MTV channel, not Roadies episodes on demand, and is not affiliated with MTV or the show. More channels are in our full live TV list.

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• New releases this week (13–19 October 2026)

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