It came as a surprise to Newmarket dentist Nazila Dehghani when she got a call to be on a reality show that could get her “murdered” on television.
The Traitors Canada called on Dehghani to apply with no pretext. Despite some misgivings — she said her husband thought it might be a scam — Dehghani sent a video to participate.
Producers ultimately chose the local to appear on The Traitors Canada.
“I’ve been a dentist for a long time. It’s good to do something out of your comfort zone,” she said. “Shake it up a little bit, try something new. It was a very fun experience.”
Dehghani got to appear on the currently airing season of The Traitors Canada, which has been running weekly on CTV since Oct. 2. The reality show pits contestants into two groups. The “faithful” trying to survive and a mysterious group of “traitors” working to eliminate other contestants in a murder-mystery-style game.
The show takes place in a historic manor with 20 players competing in missions for the cash prize. Eight are former reality television stars, while 12 are new faces.
“Each one of them are walking in with the same goal in mind: to unmask the traitors before either getting killed or banished from the game,” the show describes in a press release. “The reality stars quickly realize that in this game of suspicion, their experience can be perceived as a threat.”
The traitors eliminated Dehghani in the third episode. She said it was difficult to depart.
“I thought I had a good chance of winning ... I really made good connections with everyone. People could tell I was a faithful person and I think that’s what triggered the traitors to get rid of me,” she said. “It was kind of emotional. I wasn’t ready to leave too soon.”
The show was truly reality television, Denghani said. There was no makeup before filming began, and Dehghani said she just focused on authenticity.
“It’s a reality show. You go to be yourself,” she said. “You have to be ready.”
Watching herself on TV is a “surreal” experience, she said.
She described seeing herself appear on entertainment news television after a story on Britney Spears.
“It was very cool, so exciting,” she said.
The show has not garnered as much local attention as Dehghani expected. But she said some of her patients do follow the program and were excited.
“They were sending messages, ‘what’s going on,’” she recounted. “It just blew them away.”
Despite getting knocked out early, Dehghani said she watches the show weekly, hoping her fellow “faithful” team members will prevail.
“I want to see what happens to all my friends. I can’t wait,” she said.
The game is getting more intense, she said, with multiple people on the show having not disclosed everything about their professions.
But she added it is a show the whole family can enjoy.
“It’s not like other reality shows. It’s really fun for everybody. An eight-year-old will like it, and a 75-year-old will like it,” she said. “It’s a very good family show. It has a lot of suspense, it has action, it has drama.”
The season is seven episodes in, and you can watch it at ctv.ca/shows/the-traitors-canada.
