Virat Kohli and his actor-wife Anushka Sharma moved to London in 2024 to escape media attention in India.
In the video released by RCB on social media, host Danish Sait, acting as Mr. Nags, jokingly told Kohli: "People are saying RCB are playing five overseas players, I am not understanding what they are saying actually".
Kohli, responding with a half-smile to the chatter, retorted: "I don't know, why are you asking me? Ask the overseas players. I am not an overseas player. Am I an overseas player?"
The joke stems from the IPL rule limiting teams to only four overseas players per match, with fans playfully suggesting Kohli is a "foreigner" because of his base in the UK.
Notably, Virat Kohli and his actor-wife Anushka Sharma moved to London in 2024. The decision was aimed at allowing their children to grow up away from the relentless paparazzi culture in India.
After 18 seasons filled with heartbreaks, RCB clinched their maiden IPL title in 2025. The Rajat Patidar-led side edged out Punjab Kings by six runs in a thrilling final at the Narendra Modi Stadium to lift the coveted trophy.
During the interaction with Mr. Nags, Kohli used the phrase "monkey off the back" to describe the profound sense of relief and "lightness" he felt after finally achieving the goal he had chased since the inaugural 2008 season.
"I had heard of this statement or this saying, four years, monkey off the back. That night I really felt what it means. Everything became light," Kohli stated.
"Victory is the accumulation of hard work, all the sacrifices you’ve made, to be committed to the sport. It all comes together as a form of assurance, a reward, to know that you haven’t wasted your time. A lot of people learn from losses, but a lot of people can get very disheartened as well. So when you win after a lot of hard work, it makes you feel a sense of justice to the work that you put in, and also gives you motivation to work harder," he further remarked.