‘I failed to fulfil the promise I made to Sushant’
The news of actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise has been an absolute shocker for Digvijay Deshmukh, the actor’s co-star from 2013 film Kai Po Che! In the film, too, Deshmukh played a gifted cricketer being mentored by Sushant’s character and he shares how in real life, Rajput wanted to see him become a successful cricketer.
“He was passionate about cricket. On the last day of shoot, I had promised him I would not meet him till I became a decent level cricketer. This year, when I got selected for Mumbai Indians, I decided to meet him but then the lockdown happened and now he is no more. I wish the lockdown wouldn’t have been there, at least then I would have been able to fulfil the promise I made to him. I failed to do so,” shares Deshmukh.
The 22-year-old pacer from Pune shares how the actor visited the city during a shooting schedule for his film, MS Dhoni, The Untold Story (2016). “Even then I did not meet him because I wanted to keep the promise. I regret it,” he adds.
But Deshmukh only has fond memories of working with Rajput. “I was 15 then and I shot with him for six months. e would ask me to come to is room post shoot and train e with scenes and camera ngles,” he explains.
The young cricketer says given the experience that he has had with the actor, he could never fathom he would take such a drastic step and end his life.
“In his film Chhichhore, he talked about how suicide is not the solution, then why did he do it? He was always so energetic and lively, I can’t understand what made him do this. I heard somewhere that he was depressed for a few years, I don’t get it at all,” Deshmukh says.