Remembering Sushant
On his first death anniversary, a look back at the Bollywood star’s tragic end
Today, we clock 365 days since we woke up to the tragic news of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput being found dead at his Mumbai residence. The blow was swift, but its impact continues to rattle even the sturdiest minds.
As Rajput’s first death anniversary draws upon us, the idea of closure remains an elusive concept to his family and fans as they struggle to make sense of that irrevocable tragedy. No celebrity death in India has evoked this degree of intrigue or spawned so many multiple conspiracy theories about the price of Bollywood fame or professional despair.
Even though India’s three prime lawenforcement agencies — the Narcotics Central Bureau (NCB), the Economic Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau Of Investigation (CBI) — are doggedly pursuing this case, examining different kinds of angles ranging from drugs to financial misdemeanours, there seems to be no concrete answers or water-tight conclusions surrounding the actor’s death.
Here’s a cold fact. As early as October 2020, the AIIMS Medical Board had submitted its report to the CBI where it categorically ruled out murder, while stating that the actor died by suicide — he was found hanging in his Mumbai apartment on the morning on June 14. But Rajput’s fans and family are far from appeased.
Rajput’s death also triggered an avalanche of morbid thought processes, like whether nasty and vitriolic colleagues can push an actor to take an extreme step such as ending one’s life or whether drugaddled debauchery can take a toll on a public figure’s physical and mental health.
HERE’S WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR
Rajput’s girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty continue to be on CBI’s radar as prime suspects, while gaining notoriety (Rhea’s name has emerged on ‘60 Most Desirable’ list put together by the daily Times Of India), and on the other hand, Rajput’s grieving father is scrambling to put a halt to the making of a Bollywood biopic Nyay, based on his son’s life.
In what would put a Bollywood murder mystery to shame, Rajput’s death seems to have also unearthed the seedy underbelly of the film industry where questions about the toxic work culture and dependence of drugs by iconic stars are being scrutinised. While Rajput’s death unleashed a media frenzy at first, the interest has undoubtedly waned in the last few months. One of the most significant
developments in the recent past was the arrest of Rajput’s flat-mate and friend Siddharth Pithani, who found the actor’s body last year.
According to reports, the NCB has filed an extensive 12,000-page charge sheet against 33 people, including actress Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik Chakraborty, and others in the Bollywood-drugs mafia probe case linked to Rajput’s death. Pithani is being reportedly questioned on whether he acted as a drug supplier or was a conduit to Rajput’s alleged drug habits.
WHAT’S THE WAY FORWARD?
While the drug and the financial dealings related to Rajput’s death are still under investigation, Bollywood is now constantly being chastised for being hostile towards talents with no industry connections.
The year also saw National Awardwinning Indian actress Kangana Ranaut hurling unsubstantiated accusations at movie mogul and producer Karan Johar for deliberately sidelining Rajput and sabotaging his career. The year — since Rajput’s death — also saw movie fans being hyper-vigilant towards outsiders such as Kartik Aaryan who lost out on projects backed by Johar. Speculations like will Aaryan’s ouster from Johar’s inner circle make him the next Rajput is being constantly floated about. The scrutiny has reached such heights that it prompted acclaimed director Anubhav Sinha to point out that there seems to be an orchestrated smear campaign against an outsider like Aaryan, something that even Rajput had reportedly faced while trying to boost his career in Bollywood.
Since Rajput’s absence, the collective sympathy towards other actor hopefuls who make it big in Bollywood on their own steam is now being revered and looked at as a Herculean task. Established heroes such as Salman Khan and star kids like Alia Bhatt are being called out for their innate privileges and are being blasted for getting it easy in life. There’s no denying that some of actors — who were born to acting dyansties — are bearing the brunt of displaced or misplaced anger.
Following Rajput’s death, the sheen and dazzle of Bollywood also seems to have worn off as it’s now got a rap for being a murky place that runs on unsavoury factors such as rampant drug abuse and isolated existences. As agencies continue to investigate into Rajput’s death, Bollywood — as an industry — seems to be in a dire need for an image make-over where equal opportunities for outsiders and stars with connection and clout can co-exist.
As of today, there’s still no happy ending in sight.