Hannah Ellis-Petersen: Actor's death fuels media frenzy in India
Anna MM Vetticad, a journalist and author, noted the irony
of the BJP positioning itself as a champion of justice for Rajput. “The BJP and
its supporters had viciously attacked the actor’s films in his lifetime for
promoting Hindu-Muslim amity and for featuring Hindu-Muslim romances, at one
point turning their wrath on Sushant himself when he publicly condemned
extremism from the powerful Rajput community to which he belongs,” said
Vetticad. “In the din surrounding Sushant’s death, political opportunists have
sought to erase this inconvenient aspect of his legacy while they appropriate
him for their own ends.”...
NB: This sordid drama exemplifies the ruthlessness of our ruling power, and the spinelessness of India's police and media. It is a crying shame that the lust for power among certain ruling politicians combined with the (presumed) appetite for lynching and media trials is driving people into a frenzied hatred for a helpless young woman. Maybe it will end after the Bihar election. But the damage it has done will last a long time. It is reminiscent of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 in America, whose painful legacy is not yet erased. I hope India's young citizens can see what is going on and rise to defend justice, fair-mindedness and fair play. DS
For 90 days, the death of a young Bollywood star has transfixed India. The story that began in June, when the actor Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai apartment, was initially one of grief and tragedy. Police ruled that he had killed himself. Yet the spectacle it has morphed into since – involving misogyny, drugs, money, media witch-hunts, feuds, police leaks, federal investigations, state elections and the arrest of a Bollywood star – has become an unprecedented national obsession, with everyone from senior politicians to Amnesty International wading in.
To outsiders, Rajput seemed to have everything to live for. Born into a poor household in the deprived state of Bihar, he had worked his way up through Bollywood over seven years and starred in six hit films including MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, in which he played the legendary cricketer, and his most recent box-office success, the comedy Chhichhore. But behind the scenes his mental health had begun to deteriorate, according to a close family friend of his girlfriend, Rhea Chakraborty. During a trip to Europe with Chakraborty last autumn, he began to suffer manic episodes and fell into a deep depression, leading them to return to India early.
Arvind Kala - RHEA KE SAATH BAYINSAAF
The couple withdrew from the public eye, fearful that if Rajput’s mental illness became widely known it would end his career. In January Chakraborty confided to the friend, who does not want to be named, that he had been given a range of diagnoses, from manic depression to schizophrenia, and eventually bipolar disorder. “Rhea did everything she humanly could for Sushant, and every time he had a good day, she would call me up, so excited and determined she could help him beat this,” said the friend. “He moved into her family house and they looked after him like he was their own child. He did not feel like his own family really understood his mental illness.”
On 14 June, Rajput, 34, was
found dead. Mumbai police began investigating his death as a suicide.
However, public speculation grew around the case when the actor Kangana Ranaut,
known for her pro-government leanings, took to social media to blame nepotism
and certain Bollywood elites for driving him to his death. She alleged that
they had ostracised Rajput, attempted to sabotage his career and prevented his
films from being released because he did not come from “pure” Bollywood lineage…
Rhea Chakraborty on 'media trial' after Bollywood star's death. By Geeta Pandey
