Dear SSR, we miss you!
It was 2013. I was reading Femina in the college library because the cover featured 3 of my favorite actors. I still remember the magazine cover clearly. All dressed up in denims, sitting on the car hood- Aditya Roy Kapoor, the handsome man, Arjun Kapoor, for some strange reason, I liked him then, and Sushant Singh Rajput, the one with the best smile. Yes, the cheerful smile.
A few years later, I happened to follow him on Instagram. I don't follow many Bollywood celebs but his feed was different. Not to mention that his smile is a reason enough to follow him there. I was impressed with his bucket-list. Full of scientific, adventurous and philanthropic goals. His poetry. And mention of Shiv Shambhu in almost every post. Not to forget how he used to donate to fundraisers and keep their link in his bio. Which other celeb does that?
I waited so eagerly for the release of Sonchiriya. Look at the cast, who won't be? It received very nice reviews. Sadly, it was shown on too few screens. Most of the screens went to Pati, Patni aur Woh. I have 3-4 theatres in my neighborhood, none was showing Sonchiriya. Sushant also knew this. He posted about this on Instagram and even said that dubbed version has also leaked. I was sad for the fact that a wonderful movie met such ill fate.
Last Sunday, around 2.30PM, my friend texted me about this news and I was in utter disbelief. Around 12.30PM, I was humming to the PK song "Char kadam chal do na sath mere". My neighbour had played this on high volume. Who knew that only 2 hours later, I would receive such terrible news.
Couldn't believe this for many days. Just recently, we were grieving the loss of Irrfan Khan. Now, SSR! Gone too soon. A brilliant mind, hardworking actor, kind heart, humble man. The man who was one amongst us and who still continues to inspire many dreamers. If only I could undo this incident.
From our viewpoint, he had everything. He was successful. He was already ticking items off his bucket-list. He used to post videos about visiting his alma-mater, CERN, WW1 memorial. He was doing what he always loved. What made him take this extreme step then?
One thing for sure- the stardom, the money are not enough to keep you happy.
I can only pray that he finally gets the peace he was looking for and rests at a happy place. Maybe if he knew how much he is loved by all of us, he would have still been here.
It's a lesson for all of us as well. Do not shun anyone if they talk about their mental health. If you are unhappy, reach out to you closed ones or sign up for therapy. There has to be no stigma attached to mental health. It can happen to anyone, anytime.
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