MUMBAI: It’s not just the film industry, even regular citizens have been shocked and upset by the suicide of Bollywood actress Jiah Khan. Khan. 25, committed suicide by hanging herself late on Monday night, at her suburban residence in Juhu, Mumbai.
Thousands upon thousands of fans took to social networking sites to express their grief over a bright light being snuffed out too early. The common consensus among all was that she was snatched away by the cruel hands of fate, far too soon. She had such a promising future before her, everyone unanimously agreed, and was such a talented young actress, one who was perhaps not given her due.
Many even opined that perhaps it was Jiah’s early success that led to her ultimate downfall. Perhaps if she hadn’t tasted success when she was still so young (she had her first release at the tender young age of 19, opposite the megalith of Indian cinema- Amitabh Bachchan himself in ‘Nishabd’), she would have given up the game and returned to her home country, England, where she’d still be leading a normal life today.
However, things went horribly wrong when her career plummeted and her personal life hit rock bottom.
This is obviously not the first time that an aspiring actress has ended her life over such pressures. And now, Juhu police officers who are investigating the Jiah Khan suicide case have been asked to study the suicide case of model Viveka Babajee, who died under similar circumstances. Babjee, who was also suffering from depression, had also committed suicide in 2010 in her Bandra flat in a similar manner: by hanging herself from a ceiling fan.
The similarities between the two high profile suicides are uncanny- depression, work problems, failing careers, personal issues with their respective boyfriends- it just seems like a deja vu.
Police investigating the matter have already questioned and recorded statements from Jiah’s close friends and family, as well as her boyfriend Sooraj, who was questioned for several hours.
Said additional commissioner of police (West region) Vishwas Nangre-Patil, “We have asked cyber crime experts to decode Jiah’s Facebook and Twitter accounts to get more insights into her thoughts.”
“We have recorded Mahendru’s statement and also the statement by Jiah’s friend Kartik, with whom she had gone to Hyderabad for an audition on Saturday morning. Sooraj told us he had not met Jiah on Monday but the two had met on Sunday night,” added Nangre-Patil.
Jiah’s body was finally laid to rest on Wednesday afternoon, at a graveyard in Juhu. Several Bollywood celebrities were present, including Aditya Pancholi, Sooraj Pancholi, Riteish Deshmukh, Kiran Rao, Siddhartha Mallya, Sophie Chaudhary, Urvashi Dholakia, and Prem Chopra. Also inconsolable was her mother’s old friend Anju Mahendru, at whose house Rabiya Khan dined the night her daughter committed suicide.
