The Tragic Death Of Sushant Singh Rajput And All That Followed.....
These past three months have been in equal parts shocking and heartbreaking. From what I saw and heard of him, Sushant Singh Rajput was a good human being with a brilliant mind. He was a passionate, hardworking actor and a curious soul. His death has impacted me more than I realised and more than I let myself realise. He visited our school a couple of years back and though I was never particularly a fan, I remember being enamoured by his charisma and unmistakable humility. The energy in the auditorium that day was palpable and he made each and every one of us swoon over his effortless charm. That day, I became a fan of the person he was.
I think people
believe what they want to believe and so initially as painful as it was for me
to grasp, I believed the general narrative that was being circulated in the
media. I believed that there was nothing more to the incident than what was
being presented. As the weeks have gone by, the circumstances surrounding his
death have proven to be suspicious, to say the least. Every day I wake up to
new conspiracy theories and testimonies, no two people have the same version of
the story to tell. I do not think that it is right or in any way justified for
us, sitting at home to level allegations against anyone or jump to conclusions
without knowing the whole story. As individuals who have limited and probably
for a large part, misrepresented information it is not our job to speculate or
blame. However, what we can do is raise our voices to make sure that the
investigation takes the proper course and the truth prevails. Now that his
family has green-lit the investigation and three big agencies are involved I
hope and pray that this does not become another cold case and that Sushant and
whoever else may be involved get the justice they deserve.
Over
the past couple of weeks, I have come to a rather sad realisation about the
world that we live in. Social media is toxic. Everyone here is a judge, lawyer,
victim and culprit all at once. People change sides, opinions and loyalties
within seconds. Reality is often distorted and people exploit situations and
vulnerabilities to boost their own agendas. People are targeted without
conclusive proof and speculations are more often than not presented as hard
facts. When did dedicating a post to someone on social media become the
ultimate sign of compassion? When did wishing to grieve in peace become so
vile? We all seem to suddenly be talking about the importance of mental health
and the need to be compassionate to one another yet we are the ones who are
attacking others and spewing hatred all over social media. We dismissively
claim that Bollywood is full of hypocrites but I ask you, how are we any
different?.
Using
someone’s death to further your own agenda and to get your two minutes of fame,
circulating pictures of a dead body all over the internet and panning the
camera in the faces of people suffering from a loss to get a reaction from them
is not only highly objectionable but also cruel.
Boycotting
films and sending rape and death threats to people who are under the scanner
and even those who have absolutely no connection to the case is an extremely
warped sense of justice for someone. Are we so lacking in compassion, so devoid
of our humanity that we have forgotten where to draw the line?
The
quality of journalism today has degraded to a disturbing and shamefully low
level. It is high time people realise the impact a few words said in ignorance
or jest can have on someone and their mental state. The kind of treatment being
meted out to Rhea is harrowing to watch, and this is when she hasn’t even been
pronounced guilty yet. Where are these so-called woke and ‘strong’ members of
the media and our society when rapists and murderers are roaming around Scott
free? Why are they not vilified and mercilessly targeted every step of the way?
Rhea was being blamed for Sushant’s condition even before the FIR was filled.
The patriarchy is so deeply seated in our society that we don’t even realise
it. A woman cannot be held responsible for what the man chooses or does not
choose to do. This is not me coming out in support for Rhea but me coming out
in support of humanity. If she is found guilty then she should be convicted but
we have no right to attack someone like this and to take the law into our own
hands.
There
is a lot of noise right now but there is also a lot of silence. These times are
tough on all of us for a multitude of reasons and I urge everyone to take care
of their mental and physical well being. Please do not watch or participate in
anything that makes you feel triggered, your feelings are valid please do not
hide your pain. Spread love and happiness, there can never be too much of it. I
am sending everyone reading this strength and lots and lots of hope. Stay
blessed, stay united, this too shall pass…………………………….
PEACE
Comments