Sushant Singh Rajput's tragic death and the months long investigation has brought the conversation back on Bollywood and drug addiction. The late actor’s partner Rhea Chakraborty has been sent to a 14-day judicial custody by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on 8 September, in relation to a drug link in the case.
Here are some Bollywood celebrities who have found themselves caught in drug-related controversies over the years.
Fardeen Khan
The NCB arrested Fardeen Khan on 5 May, 2001 in Juhu.
As per a report in Times of India, Fardeen Khan was found guilty of attempting to buy cocaine in 2001. Fardeen was charged with attempting to purchase a small quantity of the drug and was booked under Sec 21(a) (Punishment for contravention involving small quantity) and Sec 28(c) (attempt to commit an offence) of the NDPS Act. Relief for the actor came in 2012 when a special court granted Fardeen immunity from prosecution, following which he went through a de-addiction process.
Khan had pleaded that he was never in possession of drugs and that he only attempted to procure one gram of cocaine.
Sanjay Dutt
Actor Sanjay Dutt has admitted to trying every drug in the book. The actor has also opened up about his years-long drug addition which started when he was in college.
“I had taken heroin and I went to sleep. I woke up hungry. It was early in the morning. I told my servant to get me something to eat. He started crying and said, ‘You have woken up after two days. The house has gone crazy, people are worried.’ I looked at myself in the mirror and I had this drug puffiness and I just knew I was going to die. I went and told my dad that I need help.”Sanjay Dutt on Simi Garewal’s Show
Sanjay Dutt was admitted to the Breach Candy Hospital for three weeks, after which he was sent to a rehab in the US, post which he reportedly bounced back from the addiction.
Vijay Raaz
On 14 February 2005, the Abu Dhabi police reportedly detained actor Vijay Raaz for alleged possession of narcotic drugs.
Vijay Raaz was shooting for Vikram Bhatt's Deewaane Hue Paagal in UAE when the detention took place. Raaz had told Gulf News, "I do not know from where and how it crept into my baggage. By the manner in which events unfolded, I suspect that someone planted it there. When I saw it, I was in total shock. I have never, ever taken drugs."
Six grams of marijuana was found in the actor’s bag. The police carried out tests on the actor which came negative and he was released later.
Prateik Babbar
Prateik Babbar has said in an interview that his first brush with drugs was at the age of 13.
Babbar's addiction, he wrote in an open letter for Midday, started with marijuana and hashish, then developed into an addiction to cocaine and acid.
Talking to the media, he had said, "My first real drug was a disturbed childhood. Constantly faced with an internal dilemma, the voices in my head debating where I belong and who I am, and drugs came disguised as a glitzy escape. As the years went by, I got acquainted with the narcotic underbelly, which led me to my first run-in with drugs at the age of 13."
“Getting out of bed was almost impossible; nausea greeted me each morning, my body ached and I oscillated between hot and cold every few minutes. At that point, I didn’t even have a drug of choice, I took whatever I could lay my hands on.”Prateik Babbar
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