It’s been over a week since Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise, but there seems to be no end to the cacophony surrounding this tragic incident. A thousand conspiracy theories have been conceived, people have divided themselves into ‘camps’, hashtags on how nepotism actually pushed the actor to take this extreme step started trending and even decade-old clips of a frivolous chat show were dug out to name and shame actors.
On one hand, this entire ‘circus’ around something as traumatic as suicide shows how unprepared we still are to have sensitive conversations around mental health. On the other, questions have also been raised about the manner in which the media has covered the incident - from a basic flaw in the language used to describe the nature of Sushant’s death to headlines that screamed of apathy.
Another pressing topic has also found its way back through actors - the immediate need to eradicate celebrity blind items. While it would be grossly unfair to attribute this as a trigger to Sushant’s decision and take away the fact that we should grieve quietly and not add to the sound, it is imperative that we don’t turn a blind eye to the malicious gossip pieces that surfaced in the wake of his death.