He melted hearts with his disarming smile... a star in his own right

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A talented star who won critics and fans alike

Higlight: The 34-year-old actor who melted hearts with his disarming smile was certainly a star in his own right. Only one who would and should have shone much more, only if he had not chosen death over life.

1986 to 2020

Nonika Singh

Who could have imagined that behind the charming and good-looking face, the mind was turbulent enough to call it quits. The suicide of young, handsome actor Sushant Singh Rajput leaves behind a trail of gnawing queries and as many beautiful celluloid memories. The 34-year-old actor who melted hearts with his disarming smile was certainly a star in his own right. Only one who would and should have shone much more, only if he had not chosen death over life.

Call it the irony of life or abysmal reality, real does not always imitate reel. His last theatrical release Nitesh Tiwari’sChhichhore tackled the very subject of suicide, as it drove home the point it was okay to fail in life. Of course, Sushant was a fairly successful actor who won critics and fans alike. A popular face of television serial Pavitra Rishta, he made the switch to 70 mm screen with the much-acclaimed Abhishek Kapoor’s Kai Po Che in 2013. Years later Abhishek Kapoor’sKedarnath may not have emerged as critics’ favourite but created magic on the box-office. Besides, who could find fault with Sushant’s portrayal of a do-gooder Muslim porter who symbolised human goodness.

His filmography may not have been too long but included significant films like Abhishek Chaubey’s Sonchiriya. The leading man of several films such as Shuddh Desi Romance and Raabta, he slipped into his roles with naturalness. Incredibly earnest onscreen and almost universally liked, one of the most memorable parts he played was the lead role in MS Dhoni: The Untold Story. The biopic on the former cricket captain Dhoni saw him pushing the ball straight out of the park, earning him many plaudits especially for mastering Dhoni’s trademark helicopter shot. The film set the cash registers ringing. He was also seen in a significant cameo in Aamir Khan’s PK where he romanced Anushka Sharma. Clearly nothing seemed amiss in his life.

Now as reports are trickling in that he was suffering from clinical depression, one can perhaps read many meanings in his last Instagram post where he spoke of “fleeting life” and his late mother. In yet another interview, he spoke of lack of excitement, and his poems dedicated to his mother too reflect a deep sadness. His endgame however would continue to both shock and haunt.

For someone who overcame struggles — he once confessed to being a background dancer at IIFA functions — what made him give up so young will not find easy answers.