The death of Sushant Singh Rajput, a Bollywood actor who came from the masses and made a name for himself, showed us the other side of the media coin. Unfortunately, his name will be remembered forever but not for his movies or struggles but for the drama that encircled his controversial demise.
News channels, media, Facebook groups, angry netizens and many more who never met Sushant in their life suddenly happened to know so much about him that they can positively raise their voices against Rhea Chakraborty.
Sushant’s death on 17th June 2020 created a series of chain reactions among many industries and systems that operate at close proximities. The film industry, the media, the political parties and the self-claimed investigators / mental health experts / doctors / lawyers etc. went on a rampage as they dedicatedly investigated upon the alleged murder of the actor.
Many people come to Mumbai for a chance to get into the show business and get lost in the bright and dark alleys of being an artist.
Sushant was one of them. He came from a middle-class family from Bihar. He was an outsider and still made a huge name in the industry despite not having anyone behind him to fall back on. In short, he had no godfather.
He was smart, dropped out of a big college, had interests in astronomy and physics and was a good and honest actor of such a high caliber that he became a hit in the TV serials as well as in the movies. His innocent looking face and his charming smile often made a huge void in the hearts of the audience. Despite having a bright future in the show business, he suffered from some mental ailments.
The fact that he was suffering from depression was not received quite well by the people.
Indians, in general, don’t believe in ‘Mental Health’ issues. According to them, the terms like ‘depression’ and ‘anxiety’ are just man-made concepts of avoiding work.
‘Depression and Bipolar Disorder are not meant to be taken seriously and these are just tricks that Rhea is using to escape murder charges.’ Read a Facebook post, after Sushant’s psychologist came forward with the reports of Sushant suffering from depression and Bipolar disorder.
‘What did he lack? He had money, cars, houses, fans and movies to his names. Why would he be suffering from depression?’ this was one of the most asked questions in the social media platforms after the news of him suffering from depression came out.
Being successful has nothing to do with your mental health because your mental health has nothing to do with your success. Being rich doesn’t give you immunity against depression.
Rhea Chakraborty: The ‘Drug addict’ turned ‘Murderer‘
Rhea Chakraborty, the prey to all of this, became a nationwide target on whom the whole of news channels, activists and journalists preyed on for months. The pictures of her in gym outfits and swimwear began rounds as to show her as a promiscuous and debauched woman.
The media does know how to programme the subconscious minds of people.
If not then why to show the pictures of those in question in swimsuits and gym pants?
It is to implant the idea that this lady is a woman of easy virtue.
The selection of pictures by the news channels is evident that they know which pictures to use in order to justify their false claims.
The social media was flooded with pictures and videos of Sushant and his love for films, dogs, acting and physics. The people saw them to the extent that they were convinced of the rumour that he was murdered.
And the online outrage started its roots in Facebook. Within days, there were hundreds of groups in the names of ‘Justice for Sushant Singh Rajput’, ‘Justice for Sushant Sir’ and many more. Their whole agenda is to keep the fire burning until the murderer was hanged.
SIDENOTE-
I tried to get into some of these Facebook groups who were virtually fighting to get justice and the questions that were asked prior in order to join these groups were funny as well as evident enough of how easily the masses can be brainwashed in believing something that they don’t know shit about.
In this case, the ‘assumed’ murderer was Rhea Chakraborty. Not because she was found guilty but because she was made one by the news channels, journalists and political parties to reach their selfish goals.
‘They ripped a dead man for money and attention.’
The countless media trials and investigations that were carried by the news channels mostly were all designed to take this simple case of a police investigation to the benefits of the political parties.
The outrage that was meant to give justice to the man who died soon turned to a political agenda.
This whole incident leads us to the ugly side of the media; the 4th pillar of our democracy, the pillar that is being slowly scratched with fake news, made-up facts and assumptions.
News is not news now. They have become gossips. And the media and news channels have become gossipmongers. The way they present the news, the way they lead to a conclusion, the way they present facts and figures; all seemed to show their biases. They have already taken a side of which they will be defending.
You are their Consumer!
Be mindful of the fact that you are their consumer!
The information you are putting up in your brain to stay relevant is already tailored to get the desired outcomes. You will not even get to know how much of a violent and radical person you will become once you start feeding on ‘tailored information’ by these biased media.
Until you realize how easy it is for your mind to be manipulated, you remain the puppet of someone else’s game.
By Evita Ochel
Akash Rout is a jolly old fella who writes non-fiction as well as fiction. He is known for his rebellious yet subtle form of satires and humor. An aspiring stand-up comic with a science background. So, give him a break, will you!
It is sad to watch a reputed journalist behaving like a trained monkey. Sad for the Nation to know that..