The nation was devastated after knowing about the demise of Jiah Khan, a promising actress whose career was only starting to take flight. The 25-year-old actress was found hanging in her Juhu, Mumbai apartment on the night of June 3, 2013, allegedly by suicide. This followed a 10-year ordeal wherein Jiah’s then-boyfriend, actor Sooraj Pancholi, was accused of abetment to suicide. Finally, the actor’s name was cleared in 2023 due to a lack of evidence.
Sooraj Pancholi had broken up with Jiah Khan a month before her death
In an emotional interview with Nayandeep Rakshit, Zarina Wahab shared insights into some things that happened before the tragic night of June 3, 2013. Her son, Sooraj, was about to debut in Bollywood, and she had suggested that he focus on his career. Citing that both Jiah and Sooraj’s parents were unhappy with their relationship, he broke up with the Ghajini actress a month before her suicide.
Jiah also had a Telugu film up her sleeve, for which she was going to South India in June, around the same time that the tragedy struck. However, she got more depressed after being rejected from the project. In Zarina’s words:
“I want to clear one thing that a lot of people think about Sooraj. When they (Jiah and Sooraj) were friends, Salman was launching him. Then I told him that Salman is going to launch you, so stop this! Then he went and told her, ‘My parents don’t want us to meet, and your mother also doesn’t want us to meet. So let’s break up.’ Then she said, ‘Can I come and meet you sometimes?’ So he told her, ‘You can come and meet me as a friend, but not as a girlfriend.’ The incident happened a month before their breakup. No one knows about this. In fact, she was going to South for a Telugu film around the same time in June. On the spot, she was rejected, and she was very depressed.”
Zarina Wahab says Jiah Khan was depressed
Zarina added that Jiah Khan was depressed after the rejection, and she kept on trying to contact Sooraj. However, the soon-to-debut actor was in the middle of some classes related to his shoot and couldn’t take her call. When he texted her later in the day to have her call back, it was too late. Zarina shared:
“She was so depressed that she was trying to call Sooraj. But his classes were going on because of some shooting. He couldn’t take her call, and when he later saw his phone, he texted her, ‘I’m free now, if you want to call me, call.’ But by then, she had already passed away. And now everyone says he did this, he did that… It’s so wrong. The poor girl was really sweet, but only God knows what truly happened with her.”
Jiah Khan’s death and the ordeal that followed
Jiah Khan was only 25 years old when she took her life. Later, the Police recovered her diary and a suicide note addressed to Sooraj Pancholi, where she shared how his actions affected her deeply and left her devastated. Sooraj got involved in the suicide case, and after ten gruelling years, the CBI special court acquitted him of the case. Reflecting on the whole incident, Zarina added:
“Whatever happened, it wasn’t good, but people misunderstood. How many people can you go around explaining things to? But he (Sooraj) went through a lot.”
What do you think about Zarina Wahab’s revelations regarding Jiah Khan’s case?
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