Cough – why so serious?

One of the most recalled scenes with a cough in it is when the charming Madhuri Dixit uses it to get the attention of a surprisingly muscle-less and good-looking young Salman Khan in Hum Aapke Hai Kaun?

On the other hand, most other movies both in India and abroad have movie directors who seem to live under the impression that humans are incapable of coughing without going on to die from lung cancer, tuberculosis or some other disease. The only other coughers you’d find on the big screen who survive the ending are either smokers or marijuana users.

 Yawn or cough?

 Benjamin Franklin, of the founding fathers of America had once famously said, ‘The art of acting consists in keeping people from coughing.’ This remark was actually made to indicate that audiences are more prone to have a coughing fit during boring acts and it’s the actor’s job to be so skilled that it doesn’t happen during his act. A non-coughing audience would thus indicate the show’s success and the elevated thespian skills of the actors.

Ahem! *cough*

Coughing whenever someone else says something preposterous has become part and parcel of everyday interactions. Take for example M.S Dhoni saying that his owning a part of the sports firm that manages four other Indian players doesn’t indicate a conflict of interest of any sort. An appropriate reaction would be *COUGH*.

Sing the ‘Cough Syrup’

Our favourite point has to be this catchy 2008 song called Cough Syrup by Indie American alternative rock group Young The Giant with lead Indo-American lead vocalist Sameer Gadhia who used to be a Human Biology student at Stanford and was thinking of going to medical school to become a doctor.

The song according to Gadhia is a ‘kind of cry for help’ to ‘break free, not necessarily from oppression but the common symptoms of suburbia (urban living) like boredom, normality and homogeneity.’ The video concept, Gadhia said centred on viscosity (perhaps like a physical cough syrup) ‘the friction of fluids and the obstacles that everyone, any object, has to face in order to evolve.’

Beware of cough-power

Researchers found that the average human cough expels enough air to fill up 75% of a 2-litre cola bottle or 1.5 litres! This air that shoots out of the lungs is capable of travelling several feet. Coughing also forces out thousands of tiny droplets of saliva – one cough can expel 3,000 droplets and some of them fly at the speed of 80 km/h or 50 miles/h.

A cough can be as noisy as a loud radio or an underground train and can measure up to 90 decibels!

Source: Live Science

Sometimes a violent cough could actually do some serious damage. Coughing violently can actually break a rib! Of course this would indicate that you’re suffering from a disease or condition that has weakened your bones like cancer or osteoporosis. Coughing can also tear some muscles in the chest, diaphragm and sides and damage nasal veins and those in the anus!

Source: Live Strong

Have cough syrup?

In the 19^th Century, cough medicines for adults and children actually used to contain the highly addictive morphine and it wasn’t well till the end of the century that society realised the grave dangers of addiction. If that wasn’t enough, one of the world’s biggest pharma companies Bayer actually made its fortunes by commercialising heroin as cough medicine! Heroin was actually actively marketed as a cough reliever and over-the-counter medication for children! Thankfully, society woke up to the grave dangers of these addictive drugs and heroin was first made prescription-only in 1914 and completely banned by the USFDA in 1924.

Source: Business Insider and BBC News

How in earth?!!

While drinking a cup of hot cocoa or taking a hot steamy shower seems effective cough remedies, there are more bizarre ones out there like wrapping a wet washcloth around the throat, putting ice cubes in the mouth, rubbing vaporub on the feet and putting on socks and even raising both hands!

 Source: Yahoo

 Giraffes immune to cough?

 Well, this post wouldn’t be complete without having an animal fact. We don’t exactly know why giraffes don’t cough. However, there are some theories about the fact that their lungs are other structures which are required for a cough to originate to be too far down their really long throats. Others however believe that giraffes do cough but the human ear can’t perceive the sound. However, the male giraffes are known emit cough-like sounds during courtship!

Source: Hyper Media and Wikipedia

Sooraj was presented before a magistrate. Sooraj, son of actor couple Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab, was arrested Monday after being booked under penal provisions for allegedly abetting Jiah’s suicide. The arrest came barely two days after Jiah Khan’s family handed over a note penned by her to police. The note was recovered by the actress’s kin three days after her suicide June 3. Sooraj Pancholi was on the verge of breaking into Bollywood with Salman Khan 

Jiah Khan also known as Nafisa committed suicide at her Juhu residence last Monday. According to reports, she hung herself at around 11 PM but didn’t leave any suicide notes. The 25-year-old had worked with Amitabh Bachchan in Ram Gopal Varma’s Nishabd which was inspired by the Hollywood film American Beauty. Born and raised in London, the actress had shifted to India to pursue a career in acting and had appeared in Aamir Khan’s Ghajni and Akshay Kumar’s Housefull. Earlier it had appeared that her stagnant film career had driven her to commit suicide but later her mother released a six-page note which blamed her boyfriend Sooraj Pancholi for abusing her. 

Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

‘It is there in the suicide note, but then till the time it is not corroborated, we can’t do anything. We are waiting for the hospital report where she was treated. Till the time we don’t get this, we can’t say anything. We have got to know where she was treated, so the report will also come,’ the officer, who did not want to be identified, told reporters. The medial reports will prove whether she had been hit or not, he said. He also added that the case is at its preliminary stage at the moment and police are investigating further.

Talking about the letter, he added that it has to be considered as evidence as Jiah’s mother has been seeing her daughter’s handwriting since childhood. ‘If the mother said that it is hers (Jiah’s), and then we must believe in that… she has seen from childhood how her handwriting is. Of course, we are sending it to handwriting experts too,’ he said. Police are also trying to crack the actress’ mobile phone to check her messages. They tried many passwords provided by Jiah’s mother and sisters, but nothing has worked so far and they will be sending it to the experts. 

The mother also has written in her statement to police that Jiah and Sooraj were in a live-in relationship since a year, the officer said. Sooraj, who was arrested late Monday night, will be in police custody till June 13. The arrest came barely two days after Jiah’s family handed over her letter to police. It was found three days after her suicide June 3.

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

Click here to read Jiah Khan’s original suicide note  

Update: Sooraj Pancholi has been arrested for the abetment of suicide under the Indian Penal Code

‘My point is to tell you the truth. It is being said that she was depressed and had no work, but it was not the case, Rabiya, who has three daughters – Jiah, Karishma and Kavita – said at a press conference. ‘She was attending at least three to four events a month. She was making money and was living comfortably in her house with two maids and even had a car and a driver. It was the insecurity that her love was not respected and recognised that was killing her day by day.

Bollywood actress Nafisa alias Jiah Khan, who debuted opposite Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Nishabd’, committed suicide at her residence in Mumbai’s Juhu area June 3. She was 25. ‘Jiah was a poetess…she had a diary in which she wrote all her poems. I wanted my daughters to recite them at prayer ceremony, but we couldn’t find the diary. I couldn’t get myself to touch Jiah’s things, so I told my daughter (Kavita) to look. She (Jiah) had a Prada wallet box and her sister found the letter in it,’ said Rabiya. All Jiah wanted was love, she added.

The letter, where Jiah had penned her troubled relationship with her Suraj, was found by her sister Kavita Saturday and was handed over to the police. Although the letter doesn’t mention any name but is talks about the sorry state of Jiah’s relationship.  ‘After all the pain, the rape, the abuse, the torture I have seen previously I didn’t deserve this. I didn’t see any love or commitment from you. I just became increasingly scared that you would hurt me mentally or physically….,’ the letter said.

‘I aborted our baby when it hurt me deeply. You promised me once we made it to one year we would get engaged. All you want in life is partying, your women and your selfish motives. All I wanted was you and my happiness you took both away from me,’ the letter added.

Talking about the letter, Rabiya confessed that there were many things in it that she wasn’t aware of. ‘I knew about his (Suraj’s) abusing her and not respecting her and also about the presents and the Goa trip. But I found out other aspects, which were hurtful,’ she said.

‘The letter does not have a name, so who it is addressed to is something you can only ask Jiah. But because of the incidents in the past and what she told me, all of these things point out to Suraj Pancholi,’ she said. Talking about the things Jiah shared with her, she said that they had a detailed discussion about Jiah’s relationship with Suraj when she had visited her in London a few months back. ‘When she came to London during her birthday, I saw that she always had tears in her eyes. I asked her if this was regarding Suraj and she started crying…she said that he abuses her and shouts at her. When he drinks, he can’t handle himself,’ Rabiya said.

‘I asked her to lay off for a while. I told her that in a relationship space is most important… She had tried to cut down, out of his 10 calls she used to answer just two. This was the time when I came to know about the nature of the boy,’ she added. Jiah had confided in her mother that Aditya Pancholi was unhappy about his son’s relationship with her. ‘She said that ever since it came in the paper that Jiah Khan and Suraj are dating, the father created a scene. He told him that Jiah was so much elder to him, but Jiah told me that it was hardly a year. So Suraj was aware that his father didn’t like the relationship,’ Rabiya said.

 She also clarified that Aditya Pancholi came to see Jiah’s body only after the police had come. ‘In my house, only Anju (Mahendru) and her friend came. I called my family members…three to four families came. After three hours, Aditya Pancholi came and Suraj didn’t even come. He must have got to know, but he never came,’ she said.

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

Click here to read Jiah Khan’s original suicide note  

The letter portrays a curious paradox of a relationship characterised by unrequited love and abuse. The pain and turmoil is palpable and it seems like there should be tears dripping down from the words.  Jiah truly speaks the universal language of a heartbroken lover; anger, demoralisation, disappointment, despair, and total emptiness.

But as sad and heart-breaking this tragedy may be, life will go on and the story will soon become old news. However, if women around the world can take a lesson or two from Jiah’s experience, the tragedy can make women stronger and in some cases, avoid some of the unfortunate circumstances she had in her life.

The full text of Jiah’s note can be seen here. Her original words will appear in red.

‘I am running away from everything.’

It’s normal that when life is painful, running away feels like the right thing to do to alleviate the discomfort.  For Jiah, running away meant killing herself. For some people it means having an affair; or never leaving the house; or moving somewhere impulsively; or isolating from all relationships, even ones with close friends and family.

But running away rarely solves the issue. It just provides a temporary solution.  If you find yourself in a situation where you want to run away, find someone you can talk to who you trust. It may be a therapist, a close friend, a family member. Sometimes talking out the plan can help you figure out whether it is a sound idea. Not to mention that the comfort in having someone listen to you can be helpful in calming yourself down.

‘The career is not even worth it any more. When I first met you I was driven, ambitious and disciplined. Then I fell for you, a love I thought would bring out the best in me. I don’t know why destiny brought us together. After all the pain, the rape, the abuse, the torture I have seen previously I didn’t deserve this. I didn’t see any love or commitment from you. I just became increasingly scared that you would hurt me mentally or physically.’

It’s natural to gravitate to a relationship that appears to bring out the best in you. But when it doesn’t, it’s so hard to have the clarity and the courage to walk away without looking back.

Jiah was trapped in an allegedly abusive relationship. She started out on top of her game, focused and positive about her future, but by the end she felt completely alone and worthless. If you ever feel like your relationship is no longer bringing out the best in you, reflect on it.  And try to be honest with what you find in your gut.

Sometimes women who are stuck in abusive relationships are judged for not leaving sooner. But as we can see in Jiah’s case, it’s not so easy to leave an abusive partner – especially when the relationship starts off with such promise. For some women, they become so down on themselves that they stop believing they deserve something better. Their objective shifts to simply surviving, while hopelessly praying that things turn around- no matter how ingrained the predictable pattern has become.

‘It didn’t matter how many gifts I gave you or how beautiful I looked for you.’

It is very common to believe that if someone doesn’t reciprocate your love, showering them with gifts and trying to look more attractive for them will do the trick.  But if they don’t love you for you, the gifts and the extra primping won’t matter.  You will only become more invested, frustrated with poor ‘returns’, and you will feel increasingly unappreciated.

Make no mistake; gift-giving and trying to stay attractive for your partner is important in a relationship. But it isn’t the essence, and it is not what’s at the foundation. At the base of a healthy relationship is love and mutual respect – not the superficialities.

‘All I wanted was love. I did everything for you. I was working for us. But you were never my partner.’

A healthy relationship is about building and sustaining an ‘us’. It requires commitment from both partners to work hard and be giving. But you can’t do the work for both of you. Akin to playing doubles in tennis, if you’re not both putting in the effort, playing will become more exhausting and stressful.  Jiah hoped that if she did his work too, they could make it. But relationships are a two-way street. He wasn’t her partner, and no matter how much work she put in it could never make up for his deficits.

Seeing your partner’s potential for growth is crucial for a relationship. But at a certain point it is necessary to examine how realistic the expectations are. It sounds from the letter like Jiah recognized time and time and again that she was more committed to the relationship, yet she continued to hoping things would get better. Evidently they did not.

Jiah says later in the letter that he promised her they would get engaged once they made it to a year of being together. Perhaps that promise is what motivated Jiah to keep trying and keep hoping they could be happy together. But hey, if you’re not happy now, you won’t be happy later.

‘All I want now is to go to sleep and never wake up again. I am nothing. I had everything. I felt so alone even while with you. You made me feel alone and vulnerable. I am so much more than this.’

Suicide can be a very perplexing behaviour, especially when committed by someone who had a life that was widely envied. But the reality is that if you believe you are nothing and feel that you have nothing to live for, the positives in your life will be simply be floating in the blurry background. You know they’re there but you can’t appreciate them because the pain you’re in is making them out of focus.

Unfortunately, suicide is a phenomenon that we hear about in the media fairly often.  As misguided as it may seem to the observer, to the suffering person it can represent the final quest for relief from pain. If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide; seek psychiatric help immediately.  The person may hate you for it, but don’t want to ever look back and second-guess yourself.

‘I lost myself in loving you.’

Perhaps the crux of her letter is not about blaming a lover for hurting her. Rather, it’s the sad cry from allowing a relationship to reduce her to a woman she no longer recognized. Mourning for the woman she used to be. Wishing she knew better and could have internalized back then that she was ‘much more than this’.

Jiah lost herself in a relationship and unfortunately, it can happen very easily. When you are in a relationship, especially a new one, it is vital to have a firm sense of who you are and be in touch with your inner gut. If the person is bringing out a part of you that you don’t like, or makes you feel like you are worthless, or never reciprocates your positive gestures, or abuses you mentally/physically/sexually, or makes you stop caring about the things that important to you, you need to assess the situation- and whether you should stay- with brutal honesty.

Sometimes it’s easier to stay with what’s painful and familiar than risk walking away into the unknown and being single. But sometimes it takes a little pain to avoid a lot of pain.

If you want to be in a healthy relationship, make sure to check in with yourself whenever you begin dating someone new. How does this person make me feel? Do I feel respected? Understood? Are they faithful to me? Do they appreciate what I do for them? Can we talk out issues when they come up? How does this person act when angry?

At the same time, keep an eye on yourself and your own life being in order. Remember, the whole is the sum of its parts. And only then, when you’re feeling whole and in touch with what you deserve in a relationship, will you be truly lovable not only to someone, but more importantly to yourself.    

Rachel Hercman, LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker) is a psychotherapist specializing in sexuality, dating, and relationships. She works at the Medical Center for Female Sexuality in New York, a center that provides cutting-edge medical and psychological treatment for female sexual dysfunction, where she helps women improve their sexual functioning, body image and relationship satisfaction.   

Mumbai, June 10 (IANS): 

25-year-old actress Jiah Khan also known as Nafisa committed suicide at her Juhu residence last Monday. According to reports, she hung herself at around 11 PM but didn’t leave any suicide notes. The 25-year-old had worked with Amitabh Bachchan in Ram Gopal Varma’s Nishabd which was inspired by the Hollywood film American Beauty. Born and raised in London, the actress had shifted to India to pursue a career in acting and had appeared in Aamir Khan’s Ghajni and Akshay Kumar’s Housefull. Earlier it had appeared that her stagnant film career had driven her to commit suicide but later her mother released a six-page note which blamed her boyfriend Sooraj Pancholi for abusing her.  

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

Click here to read Jiah Khan’s original suicide note 

Here’s Rabiya’s note to the public followed by Jiah’s suicide note.  

To all concerned,

Some sections of the media and some film industry people are speculating that my daughter Jiah committed suicide because of depression related to her career. However the truth is that it happened only because of the trauma and the abuse she suffered at the hands of Suraj Pancholi and his father Aditya Pancholi. This I know from what Jiah shared with her sisters and me and also from this letter written by Jiah herself that I am attaching here (sic) with which was found three days later by my younger daughter in a wallet box belonging to Jiah when she was searching for some poems written by Jiah to be read out at her prayer meeting.

I have decided to make this letter public so that everyone may know the truth behind my daughter’s tragedy. Below given is a transcript of Jiah’s handwritten letter: I am also attaching the photocopies of the actual handwritten pages of her letter

Yours truly,

Rabiya Khan

 Jiah’s letter to Suraj Pancholi

‘ I don’t know how to say this to you but I might as well now as I have nothing to lose. I’ve already lost everything. If you’re reading this I might have already left or about to leave. I am broken inside. You may not have known this but you affected me deeply to a point where I lost myself in loving you. Yet you tortured me every day. These days I see no light I wake up not wanting to wake up. There was a time I saw my life with you, a future with you. But you shattered my dreams. I feel dead inside. I’ve never given so much of myself to someone or cared so much. You returned my love with cheating and lies. It didn’t matter how many gifts I gave you or how beautiful I looked for you. I was scared of getting pregnant but I gave myself completely the pain you have caused me every day has destroyed every bit of me, destroyed my soul. I can’t eat or sleep or think or function.

I am running away from everything. The career is not even worth it anymore. When I first met you I was driven, ambitious and disciplined. Then I fell for you, a love I thought would bring out the best in me. I don’t know why destiny brought us together. After all the pain, the rape, the abuse, the torture I have seen previously I didn’t deserve this. I didn’t see any love or commitment from you. I just became increasingly scared that you would hurt me mentally or physically. Your life was about partying and women. Mine was you and my work. If I stay here I will crave you and miss you. So I am kissing my 10-year career and dreams goodbye. I never told you but I received a message about you. About you cheating on me. I chose to ignore it, decided to trust you. You embarrassed me. I never went out, I never went with anyone else. I am a loyal person. I never met anyone with Karthik I just wanted you to feel how you make me feel constantly. No other woman will give you as much as I did or love you as much as I did. I can write that in my blood. Things were looking up for me here, but is it worth it when you constantly feel the pain of heartbreak when the person you love wants to abuse you or threatens to hit you or cheats on you telling other girls they are beautiful or throws you out of their house when you have nowhere to go and you’ve come to them out of love or when they lie to your face or they make you chase after them in their car. Or disrespects their family.

 You never even met my sister. I bought your sister presents. You tore my soul. I have no reason to breathe anymore. All I wanted was love. I did everything for you. I was working for us. But you were never my partner. My future is destroyed my happiness snatched away from me. I always wished the best for you, was ready to invest what little money I had in your betterment. You never appreciated my love, Kicked me in the face. I have no confidence or self esteem left, whatever talent whatever ambition you took it all away. You destroyed my life. It hurt me so much that I waited for you for ten days and you didn’t bother buying me something. The Goa trip was my birthday present but even after you cheated I still spent on you. I aborted our baby when it hurt me deeply. You destroyed my Christmas and my birthday dinner when I came back.

When I tried my hardest to make your birthday special. You chose to be away from me on Valentines (sic) Day. You promised me once we made it to one year we would get engaged. All you want in life is partying, your women and your selfish motives. All I wanted was you and my happiness you took both away from me. I spent money on you selflessly you would throw in my face. When I would cry for you. I have nothing left in this world to live for after this. I wish you had loved me like I loved you. I dreamt of our future. I dreamt of our success. I leave this place with nothing  but broken dreams and empty promises. All I want now is to go to sleep and never wake up again. I am nothing. I had everything. I felt so alone even while with you. You made me feel alone and vulnerable. I am so much more than this’ 

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

Sooraj is the son of actor-couple Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab. A day after 25-year-old Jiah Khan’s suicide June 3, Sooraj was quizzed for several hours by police and allowed to go. Police said they will seek expert help to verify Jiah’s handwriting in the letter, a notarised copy of which has been handed over to investigators.

It is not known when Jiah Khan had penned the note and how it was discovered by her family six days after her death. Last Monday around midnight, Jiah was found hanging in her home in Sagar Sangeet building in the posh Juhu area of north-west Mumbai where she lived with her family.

Update:Her former boyfriend Sooraj Pancholi has been arrested for the abetting her suicide

The six-page note details Jiah’s strained relationship with Sooraj, alleging that he had cheated her though she trusted him. ‘By the time you will be reading this letter, probably by then I won’t be there in this world,’ the note is reported to have said, indicating that she had planned to end her life. 

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

 Click here to read Jiah Khan’s original suicide note 

All of 25, Jiah was found hanging from the ceiling at her Mumbai house Tuesday morning, the latest in a line of actresses and models who have opted out of the life of stresses and pressures of showbiz. The problem, as film historian S.M.M. Ausaja puts it, is that youngsters today ‘don’t have patience left to struggle their way to the top’. ‘Instead of banking on their talent, they lean on shortcuts and promises, which when not fulfilled, lead them to self-destruction,’ Ausaja told IANS.

Bollywood makes some stars and sucks some souls, director Roshan Abbas said in his tweet, while Ranvir Shorey tweeted: ‘Bollywood is a dark, incestuous world, where insecurity can often be a fatal flaw.’  Anna M.M. Vetticad, author of ‘The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic’, added: ‘You never know what lies behind the glitz and the smiles.’ Jiah’s death shocked everyone, including her mentor filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma.  Jiah, whose real name was Nafisa, studied acting in the Lee Starsberg Institute in New York, was depressed and scared about her future, revealed Varma, who launched the Britain-born talent opposite Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Nishabd’ in 2007.

She was 19 back then, confident, spunky and with more spirit than any debutant actress that he had ever directed, Varma says. Perhaps, it faded away with time, when she managed just three films – ‘Nishabd’, ‘Ghajini’ and ‘Housefull’ in the six years that she spent in tinsel town. She had no work for the last six years. She was reportedly trying to foray into southern cinema, but in vain, and her personal life wasn’t very rosy either.

Jiah isn’t the first actress who let her failed career or crumbled personal life pull her into depression, and hence, as many would say, ‘into the hands of god’. There was the infamous southern siren Silk Smitha, who touched peaks of fame, attained almost iconic status as a sex symbol in Tamil cinema and then, following personal and financial hassles, was found dead at her Chennai home in 1996. She was 33. It was said to be a case of suicide.

 The 1993 death of young and successful actress Divya Bharti continues to be a mystery. The ‘Deewana’ fame actress fell to death from a window sill and it was reported that she was depressed.  Models-turned-actresses Nafisa Joseph and Kuljeet Randhawa, who worked together in ‘C.A.T.S’, the Indian adaptation of hit US show ‘Charlie’s Angels’, also resorted to suicide by hanging themselves in 2004 and 2006 respectively.

According to Ann Simi John, clinical psychologist, Columbia Asia Hospital, Gurgaon, ‘most suicide cases are related to either relationships, especially breakup or divorce.’

There are a few cases related to work or unemployment but the basic problem remains that ‘nowadays people have a lot of expectations from future, have rigid form of thinking, lack problem solving skills and have inability to cope’, she said. In her view, only 15-20 percent of people who commit suicide are actually clinically depressed.

Whatever the case, it is important to get emotional and moral support from family and friends. Actor Tusshar Kapoor, son of veteran actor Jeetendra, and brother of successful film producer Ekta Kapoor, wonders ‘how many young actors there are who lack a support system and get crushed under the dark side of showbiz’. However, it is vital to remember that ‘there’s life beyond your profession and there’s life beyond your partner too’, tweeted actor Ayushmann Khurrana, who won overnight fame with his debut film ‘Vicky Donor’. ‘It’s pertinent to have a stable mind in this fickle showbiz,’ he added.

The basic necessity for anyone going through an emotional crisis is ‘To be surrounded by loved ones, who can help them pick up and bounce back, not succumb under pressure,’ said Raveena Tandon. In 1962, legendary Hollywood star Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her home. Almost five decades on, have things really changed for women in showbiz – in Hollywood or in Bollywood?  With the death of Jiah, the question is back to haunt. 

‘I am broken inside’: Lessons from Jiah Khan’s death and suicide note

Source: IANS

‘Inspite of being highly appreciated in ‘Nishabd’ and being a part of hugely successful ‘Ghajini’ and ‘Housefull’, she had no work for the last three years. I don’t know the reason what led to this, but Jiah was very depressed about her career and scared for her future,’ he added. Varma said that he had ‘never ever seen a debutant actress with more spunk and more spirit than Jiah when I was directing her in ‘Nishabd’.’

‘Nishabd’ required Jiah to face the camera with a thespian like Amitabh Bachchan in an unusual love story between a 18-year-old and 60-year-old. And she did it with confidence.

The movie was controversial and not very well-received at the box office, but it made the industry sit up and take notice of the then 19-year-old girl Jiah, who left a lasting impression with her act of a free-spirited soul. ‘So young and so pretty,’ recalls Varma, adding: ‘Just can’t believe that someone as young and so full of life is just dead. No matter what her problem was, I just so wish she applied her on screen philosophy of ‘Nishabd’ to her own life which is to ‘Take Lite’.’ 

What is depression? 

As an illness, depression is as debilitating as a heart disease or HIV/AIDS. Those who suffer from the condition often describe the feeling as having a black cloud over their heads, which prevents them from enjoying anything or even functioning normally. One out of 20 people in the world suffer from depression but sadly many of them are forced to live in denial about the disease.

So how is depression different from sadness?

Sadness is part of the life without which happiness would have no meaning. To feel sad during major life crises like the death of a loved one, losing a job or the ending of a relationship is normal. Depression on the other hand is a condition where there is prolonged sadness and an individual’s mood isn’t tied to life events. While healthy individuals have moods related to life events, people suffering from depression suffer from disproportionate amount of sadness and guilt. It is a serious medical condition in which the symptoms make it difficult for the person to function in society, often leads to poor physical health and severe emotional pain.  Read more...

Source: IANS