Unable to cope with the financial problems triggered by lack of work due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic for the last two years, comedian Teerthanand Rao, who has appeared on many shows including The Kapil Sharma Show, Crime Patrol, and CID, attempted suicide but was saved by the neighbours.
The incident took place on December 27, when Rao went live on Facebook and also called up his assistant that he was taking this drastic step in life due to several reasons. When News18.com reached out to the actor he revealed, “The last two years have been really tough. My financial status is in shambles and I really don’t have any savings. I have got some work including a film called Pav Bhaji which is yet to release but they haven’t paid me and so have the couple of web-series which I did. There have been days when I haven’t eaten anything or just survived on one vada pav. I realised the only way out of this mess is to end up my life.”
Talking about the incident he says, “I had sent a video and informed my assistant that if anything happens to me, my house where I stay in Virar should go to my daughter. I had even gone live on Facebook to record the incident. My assistant somehow came over and I was asked to open the door. The police were called and they took me to the hospital where I really had a terrible time. I stayed there for four days.”
Apart from no work, Rao adds that the reason that provoked him to attempt suicide was that his family doesn’t associate with him, “I fell in love with a bar dancer almost a couple of decades backed. While we never got married, we have a daughter who was born in 2003. But when my live-in partner went to the USA in 2005 she fell in love with someone else and came back married. We last spoke in 2009.”
He further explains that he hasn’t been able to talk to his daughter for almost two years, “I wasn’t allowed to interact with her much. In 2019 she called me to say that she has got married. I couldn’t believe it. I realised my live-in partner has ruined my daughter’s life by getting her married so early. I tried many times in the last two years to get in touch but she refuses to talk to me.”
Even his own mother and brother have severed ties with him, “The police called my brother and my mother who stay in the same complex. My brother told them that he does not have any relation and doesn’t have any money to give me. He doesn’t even allow my mother to talk to me. My sister who is also aware of the incident did not call to check on me. No one bothered to come with me to the hospital nor have they called me after that to check on my health.”
Famous for doing mimicry of Nana Patekar, the actor says he has hardly got any financial help, “I have got some help from CINTAA but apart from that none of my family members has come forward.”
Rao says he is really ashamed of trying to attempt suicide, “It was a huge mistake on my part. I didn’t think twice before taking such a huge step. I wouldn’t even allow my enemies to do such a thing. Since the time of the incident, I have been feeling really weak. I have yet to recover completely.”
This news piece may be triggering. If you or someone you know needs help, call any of these helplines: Aasra (Mumbai) 022-27546669, Sneha (Chennai) 044-24640050, Sumaitri (Delhi) 011-23389090, Cooj (Goa) 0832- 2252525, Jeevan (Jamshedpur) 065-76453841, Pratheeksha (Kochi) 048-42448830, Maithri (Kochi) 0484-2540530, Roshni (Hyderabad) 040-66202000, Lifeline 033-64643267 (Kolkata)
