Now-Acquitted Sooraj Pancholi Says “I Was Removed From Projects… Working Films Were Stopped Midway” As He Recalls Facing Hostility, Vicious Online Trolling & More(Photo Credit –Instagram/wikimedia)
Advertisement
Sooraj Pancholi recently made the headlines after the CBI Special Court acquitted him of the charges of abetment to suicide in the Jiah Khan death case. For the unversed, Jiah died in 2013 — the actress was found hanging from a ceiling fan in her bedroom, and her mother, Rabiya Khan, claimed that Pancholi had murdered. After being under trial for ten years, the actor now opens up about the decade gone by and how people were with him.
In a recent chat, Sooraj revealed in the past ten years, he felt like everyone was judging him, even when they were perhaps not. From facing hostility around the release of his debut film Hero to being removed from films, read on to know all he shared.
Talking about dealing with the people’s attitude towards him ever since he was accused of Jiah Khan’s death, Sooraj Pancholi told ETimes (via Hindustan Times), “From the moment I stepped out of my house to the time I got back, I felt trapped, breathless, and judged every day. Especially in showbiz, perception is everything. At any event, I was the last person to reach and the first to leave.”
Continuing further, Sooraj Pancholi said, “Even when they were probably not judging me, I felt that way. There was this constant pressure, a feeling that people don’t want to be around me or seen with me and that is the worst feeling ever… the thought of being unwanted.”
The ‘Hero’ actor added that despite not being part of the film industry when the accusations were first made, he faced hostility from many around the time his debut film was released two years later in 2015. Sooraj said, “I did sense a bit of hesitation and hostility. I was removed from projects. The films that I was working on were stopped midway. Every time I tried to move on, some fake reports in the media and vicious online trolling held me back.”
Sooraj Pancholi’s debut film Hero was released in 2015. His next included Satellite Shankar (2019), Time to Dance (2021) and Hawa Singh (2023).
