Comedienne Bharti Singh and her husband Harsh Limbachiyaa’s arrest by Narcotics Control Bureau in connection with possession and consumption of cannabis has led to shocked reactions throughout the showbiz world. And people like comedian Raju Srivastava, who have worked with her in the past, refused to believe the news when it came out initially.
He speaks to us, “I have worked with her in Comedy Circus, Raju Haazir Ho and Gangs of Haseepur, and many live shows too. Usko dekh ke kabhi nahi laga ki drugs leti hogi. I had attended her wedding too. I would get curious as to how her friends, like Sunil Grover, Krushna (Abhishek), could dance all night, not sleep, and then the next day again have fun and dance. I would think why don’t they feel the need to sleep, and yes I know they are younger than me maybe that’s why they have the energy. Lekin ab har cheez pe doubt jaa raha hai jabse news aayi hai.”
The 56-year-old adds that he dismissed her arrest initially as fake news, but when it was confirmed he was shocked and sad.
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He goes on to talk about the recent drugs investigation launched into Bollywood and big names cropping up in the course. “Only Bollywood shouldn’t be targeted, it happens in other places too. Big politicians do it as well. The clean up should happen everywhere. Instead of arresting small artists, the supply chain should be cut, the big mafia which supplies all this. Bharti is also a culprit, but where all this is coming from is where the government should explode the bomb,” says Srivastava.
Recalling how he would be invited to film parties before and he would see consumption around him, he says, “I would doubt, as the atmosphere would be suspicious. People would go to the bathroom a lot of times, and I asked someone, they said ‘for maal’. In Kanpur, where I hail from, maal means money. But when I went to check, there was a lot of smoke all around. There wasn’t any proof though, and I would think it’s cigarettes. Now that things are unravelling, my attention goes there.”
