The untimely demise of Shefali Jariwala, fondly remembered as the ‘Kaanta Laga girl’, has left the entertainment world reeling. The 42-year-old actor reportedly passed away on Friday night, with early reports suggesting a sudden drop in blood pressure while she was fasting and taking anti-ageing supplements.
When Shefali spoke about bizarre death and cancer rumours
An old interview of Shefali is being widely circulated where she revisited the wild and insensitive rumours that followed her debut. In an appearance on Paras Chhabra’s Abraa Ka Dabra podcast, Shefali spoke about bout how people falsely claimed she had died or had cancer after Kaanta Laga released, she said, “I am thick skinned now. I have been in the industry for 20 years now, jo trolling meri Kaanta Laga ke waqt hui thi na. There wasn’t social media, that was the real trolling. Back in the days, personal trolling hoti thi. How do you escape that?”
The music video, considered bold for its time, made her a household name overnight, but also a target of relentless judgement, even from within her own family.
“When I did that song, it was considered bold. I have seen times when my own relatives said, ‘Yeh kya kardia ladki ne, naam kharaab kardiya’. There were rumours that said ‘Shefali ke bhai ne usko maar daala’. I don’t even have a brother. That was actually trolling. Faceless trolling on social media that happens now doesn’t matter to me. Chandigarh mein baitha hua Chintu kya bolta hai, I don’t care,” she added.
How Shefali Jariwala's death rumours became national news
Shefali also recalled how the gossip surrounding her went as far as becoming televised news. “Tattoo kia isne, isko cancer hogaya and yeh marrgayi. It was a national news at that time. News channels had called me. Back then there wasn’t no social media, tab ki fan following kuch aur hi hoti thi. Information spreads quickly now. At that time, phones and landlines couldn’t stop ringing, ‘Arey Shefali Jariwala marr gayi!’ That was the funniest thing I heard. Jabki koi tattoo tha bhi nahi. It was only painting in the song. Vo sunke maine tattoo baad mein karva lia tha lekin.”
