Bollywood

Divya Bharti: A death untold

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Today we zero in on the topic whether Divya Bharti’s death was an accident, suicide or an act of murder.

Conspiracy theories continue to float around her death even after two decades. So was she really pushed out of her balcony?

According to the official documents associated with the case, three people were with her at the time of the incident. They were her dress designer Neeta Lulla, her husband Dr Shyam (a psychiatrist) and her maid Amrita.

Official records also state that her maid was very attached to her because she had been taking care of Divya since her birth. Amrita went into acute depression after the incident and stopped interacting with people. Police records state that Amrita suffered a massive heart attack soon after and succumbed to it. Amrita died within 30 days of Divya Bharti’s demise. This is the reason why Amrita could not be grilled by the police.

Other than them, there were three others who were grilled by the police — her husband Sajid Nadiadwala, her mother Bharti and her brother Kunal. All the three were not with her at the time of the incident.

The government officials who took part in the investigations included Inspector J G Jadhav of Versova Police station (the investigating officer of the case) and the Chief Medical Officer of Cooper Hospital, Dr Tripathy (who signed the death certificate). Other than these people, nobody exactly had any first-hand knowledge of what might have happened to Divya Bharti that night.

We did manage to get some first-hand information about what happened on that fateful night but people spoke to us on conditions of anonymity. Based on the conversations, we will try to recreate the chain of incidents that ultimately snatched Divya Bharti away from all of us.

That dark night

Date: April 5, 1993, Time 9 pm, Place: 5th floor, Tulsi Apartments, Versova, Andheri West, Mumbai

Just a few hours back, Divya had gone to Neptune Apartments in Bandra West with a broker and finalised a large flat that she wanted to buy. Considering how hard it was to get a good flat in Mumbai, Divya was very happy that day and was constantly describing her ‘nice four-bedroom apartment’ to her brother Kunal, whom she loved dearly. Kunal left for some work soon after.

She had just returned from Chennai after a shoot and on the same night, Divya was supposed to fly out to Hyderabad for another shoot. She wanted to postpone her Hyderabad visit as she had to finalise the apartment. That day, Divya was roaming around with a bandage on her left foot and had informed her producers that she was injured (and hence she won’t be able to report for the shoot). She told everybody she will go to Hyderabad a day later.

She soon got a phone call, which informed her that she needed to meet Neeta Lulla and her husband who were coming down to see her at the Versova flat. It might be pertinent to mention here that this flat didn’t belong to Divya and was registered in somebody else’s name.

Divya was also supposed to go on a long outdoor schedule to Mauritius to shoot for Sajid’s film Andolan. Neeta was supposed to make the costumes for the film and after the schedule, Divya was supposed to move into her new apartment. So, everything was going just as planned and naturally, Divya was very excited that night.

Neeta and Dr Shyam Lulla arrived around 10 pm and all of them sat down in the living room, chatting. The TV was on and Divya had two alcohol bottles on the centre table — one was a Mauritian sugarcane wine and the other was a bottle of Black Label whisky. The whisky bottle had been opened, while the wine bottle was intact.

Her maid Amrita was in the living room and Divya was chatting with her. Amrita soon went into the kitchen to fry munchies to go with the alcohol. She was talking to Divya all the while. Divya then gravitated towards the window while still talking to her maid loudly who was in the kitchen now.

Neeta and her husband were watching ‘something interesting’ on the video player (those days there used to be VHS cassettes to play videos) and hence, were not taking much part in the conversation that was going on between Divya and Amrita.

The final moments

There was no balcony in the living room and it had an open window. Though all other windows in the building had grills, that window was open. There is a car parking slot just below the window but that day there were no cars parked below.

When nobody was looking Divya climbed out of the window and landed on the narrow ledge below it. The ledge was less than 12 inches wide and it was impossible to keep your balance unless you hold on to the window frame.

She landed on the ledge with her back towards the living room. She then tried to turn around to hold the window frame. It was while she tried turning around on the ledge (and extended her hand to hold the window frame) that she slipped.

Divya fell with a loud thud on the concrete below the window. Because she was facing her room (as she was trying climb back up), she landed on her back. The accident occurred in a matter of three minutes.

Everybody heard the thud and came running downstairs to find her in a pool of blood. She was alive on her way to the hospital, but her pulse rate started falling rapidly soon afterwards.

She died at the emergency department of Cooper Hospital. The immediate cause of death was heavy internal bleeding due to the injury at the back of her head. Her skull had several fractures.

Now, the unanswered question in front of the police was: How come she was allowed to get down on the ledge below the window? Interestingly, many of her close friends were not surprised on learning that she had climbed out of the window.

Her close friends later had told the police that Divya Bharti loved doing these stunts. The idea of cheating death gave her a strange kick. There were numerous stories of her trying dangerous stunts at outdoor shooting schedules. She somehow loved the idea of flirting with death.

She was a 19-year-old girl and was going the same problems that a girl of her age would perhaps go through. That included boyfriend problems and the usual rebellious attitude against her parents. But this is for sure that she was not going through any emotional stress that prompted her to end her life.

You can draw your own conclusions now.

So yes, I am debunking all the conspiracy theories and saying that it was just an unfortunate accident.

Before we go, here’s another interview of her parents years after her death where they spoke about her with great difficulty. I found the interview touching.

The earlier post on Divya Bharti -> The myths about Divya Bharti

Short-link of the post -> http://wp.me/p3x1zT-iY

Categories: Bollywood, Bollywood Nostalgia

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188 replies »

  1. Pingback: The myths about Divya Bharti | Bollywood Journalist

  2. ok more – we want much much more dirt especially on the hangers-by and the bottom-feeders who live off bollywood but wouldnt give much credit to it.

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  4. Soooo glad to now have an outspoken journalist who shall proudly proclaim and expose all the dirty secrets of one and all – bollywood and celebrities. More ideas for you to kindly explore and reveal the hot, dirty, juicy, spicy and of course, unknown secrets puh-leez…..
    Want more and more dirt coming out from these pages. like Surf and Persil say – DIRT IS GOOD !!!!!!

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  5. Sorry the torrent has become a flood and the dam is about to burst. your brave and selfless proclamation of being celebrity-proof and so bold has brought about a lot of questions and queries to the surface, and me thinks you might not only be the one guy who KNOWS but also the one guy who will TELL ALL….

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    • it’s not a story .ok story like only interesting . it’s a real womens mystery death . so now interest feel this moment

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  8. bad editing…u said wine and whisky bottles where there on the table and the rum bottle was intact. This is just an example.

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  10. Why did the maid die only one month after Divya’s “accident”? and why was she in hiding before that? What does Neeta Lulla have to say? Now the parents are downplaying it and her father is saying he doesn’t keep her photos around because he doesn’t like natak. This is the most mysterious Bollywood story ever. Everyone is guilty here. Her parents are guilty of not trying to stand up for justice for their daughter and everyone else is just guilty. The maid is the only innocent one-she was probably murdered because she loved Divya more than herself and was going to reveal the truth about what happened that night. This story still gives me the creeps 20 years later.

    RGV or Vikram Bhatt or somebody should really make this story into a movie-it’d be a super blockbuster.

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    • absolutely agree Divina. we never heard a statement from the maid in those days.

      easy to come to such conclusions for the writer here that it was perhaps an accident after all. she couldn’t have been so crazy as she is made out to be. there is indeed a very very sad story here which we will never know.
      we can never forget you Divya…

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      • 100% Agree Ruchi, she couldn’t have been so crazy as she is made out to be. we never heard statement from maid. that’s the mystery of Divya’s dead. however finally we lost her. we miss you Divya…..

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  11. Yes, some points are considered. But there are many ore valid points and important unanswered Qs. Later as a teenager myself I have pondered…At least the parents and more so the husband( after marriage as she was living with him) should have been responsible enough to ensure the young teen who loved to flirt with danger, lived in a apartment with secure grilled windows. They were much older and should have been wiser.
    Nadiadwala did so much better in career much later…Remains a not very warm and likeable character.
    And if she was having mood swings and loved to sit on that window ledge, someone older should have monitored her moods, gave her good support, counselling and treatment, STOPPED HER FROM DRINKING MUCH and helped her to care for herself, not just lead their lives…
    Another older couple Neeta Lulla and Divya’s reported psychiatrist Shyam Leela should have known better. Sitting ON WINDOW SILLS AS IF IT’S A CHAIR IS NOT NORMAL BEHAVIOUR…SO SAD ..wish THERE WAS SOMEONE WHO WOULD DO THAT …Someone like those who think, wanna turn back time and do now…
    she WENT TOO SOON , MAKING MANY CRY, EVEN AFTER SO MANY YEARS AND SORELY MISS HER….History would have been rewritten had she been there…Cute, angelic, a good actress too….We need her back…B’wood needs her to get better. PRAYERS FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE. AMEN.

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    • Yes friend you are right HISTORY WOULD HAVE BEEN REWRITTEN HAD SHE BEEN THERE ……………..100% Agree and I’m very bad shocking herd her dead story and life story specially her habit, like she loved children. we so much miss her……sure you are Heaven now…. DIVYAAAA ……..PLEASE COME BACK TO US……..PLEASE……..

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    • was she that much addicted to drinks ? and once her mother indirectly disagreed about her addiction to alcohol. I heard Divya is a short tempered girl . Even I cant understand she got married in a very young age but her parents and brother didnt disagree that much . Even what did her brother did for the justice?

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  12. The comment above( Divina) made me think too…Yes, perhaps the maid Amrita loved her the most. Blessed is her soul…Prayers for peace and justice and a Return. Amen.

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  14. There are two possibilities in this case. One is suicide and the other one is murder. If it is a suicide, then no one can help. But if it is a murder, based on all reports, the only suspect is a well known producer. In that case, why can’t the law enforce the suspect to be in front of a lie detector and ask him the truth?

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  15. I think divya bhatri was murdered to cover up that violent act they a sucide I suspect it was planned firstly her maid amrita knws she was how can she let her clumb on the balcony and neeta and her husband could known dat divya wastnt around they should checked her maid pushed her she tried to grab the window frame but then she slipped coz so londg divya was alive the maid never had hearted how come now she had maybe gulity concise was worryn her dats why she had hearted attack and died

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  18. Divya is the actress who created the world record in holding more movies in an year…. And she was very popular for her smile and childish acting….. She was a legend and some director should film her story so that many will know about her…….. I LOVE YOU DIVYA….. Please come back………

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  20. I remember this incident. I also remember, I had written about Divya Bharati and her death in an older blog of mine. I was naive back then, naive enough to give out my phone number on my Contact Us page. One fine day, I got a call from a person from Jaipur or someplace, and he went on about he was a great fine of Bharti and wanted to get her address in Mumbai, so he could see where she died. The conversation unnverved me, and gave me an idea of what fan following she had/has.

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  23. I’m very shocking after heard that story, how unfortunate people we are living this world loosing after and after we loved people, divya you may Heaven, please come to us……..

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      • I’m Srilankan but i love Bollywood, I’m very sad these days because after 20 years of Divya barati dead I have see her life story this site, it’s change my many thought about our life i don’t know what happened to me, I’m sure Divya barati, she will come back to us sooner or later. her mysterious dead very big mistake to Bollywood. sure she don’t want suicide. but who did that…… maybe Ghost did………

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  24. well she always played around death, and she didn’t think such a thing will ever happened to her but again only khuda knows what happened. MAY BE A GHOST PUSHED HER OR JINN

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    • Yes ! it cant be she sit on ledge when her leg down to the floor. someone push her ??????
      why did it to her ??????… MYSTERY!!

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  35. dat day her left foot was injured ,then why she would try to do something like dat in ledge ??? why would a girl do dat wid her injured foot ?

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  39. mere khayal mai ye koi khud kushi nahe thy balki ye aik pre planed murderd tha aur kai loog os se us ki itni speed se taraqi ko nahe daikh sakhty,i love u diveya

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    • Well I believe it is suicide because they said when no one was looking, she climbed out. Possibly that she planned to kill herself. Only she knows the actual answer. Can’t ask anyone else. She would have been 40 years old today and looked a lot more matured than an indian barbie doll.

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  42. Divya bharti is great actrees in bolywood.she is must i like divya bharti.unka astitva abhi bhi hamare sath hai unki abaaj hamein abhi bhi pukarti hai.thank you all divya friends.

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  43. very nice post about Divya Bharti, my best actress ever. We all miss you in this world. God bless you wherever you are.

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  47. First of all, my heartiest love and affection to the most beautiful I fell in love and like her from Childhood, Divya.

    I have seen all videos related to her death and read all possible articles lies on internet. None, gave me the true picture of controversial death of Divya.I spent days and night in look out for a true story. Here it is what I can get from internet for you…..Can be true or other rumor….

    On the night of 5th April, 1993, Divya accompanied by father and brother reached her Versova flat after 10.30 PM, finding Sajid at home, they left her and went back. Later that night, Divya gets into argument with Sajid and things got heated up. Sajid could not manager and leaves the flat. Divya called her on the night of April 5th, because she was depressed. When Neeta arrived Divya already had couple of drinks. They were discussing about her outfits when Divya made another glass of drink and went to sit on the window ledge.Divya also had her stress relieving tablets. She was leaning backwards and Neeta asked her to come down. But Divya didn’t listen, before they knew it, Divya fell.

    Whatever happend, only Divya can tell. After I die one day, I pursue her in heaven and ask the real story. I love you Divya. Miss you from the heart….

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  48. though nice chaan-been and a good conclusion, but I heard many saying that she was murdered by the D gang, as Dawood wanted to sleep with her, and she refused, people framed this story as the underworld is of great power and their life can end any moment.

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