It is a tragedy that’s all set to have numerous ramifications across states, social media and even national politics.
But close friends of the “flamboyant” Tharoors are both stunned and shocked. How did the vivacious Sunanda Pushkar, described by many as bubbly and “full of life”, end up dead? And why would anyone drag a marriage towards a malevolent, misanthropic and highly-misunderstood jaws of what is now called social media?
Sunanda’s final days were indeed troubled. There was that Twitter rant and suspicions of a raging disease that had left both husband and wife stricken.
“Tharoor was always excited about Sunanda,” says close family friend and a former Indian envoy to Vienna, T.P. Srinivasan, who has known Tharoor since the early 80s.
“He was also trying his best to make this marriage work as he didn’t want another failure, after three broken relationships. He was fully aware of what another divorce could’ve meant in Kerala’s volatile political scene.”
Srinivasan also adds that the Tharoors were a “pleasant couple”.
“None of us noticed anything alarmingly wrong with them. Yes, she would always mock and taunt the easygoing husband as she was a very opinionated person, but normal couples fight too.”
The wife’s illness, however, rocked Tharoor’s world. “Lupus, yes. Shashi was shocked when he learnt that Lupus can be fatal to certain vital organs. I know this because I lost a young niece to the disease, and when I mentioned this to him, he became immediately concerned,” reveals Srinivasan.
There were also reports that Sunanda’s mum had passed away due to Lupus, and the daughter really feared losing her life to the disease, which has a genetic link. But was she so scared that she considered suicide as an option?
“No way,” says former actress Mahima Chaudhry. “Sunanda and I met during a marathon in Mumbai. She would always present herself well and despite the run being an early-morning event, she looked so gorgeous with her hair and everything in place. She also was a very strong woman, who was never so weak in her knees to consider such a drastic step.”
The ‘girlfriends’
Mahima and Sunanda, however, did share a common problem — “nosy women”. The former actress did go public with her hatred towards model Rhea Pillai, who she accused of “stealing her boyfriend” and Sunanda spent the week fighting off a Pakistani journalist who she claimed was “stalking” her husband.
“I don’t want to comment on the past. But in certain social circles, Sunanda was much more famous than Tharoor. In fact, we heard of Shashi only after he married her,” she adds.
Did Social media kill?
But Mahima does focus on a culprit. “Social media. It’s become more of a bane, than the boon we all were promised. About Sunanda’s tweets, I would ask everyone to just hold on and consider the consequences, and then proceed, before taking any drastic steps.
So, is social media to blame? Gayathri Choda, founder of Digitant, says, “In the Tharoors’ case, despite the husband saying his account was hacked, Sunanda went on Twitter making that ‘ISI agent’ comment.” It was perfect fodder for the users. “Also, it was a highly personal matter that should never have reached millions. You have to draw the line between public and private lives .”
That speech in Hyderabad
But Sunanda’s suave husband, however, did enjoy a bit of very public flirting with his beautiful wife. Hyderabadis remember that infamous FICCI speech the Union minister gave some years ago, with Sunanda in front row.
A guest present at the event remembers: “Oh yes, the chemistry between the two was really strong. So strong that it made all of us uneasy. There was a lot of verbal PDA and Tharoor would keep looking at Sunanda every two minutes. She, meanwhile, kept her smile on. Everybody in the room felt uncomfortable. But the love really showed.”
Srinivasan also remembers the time Tharoor told him about Sunanda.
“He was so excited. Shashi told only a very few about his plans but this gang of few were celebrating. I was the first to go to their wedding from Trivandrum at the ceremony Tharoor looked the happiest he has looked in years. And today, I don’t even know what to say.” So, what went wrong?
— Inputs from Lipika Varma
