It’s A Dark, Dark Day: Bidding Adieu To Sidharth Shukla, Indian Television’s Favourite Hero

The last time I saw Sidharth Shukla on television, he was being his characteristic self–so charming and so full of life. It was during his guest appearance on Bigg Boss OTT with Shehnaaz Gill. For so many of us, it remains the best episode of the season so far. There it was–the camaraderie and the undeniable chemistry that these two shared. He kept looking at Sana with all the love in his eyes, motivating her to take over the stage, and subtly handling the situation whenever she fumbled. But that’s just who he was. Sidharth was fiercely protective about the people in his life, unfathomably generous, and loyal to a fault. Today, however, my mind keeps going back to his glorious smile, the one that was enough to light up an entire room. It was this smile that gave away the innocent child that he constantly hid behind that tough exterior. 

How is this even possible?

He was just here, smiling at us through the TV screens with a persona that was surely better suited for the cinema. He was yet to make it big on the silver screen but it was his time, things were working out. And perhaps his heady romance with Shehnaaz was all make-believe but what if…what if there was more to this story? What if it was actually the love saga that so many of us took it to be? It’s like he has left us with so much baggage, with an unfinished story, and we grapple to find the end while dreading it at the same time. Sidharth’s death (oh, to use these words together, my hands tremble) has left me feeling unsettled in ways that I cannot explain. There wasn’t a single Bigg Boss 13 episode that I did not miss and he was the reason. However, it haunts me now. Perhaps it would have been better had I not watched it so diligently… witnessing Sid claim the entire house, and hearts. As we bid adieu to Indian television’s favourite hero, we look back at his impressive journey and everything that made him a hero in both reel and real life:

The Quitessential Indian Hero

It feels like just yesterday that I first saw Sidharth making his grand entry in Balika Vadhu as the much-beloved character, Shiv. He changed the entire vibe of the show and had us vouching for his debonair persona as we happily gave up the idea of Jagdish, the original lead. The show brought him some much-deserved fame. After that, he gave exceptional performances in each one of his performances. From playing the perfect dulha raja and gentleman in Humpty Sharma ki Dulhnaniya to the romantic hero in Dil Se Dil Tak, he aced it all. He had a rather imposing screen presence and made it quite hard to look at anyone else in the same frame as him. Had Humpty Sharma kI Dulhaniya been a realistic film, we are pretty sure that Kavya (Alia Bhatt) would have ended up with Angad (Sid) and not Humpty (Varun Dhawan).

Sidharth, The Real Life Hero

Many misunderstood Sidharth during his Bigg Boss 13 journey and it took him just a viral moment to declare that he didn’t care about any of the judgments and that he was in the show for himself and no one else. “Mujhe kisi se koi fark nahi padta,” he claimed and then went on proving just the opposite. Asim Riaz was his friend in the show and then came a major showdown thus leading to a rift in their friendship. However, he genuinely respected Asim and proved it by apologising to him after a rather emotional moment. In fact, besides Shehnaaz, Asim was the only person that he apologised to thus proving that he really loved him irrespective of whether they remained friends or not.

He again showed us his humane side during the family round when Rashami Desai almost ended up choking while crying. The two kept fighting in the show and at one point she had also declared that she hates him so much that she wouldn’t fetch him water even if he was dying. And yet, he decided to forget all of that and readily made her drink some water with his own hands when she needed it. He played the game with his head held high, stood by his opinions, and never shied away from speaking his mind. That said, it was with Shehnaaz that we really got to see his playful side. The two gave us some unforgettable memories as the most loved couple in Bigg Boss history, #Sidnaaz. From their adorable banter to uber cute fights, everything was 100 times more interesting than a full-blown romantic movie. We could never have enough of #Sidnaaz and it was a bitter-sweet moment when the show finally ended. We were happy that he won but we were sad that it was over.

If only Sidharth had left us all with a closure like the Bigg Boss finale. If only he hadn’t left us at all. This is too big a loss. This will take forever to heal. RIP Sid!

Featured Image: Instagram