‘Society cancelled us’: Rhea Chakraborty recalls tough time after release from jail, brother Showik got no job offers

Actor Rhea Chakraborty 's life took a dramatic turn in 2020 following the death of her former boyfriend, Sushant Singh Rajput . Rhea faced multiple allegations from the late actor's family and was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau in connection with an alleged drug case. Her brother, Showik, was also arrested in a drugs case linked to the actor's death. (Also read: Rhea Chakraborty opens up on scrutiny after Sushant Singh Rajput's death: ‘Bohot der tak shaq mein rahi hoon’ )

During an interaction with Farah Khan in her latest vlog, Rhea shared how she started her apparel brand Chapter 2 with brother Showik. Rhea recalled the hard time after the release from jail when she had no work. She said, “Itni mushkil se cheezein theek huyi hai darr lagta hai (Things have improved with such difficulty; I’m afraid). Chapter 2, we started because he got 97% in CAT, and then 2020 came and all of that happened, where he got arrested along with me. He had even got into IIM and we had paid the fees but that did not happen and he lost the time… Then we came out and kuch kaam nahi tha (there was no work).”

Rhea added, “We used to be sitting at home. Cancel hi ho gaye the society se aur filmein bhi nahi mil rahi thi (We were cancelled by society and there were no film offers). Showik was not even getting jobs. No corporate was willing to take him on.”

Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai flat in June 2020 at the age of 34. Rhea, his ex-girlfriend, had been living with him along with her brother Showik, till six days before his death. They moved out after the Covid-19-enforced lockdowns ended.

Both Rhea and Showik were arrested in the days after Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. The two were initially charged with abetment to suicide and later investigated for drug use, embezzlement, and other things. All charges were subsequently dropped. But both siblings did spend time in prison while under investigation.

Rhea has since returned to showbiz, appearing as a judge on MTV Roadies, and starting her own podcast and fashion brand. Showik is Rhea’s partner in the brand. She is currently seen in the reality show The Traitors season 2 , hosted by Karan Johar. New episodes of the show drop every Thursday on Amazon Prime Video.

Santanu Das is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with over 5 years of experience, writing on films, pop culture and film festivals. He has a keen interest in writing about South Asian independent films and has covered several film festivals, including Sundance and CPH: Docx. He also brings a sharp perspective to the monthly column called The Fault in Our Stars, where he writes about a recent film/series and what stops the ‘good’ from becoming ‘great’. A gold medalist from Banaras Hindu University, Santanu completed his postgraduate studies in English from Jadavpur University. He is also a Rotten Tomatoes-certified film critic. When not watching films or speaking to celebrities, Santanu can be found reading a book. Some of his favourite films are Aparajito, Ponyo and The Double Life of Veronique. His favourite books include The Corrections, The God of Small Things and A Room of One's Own.