'Something was wrong': Pooja Bedi talks Parveen Babi's mental health
What's the story
Despite her successful career, actor Parveen Babi's legacy is often marred by her mental health struggles. Pooja Bedi, daughter of actor Kabir Bedi (who was in a relationship with Babi), recently opened up about the late actor's deteriorating mental state in her later years. Speaking to Siddharth Kannan, she recalled, "I remember that many years later, she had come back to India. Everyone was saying that something was wrong with her."
Dietary shift
'She looked so different...'
Bedi remembered, "I went to her home...she looked so different. She had put on a lot of weight...she had wild hair." Despite this, their conversation was normal until Babi revealed her diet. "Suddenly, she said, 'I am sorry that I can't offer you food because I only eat eggs.'" When asked why she only ate eggs, the actor said it was "the one thing they can't tamper with." "I asked her, 'Who?' She said, 'The Secret Service, or the FBI.'"
Distrust
'How would someone know...'
Bedi further revealed that Babi had stopped buying things from department stores because she believed people were contaminating the products. "I asked her, 'How would someone know what you are going to buy and when you are going to buy it?' She said, 'They know everything.'" "I immediately thought that there was something extremely wrong that was going on around there. I got really concerned and confused at that point in time."
Kabir's view
Kabir on why Babi didn't seek help
Kabir has spoken about his relationship with Babi and her fear of people finding out about her mental health struggles. In an interview with Filmfare, he revealed, "I advised Parveen to see someone in London because there were best people to treat her there and also she was away from all this, but she wouldn't hear of it." "She didn't like the pressure that I was putting on her." Babi passed away in 2005 at the age of 50.