Sushant’s aide enquired about work deal on June 14 morn: Director-friend

Television director Kushal Zaveri has opened up on a message he got in the morning of June 14, the day Sushant Singh Rajput died, from Dipesh Sawant, an associate of the late actor. The message was regarding a possible professional deal Sushant was looking forward to, and Kushal says there is no way the late actor seemed depressed.

Kushal, a friend of Sushant, reveals in a conversation with IANS, that the late actor had asked his team to enquire with him about a future commercial deal. He added that he got a message from Dipesh, who was part of Sushant's team, in the morning of June 14 about the deal.

"I got a message on June 14 in the morning from Dipesh, who was staying with him (Sushant), asking about the deal because I was a mediator of that deal. Because some people still thought that I was with Sushant. They used to call me to talk about his deals," said Kushal.

The director added that Sushant was not depressed, and was looking forward to new professional commitments.

"He was pretty much normal and was really looking positive and excited about the things he had planned this year," Kushal said. He also referred to WhatsApp exchange he had with Sushant on June 1 and June 2, to prove his point.

"No, he wasn't (depressed). We were very close to him. In fact, I stay in Bandra. I was just a call away and I would be there in five minutes. He considered me, Mahesh Shetty and a few of his friends as really close to him. We would always stand by him, no matter what. If he was going through something, he would have definitely shared with me on June 2," said Kushal.

Kushal said his interaction with Dipesh on the morning of June 14 was an outcome of earlier conversations he had with Sushant. "I asked Sushant and he said ‘Dipesh is with me', and he will coordinate," Kushal recalled.

"This we spoke on June 9th, and then again on June 13th. Sushant asked Dipesh to speak to me regarding the deal. Dipesh messaged me on June 14 morning, around 10-10:50 am, saying ‘Sir, is asking about the Flipkart deal'. But, I was sleeping at that time as it was Sunday."

Kushal woke up to the "horrifying news" of Sushant's death.

"I was actually really confused because I saw this message also, and if Dipesh is asking that means Sushant is asking. So, I thought he asked this in the morning. So, it was very strange and it was very confusing, actually. I could not get to terms with the fact that he could do something like that."

That's when Kushal decided to go to Sushant's house to find out.

"I didn't go inside, but I went to his building and I saw a lot of reporters and stuff. Then, I got the news confirmed through my sources and the photographs of the room started circulating on social media."

Kushal said that Dipesh was staying with Sushant in his flat from January 2020, till his last day.

"I was staying with Sushant in the July of 2018. I stayed with him for eight months. He asked me to build a team. I built this team for him, which included Dipesh, who was an intern at that time, and then we all left due to various reasons. Then he called Dipesh again in January 2020 to be with him. So, Dipesh was with him from January till the last day," he mentioned.

Sushant was found dead at his home in Mumbai on June 14. His death was termed a suicide, but the investigation took a different turn when his family lodged an FIR accusing his girlfriend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, and her family with abetment to suicide among other charges.

Asked if he knows about the kind of bond Sushant had with Rhea, Kushal said: "I don't know. He never spoke to me about Rhea or never discussed any of these sorts of things."

(Sugandha Rawal can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in)

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