Sanjay Leela Bhansali After Passive Euthanasia Verdict: 'Plenty Of Hue And Cry When I Made Guzaarish'

New Delhi: "Human beings have the right to die with dignity," declared the Supreme Court on Friday and in a landmark decision in history, allowed passive euthanasia with a detailed set of guidelines. It was eight years ago in 2010 when Sanjay Leela Bhansali zeroed in on euthanasia or mercy killing as the theme of his film Guzaarish. Starring Hrithik Roshan as a once-celebrated magician Ethan Mascarenhas and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as his nurse Sofia, Guzaarish made it as the subject for several headlines because of the treatment of its subject matter. Now, on the day the apex court announced its approval for passive euthanasia, director Bhansali remembered how his film was much speculated upon when it released.

"I remember when I had made Guzaarish, there was plenty of hue and cry over my plea to allow the irreversibly ailing to end their lives," he told news agency IANS. Mr Bhansali added that someone really close to him, who suffering from prolonged illness, inspired him to make Guzaarish. "Though I am no stranger to pain, what I saw in this person took pain and suffering to another level, I realised that there comes a point in every life when a full stop is the only solution," IANS quoted him as saying.

In Guzaarish, the protagonist suffered from paraplegia after surviving a massive accident during one of his performances. 14 years after the incident, Ethan filed an appeal to the court asking for mercy killing, which got rejected. On Monday, a panel of five judges gave a nod to passive euthanasia, which is the deliberate withdrawal of medical to fasten the death of a patient suffering from a terminal illness.

While Guzaarish has been compared to several other films which have been made on the subject of euthanasia, Bhansali said he restrained himself from watching any other film made on the subject. "I didn't want to get even remotely influenced in my thought and vision by what other filmmakers have done on the subject," IANS added him as saying.

"Padmaavat" was Sanjay Leela Bhansali's last directed movie, which had a delayed release following strong protests from Rajput outfits over the treatment of its subject matter.

(With IANS inputs)