With Jiah Khan's mother Rabiya alleging that her daughter ended her life due to `the trauma and the abuse she suffered at the hands of Sooraj Pancholi and his father Aditya Pancholi`, B-Town is now wondering what impact it will have on the youngster's B-Town plans.
Sooraj is slated to make his debut with Athiya (Suniel Shetty's daughter) in a Salman Khan production. Tongues have been wagging whether Suneil, who is known to be fiercely protective of his daughter, will do a rethink about his daughter's launchpad with the tainted actor-in-waiting.
Though he had no qualms about his daughter wanting to be an actress, Anna's concerns were whether she would be able to handle the pressures of the industry.
Says a source, `Even before the shoot can begin, Athiya's co-star has been embroiled in a controversy. With Jiah's mother alleging that it was not her lack of film offers but Sooraj that made her take such a drastic step, there has been a lot of speculation about him.`
Adds the source, `Sooraj is under the scanner even before his debut. A police probe is on but all this is affecting not only him but his project as well.`
Sooraj briefly assisted Sanjay Leela Bhansali during Guzaarish and later Kabir Khan during Ek Tha Tiger. It was a proud moment when Salman Khan showed interest in launching the lad along with Suniel's daughter. For the last few months Sooraj had been working out and getting ready for Bollywood with Sallu as his godfather.
Adds the source, `Salman has mentored a number of aspiring actors and Sooraj and Athiya are the latest on his list. The film was set to roll later in the year. Right now everyone concerned is tightlipped about the film, which is the official remake of Subash Ghai's 1983 film Hero that starred Jackie Shroff and Meenakshi Seshadri.`
Suniel remained unavailable for comment.
In related news...
Zarina Wahab has alleged that the six-page letter Rabiya Khan is touting as her daughter Jiah's suicide note is just an old love letter. The actress in a media meet on the sets of her telly show yesterday stated that it was an old letter and not written jut before committing suicide.
