Ali Fazal and Sonali Bendre starrer Raakh is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. The eight-episode investigative crime thriller is based on the infamous Ranga-Billa case from the 1970s, involving the kidnapping and murder of sibling duo Geeta Chopra and Sanjay Chopra, which had left the entire country shocked. While the show is making headlines for all the good reasons, did you know that had once revealed how he was personally connected to the case because of a school friend?
How Is Bobby Deol Connected To The Ranga-Billa Case?
Opening up about the incident that had deeply affected his personal life during Raj Shamani’s podcast, he revealed that the kidnappings conducted by Ranga and Billa had led to his family becoming extremely protective of him. Sharing how he grew up under strict restrictions, rarely allowed to go out of his house even when he was in college, he mentioned that it had all started when he was in school, in sixth standard.
A friend of his, who was luckiest out of all the people Ranga and Billa kidnapped, had taken his name when asked about it. This incident had prompted the police to pay his father, late veteran actor Dharmendra, a visit and inform them about it.
Indian Express quoted him recalling, “They told my father that my friend was safe, but Billa and Ranga asked him who else was there in his school, and he took my name. After that, my father didn’t let me leave the house at all. I returned from school and that was it. I even learned cycling inside my house. In college, when my friends started having house parties, I wasn’t allowed to go. I had a 9 pm curfew. I would go to friends’ houses, help them set up for parties, and leave.”
The 57-year-old actor shared that despite Ranga and Billa’s arrest, conviction, and execution, his restrictions remained. “My friend who was kidnapped by them was partying while I was stuck at home,” he added.
What Was The Ranga-Billa Case?
One of India’s most infamous criminal cases, it involved the kidnapping and murder of siblings Geeta Chopra (16) and Sanjay Chopra (14) in 1978 in Delhi. The kids of a senior Indian Navy officer were brutally assaulted, subjected to sadistic torture, and murdered by the perpetrators, Kuljeet Singh (Ranga) and Jasbir Singh (Billa), in the misbelief that their father was not wealthy. The investigation of the case had led to around crime and public safety across the country. Ranga and Billa were convicted and executed in 1982.
Raakh Plot, Cast, & Other Details
Set in Delhi during the late 1970s, the show followed the aftermath of a brutal crime. Currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video, the web series stars Ali Fazal, Sonali Bendre, Aamir Bashir, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Akash Makhija, Rakesh Bedi, Ramandeep Yadav, Divya Sharma, Vivaan Sharma, and Anshul Chauhan. Directed by Prosit Roy, of Paatal Lok fame, he also serves as the executive producer of the show. It is written and co-directed by Sandeep Saket and Anusha Nandakumar, and produced by Endemol Shine India in association with BhaDiPa.