Half-way to euthanasia

Euthanasia was illegal in India when Sanjay Leela Bhansali made Guzaarish with Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai in the lead. Active mercy killing is still out of legal bounds. But the position on court-supervised, passive euthanasia has changed.

Roshan, who plays the role of a supremely talented magician, condemned to a paraplegic's life in a wheelchair by a jealous colleague in the movie, has welcomed the Supreme Court's verdict as a 'good beginning'. "In time, as we evolve as a society," he added, "it will become easier to see the reason in the concept of euthanasia as a boon to those who are suffering to a degree which you and I cannot even imagine."

Presently assisted exit is open only to patients who are either in persistent vegetative state (PVS) or terminally-ill with no hope for recovery/survival. And if life imitates art in Guzaarish - the court turns down Roshan's plea in the movie - it's not at all for principles of reality programming. In any case, allowing the hero simply to fade off into the Big Sleep would be a huge anti-climax.

As it is, grappling with a 'serious' theme has all sorts of connotations for the box-office in India. That may explain why the Miss Universe playing the nurse comes with marital baggage! The moot question is whether she would have been as attached to the hero had he been in a vegetative state comparable to Aruna Shanbhag's condition.

Here too, the real-life decision of the KEM Hospital nursing staff to protect their former colleague till death does them part sets an inspirational example to reel life!