: Salaam Venky: Incredible True Story of a 25-YO Inspired Kajol’s OTT Debut #IndiaNEWS #Bollywood In 2004, while 25-year-old Kolavennu Venkatesh lived out his final days in Hyderabad, an intense debate

Salaam Venky: Incredible True Story of a 25-YO Inspired Kajol’s OTT Debut #IndiaNEWS #Bollywood
In 2004, while 25-year-old Kolavennu Venkatesh lived out his final days in Hyderabad, an intense debate raged across the rest of the country. His case had quickly gained nationwide recognition for his plea to be euthanised — a practice that was illegal in India at the time.

Venkatesh, who had suffered from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy since the age of six, was nearing the final stages of his disease and had moved the Andhra Pradesh High Court with the plea, so his organs could be donated before his disease left them unusable.

Alongside Aruna Shanbaug’s case, which finally encouraged the 2018 verdict that legalised passive euthanasia, Venkatesh’s case stirred nationwide debate around the practice. Last year, his story was turned into the movie Salaam Venky, starring Vishal Jethwa as Venkatesh and Kajol as his mother Sujata, who fought her son’s case till his final breath.

Last year, Venkateshs story was turned into the movie Salaam Venky; Picture credit: Instagram

‘He
want others to suffer…’

Before the 2018 verdict, euthanasia in India was outlawed owing to many factors.

For one, spiritual and religious perspectives deem life akin to a “gift from God”, a present to be utilised to its full extent. This is also one of the reasons why Section 309 of the IPC deems attempted suicide a jailable offence. Moreover, there was also the concern of constitutional validity, fear of misuse, and legal practicality, wrote The Print. Many doctors also state that the practice goes against the Hippocratic Oath of “
no harm”.

In Venkatesh’s case, the disease had dominated his life for over 18 years. In muscular dystrophy, which is predominantly seen in males, the muscles waste away and get worse with time, says the US National Institute of Health (NIH). The symptoms include progressive weakness and loss of skeletal and heart muscles, as well as the eventual inability to sit, stand, walk, or speak.

By the time he had reached his final days, Venkatesh could not speak or move at all and would barely be able to scribble to communicate his thoughts. His doctor told ABC News that his condition was deteriorating to the point where he would not survive the next 24 hours — he was on a ventilator, had respiratory paralysis, and had contracted pneumonia.

The former chess player’s desire to be granted euthanasia, said constitutional lawyer Rajeev Dhawan, had been “scrunched in a legal bind”.

In 2018, Aruna Shanbaugs case finally encouraged the verdict that allowed passive euthanasia in India; Picture credit: Wikipedia

“The High Court is faced with an unusual situation which is heart-rending in many respects where it can not grant the right to commit suicide.