Rhea Chakraborty Recalls Awkward Reactions After 2020 Controversy: ‘People Would Stop Laughing and Joking Around Me’

Rhea Chakraborty has opened up about how the intense scrutiny surrounding her after Sushant Singh Rajput’s death affected her everyday interactions, recalling that people would change their behaviour whenever she entered a room.

Rhea Chakraborty has spoken candidly about one of the more uncomfortable aspects of life after the controversy surrounding Sushant Singh Rajput’s death.

During a recent appearance on comedian Tanmay Bhat’s YouTube channel, Rhea revisited the period through humour, discussing how people around her sometimes appeared unsure about how to behave in her presence.

The conversation also included comedians Rohan Joshi, Kushagra Srivastava, Aaditya Kulshreshth and Piyush Sharma, who joined Rhea and Tanmay in reacting to memes and discussing their experiences with public controversy.

Rhea recalls people changing their behaviour around her

Rhea explained that social situations became noticeably different after she found herself at the centre of intense public attention.

She recalled occasions when people would be laughing and joking together, only to change their tone when she entered the room.

“With me, if people were like laughing and joking in a group and if I came in there, then suddenly they would like change the tone be like, ‘Ha ha ha, oh hi Rhea, how are you?’”

Her recollection suggests that the controversy affected not only her public image but also the way some people interacted with her privately.

For Rhea, the awkwardness appeared to come from people not knowing whether it was appropriate to behave normally around her.

Why humour became difficult for people around her

Tanmay Bhat drew a comparison with his own experience during the controversy surrounding comedy collective AIB.

The discussion focused on how people who have lived through public controversies can sometimes use humour to process what happened, while those around them may struggle to understand that approach.

Rhea said that when she joked about her circumstances during the height of the controversy, the atmosphere would often become uncomfortable.

“If I would make these jokes like we’re doing today, like four years ago, the room would suddenly just get very heavy. They didn’t know whether they should laugh or they should not laugh.”

The observation highlights an unusual aspect of dealing with public trauma: the person experiencing it may eventually use humour as a coping mechanism, while others can remain unsure about where the boundary lies.

Rhea revisits the ‘Imma bounce’ episode

The conversation also returned to one of the more widely discussed moments from the period involving a private WhatsApp message.

Tanmay recalled Rhea’s use of the phrase “Imma bounce”, which he joked had been interpreted by a news channel as a reference to a cheque bouncing.

The panel treated the episode as an example of how ordinary words or messages could acquire an entirely different meaning amid the intense media attention surrounding Rhea at the time.

Rohan Joshi also joined the conversation, joking about the absurdity of the interpretation.

Rhea’s response suggested that the experience had left her particularly conscious of how easily words can be misunderstood when taken out of context.

Rhea jokes about being misunderstood

Rather than discussing the episode solely in serious terms, Rhea continued to use humour throughout the conversation.

At one point, she joked that she now asks for clarification even when someone sends an apparently innocent message.

“Now, if someone even texts me, ‘I’m on the pot,’ I’m like, ‘Please specify.’”

The joke brought another round of laughter from the panel.

Rhea then delivered another self-aware line:

“Good guys, good guys. You find my trauma very entertaining. I’m glad someone’s laughing.”

The exchange reflected the tone of the wider conversation, where difficult memories were being revisited through comedy rather than treated solely as a source of distress.

A different way of looking back at a difficult period

Rhea became one of the most heavily scrutinised figures in India following Sushant Singh Rajput’s death in June 2020.

She faced intense media attention and was subsequently arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau in connection with a drugs-related investigation before being granted bail.

In the years since, Rhea has spoken about moving forward and rebuilding her professional and personal life.

Her latest conversation with Tanmay Bhat offers another example of that shift. Instead of avoiding the period altogether, she appears increasingly willing to discuss how it affected her while also finding humour in some of the more surreal moments.

Rhea’s ‘Chapter 2’

Rhea has previously referred to her current phase as her “Chapter 2”, reflecting her effort to move beyond the period that dominated public discussion around her.

Her return to entertainment has been part of that process.

Rather than allowing the controversy to become the sole definition of her public identity, she has gradually resumed professional appearances and projects.

The Tanmay Bhat conversation also allowed her to speak about the past on her own terms, without the same formal tone that often surrounded coverage of the controversy.

Rhea Chakraborty returns to television

On the work front, Rhea Chakraborty is associated with the second season of The Traitors, the reality series hosted by Karan Johar.

Her participation comes as she continues to rebuild her presence in the entertainment industry.

For Rhea, the latest conversation was not simply about revisiting old headlines. It was about acknowledging how strange and isolating that period could feel—and showing that, years later, she can discuss some of those experiences with humour.

The change in tone may itself be an indication of how far she feels she has travelled since one of the most difficult periods of her public life.