Shocking but true! Celebs reveal their craziest fan moments

When appreciation crosses over the boundary line to step into the realm of insanity, obsession follows. There is hardly any logical explanation to what these crazy fans have done for their favourite Bengali celebs.

One has to do crazy things to show they are true blue fans. While some of them are adorable and others are bizarre and creepy. We spoke to some of the popular Bengali celebs to know the creepiest, and most bizarre things fans have done for them. What these celebs have shared is a must-read!

Once, on my birthday, I received a handwritten letter that had a poem on all the characters that I have played so far. With it, came a bouquet and a note saying, ‘I am a boy’. Again, when I went to Kanpur for a Hindi film shoot, I had a group of guys breaking barricades to touch me. That was really scary. But then, it keeps happening. Even during the Pujas a few years back, I was at a south Kolkata pandal, where there was a repeat of the incident. That’s why I have become choosy about doing shows in the suburbs now. Surprises are sweet, not physical proximity.

All hell broke loose during the premiere of Purushottam, which I directed. A young man waded through the sea of spectators at the theatre to not just reach me; he bit my lips out of the blue! It was really crazy and for days on end, I couldn’t get the incident out of my head. Again, after the release of Moner Manush, a 11-year-old boy fled from his home in Bangladesh to meet me. I had to inform his parents with the help of cops.

I also had a woman stalker, who would give me goosebumps. Wherever I went — be it north Bengal or the suburbs — she would follow me there. When the security guards asked her why she was doing that, she unabashedly claimed that she just wanted to see me from a distance and meant no harm!

A young boy used to live near my house in Behala. Every day, he would bunk school and stand outside my house to take an autograph. I obliged on the first day but then it continued. Whenever I’d step out, I’d see him standing there with a piece of paper. He looked dishevelled and it was scary. One day, I asked him if he at all goes to school. With a deadpan face he said he had to collect 500 autographs of mine and only after that will he resume studies. I was shocked and figured out that he was keeping an eye on me with a binocular. After that, I went for an outdoor shoot for a month and heard from my mother that his parents had come to meet me. Apparently, he was neither going to school nor eating anything as he couldn’t see me for days on end! In fact, he had to be hospitalized. Once I returned to Kolkata, I traced him and signed 501 autographs! I never saw him after that.

To touch me at a show in north Bengal, a man scratched my hand and left me injured. During another gig, where some thousands had gathered, a man clambered on to the stage, opened his shirt in full public view, flashed his pot belly and pleaded that I sign on it. Later, I figured out that he was completely sloshed. Another time, I was busy at the recording studio when I got a call from home. I was told that a girl had come down from north Bengal and was sitting outside my house. So hell-bent was she on meeting me that she stayed put for at least six hours. Thankfully, I came home at night and by then, the girl was gone.

There was an incredibly enthusiastic fan of mine, who sends me letters written in blood. I have seen all these crazy things unfold on screen, but in real life, it is quite terrifying. Pages after pages he would write to me and after a point, he had just one thing to say — that he wants to marry me. That apart, he used to get me gifts and a huge cake on my birthday. On a certain year, I heard the birthday tune being played at midnight. I ran to the door to find that the song was playing from a music system kept there with a letter written in blood. So, I knew who it was! Even today, whenever a film of mine releases, this guy leaves prasad with the security guards, along with the letter written in blood!

I have had many leaving their homes and coming over to my house in the hope of staying with me. I don’t believe in the guru-shishya system and teach that one is his own guru. So, whenever such a thing happens, I try to reason with my fans. One such youngster, Ashfaque, had come down long back. After speaking to him for hours, I sent him back. He kept in touch and when I was convinced about the talent in him, I called him back. He now works for my magazine. There have been umpteen such instances. Another time, a young guy landed outside my house at 4 am and started making a portrait of mine. The security guards spotted him, but let him be. By morning, the portrait was ready and he handed it over to the guards and left.