By Ananya Sharma 
Kozhikode, January 19: On Sunday morning, a Kerala Man Dies in a quiet lane in Govindapuram. A father and mother stood outside a locked room, calling their son’s name again and again. There was no reply. When they finally forced the door open, what they saw ended everything they had known till then.
Deepak U, 42, was dead.
Outside that house, people were still forwarding a video. Some were still arguing in the comment sections. Some were still calling him names. Inside the house, none of that mattered anymore.
He Was Just Another Working Man
Until two days earlier, Deepak was just another middle-aged man trying to get through life. He worked as a sales manager in a textile firm, travelled by bus, came home, and kept mostly to himself. Neighbours say he was not loud, not troublesome, not someone who drew attention.
He lived in Kozhikode, where people know each other by face, if not by name.
On Friday, everything changed.
The Video That Started It All
A short video, just 18 seconds long, appeared on social media. It was posted by a woman influencer, Shimjitha, who said she was harassed on a bus that had come from Payyannur railway station.
In the video, the bus looks crowded. People are standing close. There is barely any space to move. The woman says a man standing near her deliberately touched her chest. That man, social media users soon claimed, was Deepak.
The clip was edited. It was not one continuous recording. It did not show the full bus or the people around. But once it started spreading, none of that seemed to matter.
Phones buzzed nonstop. WhatsApp groups lit up. Instagram and Facebook were full of the same clip. People who had never met Deepak decided who he was.
By Sunday morning, the video had crossed 20 lakh views.
No Police, Only Public Anger
One thing never happened during all this.
There was no police complaint.
The woman did not go to a police station. No FIR was filed. No conductor was questioned. No fellow passenger was asked what they saw. Everything stayed online.
People argued endlessly. Some said the woman was brave. Others said such contact happens accidentally in crowded buses every day. Some slowed the video down and tried to prove intent. Others did not care.
The internet had already made up its mind.
What Was Happening Inside His Home
According to his family, Deepak was not sleeping properly after the video went viral. His phone kept ringing. Messages came from strangers. Some abused him. Some threatened him. Some told him his life was over.
He kept telling his parents that it was not intentional, that the bus was crowded, and he had nowhere to move. He worried about losing his job. He worried about how people would look at his family.
In places like this, once people start whispering, it never really stops.
On Sunday morning, he did not open his door.
Police Arrive After It Is Too Late
Police registered a case of unnatural death after Deepak was found. They carried out the usual procedures. No suicide note was found, police sources said.
Now, officers are reviewing his phone, call records, and social media activity to understand what he experienced during those two days. They are also trying to find the original, unedited version of the video, if it exists.
But there is still no case about what happened on the bus. Without a complaint filed while Deepak was alive, police options are limited.
Family Says Online Abuse Killed Him
Deepak’s family has flatly denied the allegation. They say the video and the abuse that followed broke him mentally.
They are now planning legal action against the woman, accusing her of defamation and harassment. They are also exploring whether the case can be treated as abetment to suicide.
Lawyers say proving such cases is not an easy task. Social media anger does not fit neatly into the law. But the family says they want to fight, if only to clear his name.
Video Gone, Damage Done
After news of Deepak’s death spread, the video was deleted. In statements reported by the media, the woman said she stood by her claim but never expected the man to die by suicide.
“I did not expect he would die by suicide,” she said.
For many, those words came too late. The video was already everywhere. The judgment had already been delivered.
A Question Everyone Is Avoiding
This case is not simple. Harassment on public transport is real. Many women suffer quietly and are scared to go to the police. That truth cannot be ignored.
But another truth is also staring us in the face. Social media can destroy someone in hours, without question, without proof, without a chance to breathe.
Mental health experts say sudden public shaming can crush ordinary people. Once a video goes viral, there is no escape. No pause. No fair hearing.
What Is Left Now
Deepak U is gone. His parents are left with grief and silence. The woman believes she spoke out against wrongdoing. The police are trying to piece things together after the worst has already happened.
What remains is a warning written in real loss: behind every viral video is a human being, and sometimes, the price of rushing to judge is a life that can never be returned.
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- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
