Ismat Tahseen (BOMBAY TIMES; December 14, 2018)

On Wednesday evening, on her way back from Goa to Mumbai, a biker crashed into actress Zareen Khan’s car. Unfortunately, the biker didn’t survive the accident and this tragedy has left Zareen deeply shaken and scarred. Speaking exclusively to Bombay Times, the actress said, “I’m so shaken up with what has happened. It has not been easy to digest the whole thing. I flew back from Goa this morning. What happened is so unfortunate. The guy (biker) lost his life and my heart goes out to his family. I haven’t stopped crying since it happened. The car was not even moving, it was stationary.” This is not the first time Zareen has experienced a road-related mishap.

Zareen said, “Some months ago, I had a similar accident where a scooterist rammed into my car. Kuch nahi hua usko, but I took him to the police station because he rammed into my car. But in this case, I feel really bad that someone lost his life and I can't imagine what his family must be going through. By the grace of God nothing much happened to me. If you see the car, you will understand how bad the impact is. We were waiting to take a turn at a spot between Calangute and Mapusa. It was around 6 pm and we were leaving for Mumbai. I was on this trip with my friends in Goa, they decided to take a flight back to Mumbai, while me and another friend decided to drive back instead. We just started our journey and that's when this terrible accident happened.”

She further added, “I didn't get a chance to meet the biker's family. When it happened my friend just got out of the car, picked him up in his arms and we rushed to the hospital. Luckily, two other people came to help us; they got into the car and headed to the hospital. Later, when we were on the way to the police station, we got the news that he was no more. He wasn’t wearing a helmet and because of the speed at which he was riding, he rammed into the car and then, must have hit his head on the divider. The car literally shook. I didn’t know what happened, as I was looking in the front direction, and right then, he crashed into our car on the right. My car was full of blood, it was a horrifying sight and I can’t get over it. It's all fresh in front of my eyes. ”

While she is still reeling from the trauma of the accident, Zareen has a message to all bike riders out there, “I want bikers to ride safely, wear helmets and realise that their families are waiting at home for them. Even in Mumbai, I have seen that they don’t wear helmets and are always in a hurry,” she said.