Pooja Bedi says Parveen Babi survived only on eggs in her later years: ‘She thought FBI was tampering with her food’

Pooja Bedi recounted a visit where Parveen expressed paranoia about food and makeup, reflecting her struggles before her death in 2005.

Late veteran actor Parveen Babi was one of the highest-paid stars of the 1970s and 1980s, delivering blockbusters such as Kaala Sona, Amar Akbar Anthony, Suhaag, Kaala Patthar and more. However, her struggles with mental health soon began to dominate headlines. The actor was once in a relationship with Kabir Bedi. Now Kabir’s daughter, Pooja Bedi, has opened up about an interaction with Parveen, where she discovered that the actor had started eating only eggs at meals.

Pooja Bedi recalls being concerned after her visit to Parveen Babi.

Pooja Bedi opens up about her interaction with Parveen Babi

In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Pooja recalled how being around Parveen was natural due to her connection with Kabir Bedi. She said, “I remember that many years later, she had come back to India. Everyone was saying that something was wrong with her. I went to her home; she opened her door, and she looked so different. She had put on a lot of weight and had wild hair. She was so excited to see me and said, ‘Pooja! Hi! Come in.’ Then she gave me a big hug, and we were sitting and chatting, and everything was completely normal.”

Pooja added, “Suddenly, she said, ‘I am sorry that I can’t offer you food because I only eat eggs.’ I asked her why she ate only eggs, and she replied, ‘This is the one thing they can’t tamper with.’ I asked her, ‘Who?’ She said, ‘The Secret Service, or the FBI.’ She told me that she doesn’t buy makeup from the markets because someone contaminates it. I asked her, ‘How would someone know what you are going to buy and when you are going to buy it?’ She said, ‘They know everything.’ I immediately thought that there was something extremely wrong going on around there. I got really concerned and confused at that point in time.”

About Parveen Babi

Parveen made her acting debut in Charitra (1973) but gained widespread recognition with films such as Deewaar (1975), Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Kaala Patthar (1979), and Namak Halaal (1982). She became a style icon of her era, admired for her contemporary fashion sense. The actor left the industry in 1983, though several of her films continued to be released in the following years, culminating with her last film, Irada, in 1991.

Parveen reportedly battled mental health issues, including schizophrenia, and gradually distanced herself from the film industry and her friends. On January 20, 2005, she passed away alone in her Mumbai apartment. Her death shocked the film industry and fans alike. The official cause of death was reported as multiple organ failure, and she was 55 years old at the time.