Devastated fans of Emmerdale have lashed out at the show over Rishi Sharma’s shock death in last night’s episode. The tragic reveal came just as Jai and Laurel tied the knot.
However, it was revealed that Rishi was lying at home, dead at the foot of the stairs, as Jai and Laurel celebrated their wedding.
For many, this cruel twist of fate was a step too far. Was the show’s treatment of Rishi a serious error of judgement on their part?
Emmerdale fans slam ‘bad decision’ to kill Rishi off
Writing on social media after the episode aired, a number of fans hit back at Emmerdale showrunners for their treatment of Rishi.
“I can’t believe he died?! Personally think that was a bad decision to kill him off,” one fan wrote on a Reddit thread.
“Rishi was grossly underused in the last few years, so I was really excited for this actor when he got this big storyline. It’s sad that we’re not going to see anymore of him now,” agreed another.
‘We’ll really miss him,’ say Emmerdale fans
On Twitter, opinions about Rishi’s death were much the same. Many felt that the character had been hard done-by in his sudden demise.
“I’m still so sad about Rishi this morning and wish the writers hadn’t done it to be honest. Such a much-loved character, we’ll really miss him,” said one fan.
I’m still so sad about Rishi this morning and wish the writers hadn’t done it to be honest. Such a much loved character, we’ll really miss him. 😢 💔 #Emmerdale #Lorraine @bhaskerpatel @ChrisBisson
— Amy 💙 (@geordiegalg) July 28, 2023
“I’ll miss Rishi so much. Why do they kill all the loveable ones off?” another asked.
I’ll miss Rishi so much 😔 why do they kill all the loveable ones off #emmerdale
— Nicole (@foreverabluecfc) July 27, 2023
Emmerdale star Bhasker Patel reveals reasons for Rishi’s exit
Appearing on ITV’s Lorraine this morning, Bhasker Patel, who plays Rishi, revealed the reason for his sudden exit from the soap.
In the interview, he revealed that it had not been his choice to leave the soap. “Getting a job like this was like a godsend. Then when the producer rang me and said: ‘I need to talk to you… we’re killing him off because we want a big story and it’s going to be a big surprise’,” Bhasker said.
He continued: “But because during my 12 years at ITV they let me do quite a lot of other work, so I felt also part of ITV, part of Rishi, but at the same time I did a lot of work in London as well, so when the producer said ‘we’re going to kill you off’ I was like ‘Okay, that part of my life with this guy is over and I’m going to move on.'”
Do you think the soap has made a mistake in killing off Rishi?
Read more: Complete Emmerdale cast list 2023 – meet them all here!
Emmerdale usually airs on weekdays at 7:30pm, with an hour long episode on Thursdays.
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