Emmerdale fans "gutted" at shock Rishi Sharma death
"All the good ones go."
Emmerdale viewers were in for quite a shock in last night's (July 27th) episode after fan-favourite Rishi Sharma was killed off.
Played by Bhasker Patel for the last 12 years, Rishi had had a disagreement with his son Jai (Chris Bisson) when the truth about his paternity came to light. In recent scenes, Rishi was forced to admit that Jai wasn't his biological son, but his brother's.
The shock revelation led to an awkward moment with a disappointed Jai just as he and Laurel (Charlotte Bellamy) were about to walk down the aisle. Rishi was adamant he wouldn't attend the ceremony after he realised his son was disappointed in him for not telling him sooner.
Nonetheless, Georgia (Trudie Goodwin) gave him a pep talk and he decided to go, after all. Sadly, he wouldn't make it - as the camera panned to show a lifeless Rishi at the bottom of the stairs.
Strong reactions from upset Emmerdale fans were quick to arrive after the episode aired.
"Damn it, all the good ones go," one viewer said. "Will miss Rishi. Thank you Bhasker, you've been amazing. ???????? The only positive is that Nikhil might come back for the funeral?"
Another added: "Just caught up with tonight's Emmerdale. I'm genuinely gutted about Rishi, he was my absolute favourite character."
As Jai is set to discover his dad's body in a new episode, an emotional Patel appeared on today's Lorraine to give some insights into his dramatic exit.
"The producer rang me and said, 'I need to talk to you, and we're killing you off because we want a big story and it's going to be a big surprise,'" the actor explained.
"[In] my 12 years at ITV, they let me do a lot of other work, so I felt a part of ITV, a part of Rishi, but at the same time... I was working 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.'"
Read more:
- 6 Emmerdale spoilers next week: Dan pleads guilty, Gabby tries it on with Billy
- Samantha Giles to leave Emmerdale role as Bernice Blackstock
- Emmerdale airs sudden emotional exit - and Arthur is heartbroken
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Emmerdale airs on weekdays at 7:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX. If you’re looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide or visit our Soaps hub.
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