Filmmaker Mukesh Chhabra on Wednesday cryptically hinted that a sequel to Sushant Singh Rajput-starrer Dil Bechara might be on the cards, prompting the ire and disappointment of the late actor’s fans at the possibility.

“Dil Bechara 2,” wrote the 43-year-old casting director (formerly Twitter) without any details, fuelling the idea of a sequel to the 2020 movie. The post, however, stirred up a real hornet’s nest, upsetting a lot of fans who do not want a sequel to the film as it was the last film to feature Sushant, who was found dead in his Bandra apartment a month prior to its release.

“If there is no Sushant, there will be no Dil Bechara 2. He is an emotion. You can’t neglect him,” one of the fans wrote in the comments section.

Another fan tweeted how the original film is an “emotion” for everyone and requested the director to not “ruin” the essence for both Sushant and his fans’ sake. “Dil Bechara Is An Emotion!!! I Still Can Never Watch It In One Go!!! It’s A Request… Please Don’t Ruin It For Sushant n Us 🙏🏻.”

Still others took to social media to assert that Dil Bechara should always be associated with Sushant. “Please don't make it. Dil bechara should always be associated with SSR. Period,” one of them wrote.

Sushant’s death in 2020 came as a shock to the entire country. Initially taken up by Mumbai Police, the case was then transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) before it was declared a suicide by AIIMS medical board.

Released a month after his death, Dil Bechara also starred Sanjana Sanghi who made her debut as a lead actress alongside Sushant. Adapted from John Green’s 2012 novel The Fault in Our Stars and the 2014 film of the same name starring Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, Dil Bechara revolves around two individuals suffering from cancer who fall in love and spend their remaining days together.

Navigating themes of love, loss and self-discovery, the Bollywood romantic drama also starred Swastika Mukherjee, Sahil Vaid, Saswata Chatterjee and Durgesh Kumar.