Tollywood actor Ankush Hazra’s personal assistant Pintu Dey, better known as Bappa, was found hanging from the grille of the washroom window in his aunt’s house in Narkeldanga on Tuesday.

Family members found him hanging from a towel. No note was found.

Ankush, who made his debut in 2010 with Kellafate, said Dey, 36, had been working for him for close to a decade and was “more than a family member”.

Dey’s relatives have told police that he was apparently under pressure after he started receiving threats from an unknown person last month. They said the man would regularly threaten Dey saying he would make public a private video featuring him and kept demanding money.

“The family has alleged that in the last call the offender claimed to be the city detective chief and threatened to get Pintu (Dey) arrested within two hours if he did not pay Rs 10,000,” said an officer of Narkeldanga police station.

“We have started a case of unnatural death. Depending on the findings of the post-mortem report, we may draw up a case of abetment to suicide,” the officer said.

Officers of the cyber crime wing said they had been receiving complaints along the same lines. The offender would first strike friendship on social media and then threaten to release some videos unless the victims paid up.

A popular face on film sets in Tollygunge, several actors joined Ankush in expressing grief at Dey's death.