As the shocking news of the death of Tejaswini, the daughter of noted violinist Balabhaskar came out, Keralites couldn’t help but remember the yesteryear actress Monisha, who also lost her life in an accident on a fateful morning. The actress’s mother, Sreedevi Unni, in a discussion on Manorama News, recalled the tragic incident which claimed young Monisha’s life 25 years ago.
“We were going from Thiruvananthapuram to take a morning flight. The road was clear. However, I noticed that the headlight of oncoming vehicles was falling on our driver’s face. I kept talking to him so that he wouldn’t feel sleepy. My daughter was sleeping on the backseat,” recalls Sreedevi.
Sreedevi Unni, an actor and noted danseuse, said they had often travelled at night when Monisha was doing a couple of Tamil movies. However, she added that she always allowed her driver to pull the vehicle over and catch up on some sleep whenever he felt so.
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“I think the accident happened also because of the unique geographical feature of that place. Later, I learnt that many accidents had occurred at that particular junction. The road at Cherthala was clear, and would prompt any driver to hit the accelerator. I realized this and kept talking to him. It was around 6 in the morning and there was mist outside. I could see the light of a bus which overtook us. But it suddenly hit our car. I think our driver may have dozed off for a second, though I am not sure. We were talking until the moment the bus rammed our car. Before realizing what was happening, I was thrown off and the car turned upside down,” Sreedevi said.
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Sreedevi remembers that the accident occurred as there wasn’t any signpost or traffic signal at the junction. It was in front of a hospital, and the people in the locality who rushed to the spot immediately shifted the passengers in the car to that hospital. She says that the news of the accident reached everyone as it was morning and there were people around. Sreedevi and Monisha had travelled on an ambassador car that day, which were very common then. The actress observed that most of the accidents occurred in the wee hours when the drivers were more prone to dozing off. She said drivers who are tired working through the day usually take up night assignments too.
“I am greatly pained when I see such accidents even after all these years. These days I don’t travel during night. It is better to avoid journeys during the wee hours unless it is unavoidable. Be careful not to speed up your vehicle to reach your destination soon, as it may result in a severe loss which cannot be replaced,” said Sreedevi Unni.
