Pooja Bedi on Protima Bedi’s Passing: ‘She Left the Way She Wanted, Her Body Was Never Recovered’

Pooja Bedi on Mother Protima Bedi: ‘She Lived on Her Terms and Died the Same Way.’

Protima Bedi — model, dancer, and founder of Nrityagram — lived life by her own rules, and according to her daughter Pooja Bedi, she embraced death the same way. In a recent conversation with SCREEN, Pooja recalled her mother’s passing in the mountains before she turned 50. Protima’s body was never found, something Pooja says was in line with her mother’s wish to “become one with nature.”

“She always said she wanted to die out in nature and not be pushed into a crematorium,” Pooja shared. “Her body was never found — it was one with the universe, one with the earth. She lived the way she wanted, and she literally died the way she wanted.”

Protima seemed to have sensed her end. Before leaving for Kullu-Manali, she handed Pooja her jewellery, documents, and property papers, telling her, “You never know, darling.” She also wrote a 12-page letter reflecting on her life — from childhood to her dance journey — ending with the words: “I’m in Kullu, the Valley of the Gods… I’m so very, very happy.”

“That was the last we ever heard from her,” Pooja said. “What a journey, what a life, what a woman, what a mother.”