mid-day Opinion: Lessons from Marjane Satrapi’s loss

French-Iranian graphic novelist, illustrator and film director Marjane Satrapi. Pic/AFP

Crash! Boom! Bang! If maniacal Mumbai had a sound to it, I'd hazard a guess, and say that this is how it would be spelt out in words.

Marjane Satrapi passed away on June 4 due to sadness, as revealed in a family statement. "Can someone pass away due to this reason?" Social media platforms were abuzz with the news of the demise of a strong voice for women's rights and freedom of speech, a brave, creative soul whose imprint left a mark across writing, filmmaking and activism, often taking on the establishment in her birth country, Iran, and her adopted country, France.

As science took over sensationalism, it emerged that she was still mourning the loss of her husband, Mattias Ripa, the Swedish actor, writer, and her collaborator for three decades. Their love and careers blossomed in Paris, where they met. Together, they went on to do amazing, creative things. The author of Persepolis, she later made a film on it. He translated her work, and acted in her comedy film, La bande des Jotas (2012), while his film, Dear Paris (2024), was produced by her. Satrapi also played a supporting role in it, her last role in a film.

A poster of the film based on her autobiographical graphic novel ‘Persepolis'

Their beautiful love story came to a crushing end when Ripa passed on April 8, 2025. A distraught Satrapi expressed her loss in a unique way. In the following weeks, she created a post on Instagram, adding one word at a time in a grid-like template. Together, it added to - ‘For I lost the love of my life.' She also established a foundation to financially support overseas film students in Paris. But insiders say that she never got over his loss.

A little over a year later, she passed away.

A talking point that emerged in mental wellness circles soon after this news is the Broken Heart

Syndrome (Takotsubo cardiomyopathy), a medically acknowledged condition caused due to extreme levels of emotional shock that could affect the heart muscle.

Satrapi's cause of death must be discussed in greater detail, especially in our urban, isolated, and insular ecosystems. The piercing question that could possibly be on many minds, the answer to which we, in far-flung Mumbai, will never get to the bottom of, is "Why couldn't her life be saved?"

In Mumbai, where most professionals have to step up or drop out of the rat race, there's not much time to save ourselves, or grieve for a loved one, let alone find time to help others. Sadness is mostly pushed to the back-burner because "we have to ‘move on'", "take up the next assignment", or "meet the deadline". For a city that's always on a ticking clock, and where most live islander lives, shuttling between workspaces, home, and the cruel commute, how much time is left for self-love? And if time permits, to help a stressed-out friend, colleague or a co-commuter? Zilch.

We can assume that Satrapi would have been surrounded by her family and friends after Ripa's demise. So, how did grief get the better of a bright, intelligent woman whose creative pursuits offered hope and light to women from Iran, France, and the rest of the world? We'll never know. But surely, there's a message in it for all of us. We must strive to be empathetic citizens.

Be kind to yourself. Reach out to a forgotten friend. Meet a retired teacher in person. Seek help for yourself or a dear one, when little makes sense. Don't hesitate to create a cushion of comfort. It's worth its weight in gold in these impersonal times, where sadness can creep in unannounced, and become a lifelong dementor.

mid-day's Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the city's sights, sounds, smells and stones...wherever the ink and the inclination takes her. She tweets @bombayana
Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com
The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper.