Rs 300 crore illegal Amps, Steroids and Bodybuilding drugs market flourishing in Mumbai, Delhi

MUMBAI: The recent mysterious death of actor Sidharth Shukla – supposedly due to a sudden, massive heart attack and the alleged suicide attempt by a former Mr India, Manoj Patil – both cases happened in Oshiwara – the locality in suburban Mumbai, where most of the modeling and film industry aspirants reside, has opened up a new can of worms.

While people in the know allege in hushed tones that Sidharth Shukla was taking steroids to loose weight and pump up his muscles, Patil attempted suicide because he was allegedly harassed by a co-actor and fellow bodybuilder, Sahil Khan. Both of them Patil and Khan were trying or rather attempting at being selected for the international Mr Olympia bodybuilding pageant.

Now Sahil Khan who was named as an accused by Patil in his suicide note, has come out publicly in his own defence. He has alleged that Patil was selling expired drugs, supplements and steroids used by bodybuilders and he had spoken in support of one such aspiring bodybuilder who was allegedly cheated by Patil of Rs 2 lakh.

Khan claimed Patil publicized and marketed the illegal products via his Instagram account and he felt it his bounded duty to educate other bodybuilders about such undesirable and dangerous products. Patil on the other hand alleged that Khan was publicly defaming him on social media and disrupting his business.

Sahil Khan, speaking to the media on Thursday, said he has given all proof to the Oshiwara police station. On the other hand, Patil’s mother approached the cops in suburban Mumbai with a fresh complaint against Sahil Khan, demanding that an FIR be registered against Khan.

In the light of all these allegations, while the claims and counter claims between Patil and Khan continue unabated, what comes to the fore is the Rs 300 crore illegal steroids, amps (amps is slang for AMP or Adenosine MonoPhosphate injections) and other bodybuilding supplements and drugs (all illegal) consumed by aspiring bodybuilders in Mumbai, Delhi and other cities.

Experts and market analysts claim that the annual market for such products and supplements is over Rs 300 crore in Mumbai and Delhi alone, with the two cities accounting for more than 38 to 40 percent of the nationwide demand for such products.

Amps or AMP shots are illegal injections of the drug Adenosine MonoPhosphate also known as “the horse drug”, originally administered illegally to race horses to boost their performance. The drug works by forcing the heart to pump additional blood into arteries and veins, thus feeding the muscles with more oxygen and nutrients and enhancing performance. It also allows for longer workout sessions, providing artificial energy to body muscles, but has several dangerous side effects, including organ damage, leading to death.

Estimates claim that 40 to 50 bodybuilders and gym freaks use AMP or Amps these days along with other artificial protein supplements.

Most of these illegal products, protein powders and shots that are easily available and peddled by gym trainers and others associated with the bodybuilding fraternity are more often that not either adulterated, outright spurious, fake or at the least beyond the expiry date.

An industry expert claims that 50 percent of illegal bodybuilding products available in the market in India are just not fit for consumption because they are beyond the expiry date, while 40 percent of the products easily available on the underground fitness market are spurious, adulterated or outright fake. Less than 10 percent of products sold on the sly, maybe safe for consumption.

It is also alleged by industry watchers, that steroids and other bodybuilding supplements and amps that actor Sidharth Shukla consumed over the years  were ultimately responsible for the heart attack that caused his unexpected death.