Coronation Street is facing criticism from viewers for playing into mistreatment of LGBTQ+ characters with its Underworld roof collapse drama.
Wednesday's (March 20) double-bill featured horrific scenes as a rescue operation was mounted to help those trapped under the rubble from the roof collapse in Monday's cliffhanger.
The ITV soap had long warned that a beloved character would die during the rescue efforts, making the viewing experience understandably tense.
In the end, Rana Habeeb (Bhavna Limbachia) was killed off on her wedding day when she got caught in the collapse by accident. Rana had let herself into the factory with her spare keys to grab her bag, in the ultimate case of bad timing.
Over the two half-hours, Rana teetered between life and death only long enough to exchange wedding vows with Kate in the rubble. In the end, she tragically passed away.
Bhavna Limbachia's departure from Coronation Street was actually announced two months ago, and many fans had correctly predicted Rana would die in the roof collapse after being given those spare keys last week. Yet, her demise still unsettled many.
What to Read Next
Some argued that killing off Rana on her actual wedding day with Kate Connor (Faye Brookes) is a prime example of TV and film's Bury Your Gays trope.
This is a long-derided theme particularly in TV where LGBTQ+ couples aren't allowed to last long-term without some horrible twist breaking them up — think the murder of Tara in Buffy the Vampire Slayer or killing Lexa in The 100.
For some Corrie viewers, tearing Rana away from Kate in such brutal fashion is a prime example of Bury Your Gays:
Particularly because Rana's return to the factory was random, criticism from some viewers ranged from calling her death "a really terrible move" to accusations of baiting diverse fans.
"#Corrie took Bury Your Gays so seriously they stuck poor Rana in a wedding dress and dumped the factory roof on top of her," one writer pointed out.
For her part, Bhavna Limbachia seems to feel differently about Rana's brutal death scenes. In a post-exit interview with ITV, Bhavna said she requested to be killed off the soap.
"When I told Kate Oates and Iain McLeod that I wanted to leave the show to try other things, it was my decision and my choice for Rana to die because it was the only fitting end to the character," she explained. "Kate and Rana had fought so hard to be together and they had been through thick and thin together.
"I believe their love was so pure as two souls that there was no way that Rana was just going to have a change of heart, hop in a cab and leave.
"I felt that if they were to be separated, they had to be torn apart and it couldn’t have been their decision. The only way to go was if Rana were to die. Rana would never leave Kate, ever."
In that same interview, the actress spoke about how she worked to become an ally to the LGBTQ+ community throughout all her time playing Rana.
"I am proud to be an ally for the LGBT+ community," she said. "It wasn’t something that I knew enough about so when I was approached with this storyline, I felt it was important to educate myself about the LGBT+community and that has changed me as a person."
Bhavna didn't specifically touch on the disconnect between that stance and the Bury Your Gays trope. You can see more of her thoughts on Rana's demise below:
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on ITV.
Read more news, spoilers and gossip on our Coronation Street homepage
Digital Spy Soap Scoop video - hit play below for all the latest Coronation Street spoilers, as Roy gets a blast from the past and baby Bertie is finally allowed home.
Want up-to-the-minute soaps news, spoilers and gossip on your social feeds? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Soaps Facebook page and 'Follow' on our @soapscoop Twitter account.
