Where is Anu Solanki? [Updated]

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Where is Anu.jpg 12.28.07: For those of you who do not read comments and may not know this– there is evidence which indicates that Anu is alive:

Authorities from the Cook County Sheriff’s Department announced they believe Solanki has left the Chicago area with a friend of hers, and that she has gone willingly. [oh, snap]

Developing…

I know we’re still shocked about the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, but there’s a story about another South Asian woman which deserves attention, in case any of you can help.

We’ve received several tips about a young woman who currently lives in Chicago, who has disappeared under what I think are extra-tragic circumstances. Anu Solanki is 24 years old and a newlywed from Virginia. The last time she was seen was when she was leaving her job at a hotel gift shop, on Monday, the 24th. A few miles from there…

Her car — which was still running with its doors unlocked– was found in a forest preserve parking lot late Monday afternoon.
Forest preserve police used divers to search the river in the Wheeling Forest Preserve on Wednesday, but said they would stay inside the boats on Thursday. [abc7chicago]

This is what makes my heart ache, why I wrote that this story had an extra element of tragedy:

Solanki’s husband said his wife may have gone to the river to place a broken statue of the Hindu deity Ganesh in the water, as they were told to do by a priest, to prevent bad luck. Authorities fear the woman slipped while placing the statue in the current. [abc7chicago]
“There is some concern at this point that this is a rapid current of the Des Plaines River, that it may be wise to check even further,” said Cook County Forest Preserve District spokesman Steve Mayberry. “Miss Solanki is a petite woman, and in fact, the current may have carried her further than initially believed.” [WBBM780]

Who among us hasn’t tried to do the “right” thing, on the advice of someone we trust, even if it seems superstitious? I’m just haunted by the mental picture I have of this girl earnestly, gingerly transporting this broken-but-sacred statue, on her way to the river.

While her slipping and falling while trying to do something respectful is awful enough, there’s the possibility of worse:

Police are checking the validity of a report that Solanki called a relative and said she was being watched, but then called back minutes later to say she was fine. [abc7chicago]

That report says she called a relative, this says she called a friend:

Dignesh Solanki says his wife spoke with a friend by cell phone that afternoon, telling her she was being followed by four men, then called back to say the men had disappeared. [WBBM780]

I hope she will be found soon. Chicago mutineers Neeraj and M, thank you for keeping us posted about this.

330 thoughts on “Where is Anu Solanki? [Updated]”

  1. …(this is 2007 for heaven’s sake. how long does she think it takes to establish that a person is alive??)

    Benazir could still be out there somewhere.

  2. If I were to be reading about this I would just have sympathy for him… (but of course it is true that a potential future romantic interest might wonder if his wife left him because he isn’t good in bed or things like that…) In any case, its an interesting coincidence that the latest posts on sepiamutiny have been on *allegedly* stupid desis – tiger taunting teenagers, and then a stupid woman who thinks she can fool the police, etc. into thinking she’s dead…(this is 2007 for heaven’s sake. how long does she think it takes to establish that a person is alive??)

    Does it not strike you as odd that she did not take the traditional route of simply divorcing her husband to be with the man she really loved?

    Or is divorce so frowned upon in our society that such desperate measures such as faking one’s own death have to be taken?

    Without accusing any individual, there is still the possibility that this woman’s life may have been in danger if she would have just said, “I’m leaving you”, and walked out.

    So let’s refrain from calling her “stupid” for now. We don’t know why she did this.

  3. The more I read, the more appalled I am. To deceitfully phone up your friend and make her worry like that, to waste that much money, etc. She needs to grow the f**k up.

  4. The more I read, the more appalled I am. To deceitfully phone up your friend and make her worry like that, to waste that much money, etc. She needs to grow the f**k up.

    At least, she didn’t falsely accuse an unnamed Hispanic man of rape while at it.

  5. I agree with Miss Marples here.

    It’s possible that Anu Solanki didn’t have a easy way out. A “stupid” woman wouldn’t have made such elaborate plan.

  7. A “stupid” woman wouldn’t have made such elaborate plan.

    But a really smart woman would’ve gotten away with it.

  8. A “stupid” woman wouldn’t have made such elaborate plan.

    You obviously don’t get why I called her stupid. Not so much because her plan was sinister, but because it was so obviously not going to work very well

  9. So what’s the deal here? Was she a DBD or an ABD? Was she pressured into an arranged marriage?

  10. Does it not strike you as odd that she did not take the traditional route of simply divorcing her husband to be with the man she really loved? Or is divorce so frowned upon in our society that such desperate measures such as faking one’s own death have to be taken?

    Well, Miss Marples I have a plausible explanation for this but I’m afraid that might malign hubby’s name in some way. So I don’t want to put it forth here.

  11. At least, she didn’t falsely accuse an unnamed Hispanic man of rape while at it.

    Correction;

    The Runaway Bride case refers to Jennifer Carol Wilbanks (born August 25, 1973), an American who ran away from home on April 26, 2005, in an effort to avoid her wedding with John Mason, her fiancé, on April 30. Her disappearance from Duluth, Georgia, sparked a nationwide search and intensive media coverage. On April 29, she called Mason from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and falsely claimed that she had been kidnapped and sexually assaulted by a Hispanic male and a white woman.

    Again, we have to examine why it is Anu felt she could not simply file for divorce. I’d like to know more about her family background and upbringing, as well as the background of her husband and in-laws. I’m sure there must be more here than meets the eye.

    Another desi woman also served time in jail for setting her husband on fire. But she had plenty good reason, as we later found out.

  12. So what’s the deal here? Was she a DBD or an ABD? Was she pressured into an arranged marriage?

    ugh. don’t be such a gossip whore

    jk

  15. Again, we have to examine why it is Anu felt she could not simply file for divorce.

    Probably because she did not have a respectable enough reason to ask for a divorce?? And she would be too guilty to do that – ” didn’t have the guts”, as nala proposed earlier? …. and so on. Now, you can imagine scenarios that fit the above bill.

  16. So what’s the deal here? Was she a DBD or an ABD? Was she pressured into an arranged marriage?

    I read that she moved to the US 10 years ago while in school(high), etc.

  18. Police said today that they believe Anu Solanki, 24, missing since Monday, is alive and is with a 23-year-old man from California.

    I think they left for from Chicago on Christmas Eve, and accidentally let a tiger out of its enclosure while trying to immerse the Ganesh idol in the moat. Discuss.

  20. I think they left for from Chicago on Christmas Eve, and accidentally let a tiger out of its enclosure while trying to immerse the Ganesh idol in the moat. Discuss.

    Oops, did you mean to post this in the tiger thread?

  21. Bhutto had an arraigned marrigae. Just sayin’.

    Now I see the sepiamutiny connection. She had an arranged marriage just like bhutto. She eloped with someone from california too. Maybe its one of those allegedly stupid ttt (tiger taunting teenager) desis??

  22. So now can we discuss if she’s hot or not?

    Are you asking this in seriousness?

    Either way, I think you meant to say ‘if she’s DESI hot or not.’

  24. Without accusing any individual, there is still the possibility that this woman’s life may have been in danger if she would have just said, “I’m leaving you”, and walked out.

    Ok, but couldn’t she call her husband from a safe place and tell him “I’m leaving you”. Couldn’t she call a relative? a friend? a neighbor? the police? a woman’s shelter? As my mother used to say, there is no excuse for not calling. You can make a call from anywhere, especially when you have a cell phone. No one deserves to be left in the dark about a loved one. Not even if that person is abusive.

  25. Even for the Ganeshotsav here, we need to take a special permission to do Ganesh Visarjan in the Pacific ocean. And I am talking abt small Ganesh idols, nothing big.

    How much do these brahmin priests charge gullible superstitious hindus for giving this special permission?

  26. How much do these brahmin priests charge gullible superstitious hindus for giving this special permission?

    The permission is to be taken from the county and not from the priests. And for that reason the priests ask individuals to do the visarjan in a pot full of water and then pour the water to the plants.

  27. How much do these brahmin priests charge gullible superstitious hindus for giving this special permission?

    One bottle of kimchi usually suffices, though the prices have been going up significantly with India Shining and all…much to the envy of the rest of the world.

  28. How much do these brahmin priests charge gullible superstitious hindus for giving this special permission?

    50% less than the fakirs who offer their djinn removal service on my “South Asian” entertainment channel;-)

  29. Without accusing any individual, there is still the possibility that this woman’s life may have been in danger if she would have just said, “I’m leaving you”, and walked out.

    ummm sounds to me like you are accusing. As of now it sounds to me like her husband is the victim. She dated him for 2 years before marrying him and now decided to ditch him without warning. This whole thing has an eerie resemblance to something that happened here in the early 90’s. An Indian College student went missing while one her way back to school and there were posters everywhere about her. Turned out she just decided to go on a road trip(with someone) without telling her parents. In the mean time many hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent in trying to find her. In her case she made allegations about some one kidnapping her and tying her in a tree and stuff… All the allegations got dismissed later.

  31. No one deserves to be left in the dark about a loved one. Not even if that person is abusive.

    What? Does that make any sense? An abusive perpetrater deserves knowledge of the whereabouts of their victim?

  32. 61 · Miss Marples said

    I’d like to know more about her family background and upbringing, as well as the background of her husband and in-laws. I’m sure there must be more here than meets the eye.

    If you are going to be gossiping with the neighbors while knitting a sweater, at least spell your name right. Unless you are going for “Missed Marbles”.

  33. Even if the speculation was initially directed at the wrong person, I think the story seemed bogus enough to invite skepticism by a lot of us. This woman better pay a fine. I seriously cannot believe she did not have a single friend or family member she could confide in. Or she could have called the cops and tell them that she was leaving her husband and she didn’t want to be followed because she feared that he would stop her. What about that idiot guy she went with? He should have had enough sense to tell her to come clean to the cops. Wasnt he man enough to protect her in case she was afraid of her husband?

    I hope they both get to pay a fine.

  34. Even if the speculation was initially directed at the wrong person, I think the story seemed bogus enough to invite skepticism by a lot of us.

    We gratuitously slandered somebody, but, hey, A for effort!

    I dont think Alphabeta is rushing to judbement. He is merely brainstorming.
    I dont think speculation is the same as accusation. Saying something needs to be looked into is not the same as saying there is a good chance someone did it.

    Idly blaming the husband without any basis in fact is not much different than all those people who cast a suspicious eye on browns photographing federal buildings.

    (And even if these speculations had turned out to be true, it doesn’t make them any less prejudicial since they were made with absolutely no information).

  35. I disagree. Reading the comments, I don’t think many would have gotten the impression that the husband was considered a prime suspect by those who speculated. It’s a blog. Not a jury trial. So people are going to speculate. I see nothing wrong with it. Even when people were curious about the husband, I did not see any bad stuff said about him. It was more of “hey this sounds fishy, look into his angle”.

  36. I hope they both get to pay a fine.

    Is that possible? I don’t see anywhere that she directly misrepresented herself to the authorities.

    Just asking in case I need to hatch a plan like this to run off on my Grihini.

  37. I hope they both get to pay a fine

    Or better yet forward the bill for the cost of the search. I believe $250,000? I don’t see why the taxpayers should pay for this nonsense. Its cases like these that cause police to take real cases less seriously.

  38. Ok, but couldn’t she call her husband from a safe place and tell him “I’m leaving you”.

    That doesn’t work if you want him to think you’re dead. Like in “Sleeping with the Enemy”.

  39. 84 · Rahul said

    And even if these speculations had turned out to be true, it doesn’t make them any less prejudicial since they were made with absolutely no information

    Hence the word — speculation. Since none on this blog are privy to any “inside information” would you rather be silent until all the “facts” come out (which I doubt, since there will be no prosecution)? After all, everyone is entitled to one’s opinion and that’s what is being espoused on all the blogs, including this one. I, for one, doubted the husband, but that was given the “facts” at the time.

  40. As someone who knows Anu, I have to say she is a very sweet, happy go lucky person who always smiles and has nothing bad to say about anyone. She was the picture of an ecstatic bride after her wedding and showed her pictures, which were beautiful to everyone. She is very Pretty,and very kind-hearted,and something about this whole thing still does set right with me. I think anyone could be using her cell phone and what proof is there that she went willingly? A Lot of assumptions are being made without concrete evidence! I think further investigation is warranted. I, for one will be much more at peace when we actually hear from Anu herself! I know she is very close to her family members and I do not believe she would have done this to her parents and family and friends(caused all this heartache) so as far as I am concerned, there are still many vital questions unanswered!

  41. …is a very sweet, happy go lucky person who always smiles and has nothing bad to say about anyone…picture of an ecstatic bride after her wedding ….She is very Pretty,and very kind-hearted…

    Hmmm… You know a lot about Anu, I’d say you are Anu :D.

    On a serious note – I am just glad that she is alive. I hope she is able to sort her life out after this.

  42. Hence the word — speculation. Since none on this blog are privy to any “inside information” would you rather be silent until all the “facts” come out (which I doubt, since there will be no prosecution)? … I, for one, doubted the husband, but that was given the “facts” at the time.

    It is pretty brave of you to voice your opinions, based on the “facts” (which were that the wife disappeared, and the husband and family initiated a police search) in initialed anonymity on a blog. Why don’t you put out your full name and assorted identifying information on this blog, so that I, who am not privy to any “inside information”, can also maliciously speculate about the kinds of behaviors you must have experienced from assorted members of your family that have inspired such a deep-seated distrust of your closest ones. Based on the “facts” (which are your willingness to leap to such conclusions), of course. And we have the temerity to complain about the gossipy and meddlesome nature of Indian aunties!

    After all, everyone is entitled to one’s opinion and that’s what is being espoused on all the blogs, including this one
    It’s a blog. Not a jury trial. So people are going to speculate.

    Just because it is legal and people “are going to do it” does not make it decent behavior.

  43. 92 · Rahul said

    Hence the word — speculation. Since none on this blog are privy to any “inside information” would you rather be silent until all the “facts” come out (which I doubt, since there will be no prosecution)? … I, for one, doubted the husband, but that was given the “facts” at the time.
    It is pretty brave of you to voice your opinions, based on the “facts” (which were that the wife disappeared, and the husband and family initiated a police search) in initialed anonymity on a blog. Why don’t you put out your full name and assorted identifying information on this blog, so that I, who am not privy to any “inside information”, can also maliciously speculate about the kinds of behaviors you must have experienced from assorted members of your family that have inspired such a deep-seated distrust of your closest ones. Based on the “facts” (which are your willingness to leap to such conclusions), of course. And we have the temerity to complain about the gossipy and meddlesome nature of Indian aunties!
    After all, everyone is entitled to one’s opinion and that’s what is being espoused on all the blogs, including this one
    It’s a blog. Not a jury trial. So people are going to speculate.
    Just because it is legal and people “are going to do it” does not make it decent behavior.

    Geez, you sure do practice what you preach.

  44. Geez, you sure do practice what you preach.

    Yes, I do. Thanks for having the decency to recognize it.

  45. I went to school with Anu and from what I know, she was a really sweet girl. However, flirting was second nature for her and her parents were very strict about talking to boys or hanging out with them. Also, she had been going out with her husband for a while before the wedding and I always heard positive things about him. What happened in this situation is hard to say

  46. I saw Karan Jani’s profile on Orkut and he’s got scrap saying “ill see you soon :)” on December 17th from someone called Anushka who I think is Anu Solanki..I could be wrong about that though.

  49. I am from Charlottesville too and knew Anu. It seems as if the possibility that she may yet be in danger has just been tossed aside in favor of a belief that she has run away from her husband. Why had no family members or friends been aware of any problems in the marriage? They were still relatively newlyweds! I find it hard to believe that no one saw any warning signs at all! If Anu is fine and left on her own, why has she not contacted close relatives..such as her mother? It just makes no sense to me……