A tragic accident claimed the life of a 21-year-old Air India air hostess, Harshita Sharma, after a speeding car carrying her and two friends veered off a bridge and plunged into the Kolar canal late Thursday night. Her two companions escaped with minor injuries.

According to police, Harshita was travelling with friends Jai and Sujal, both MBA students, when the incident occurred near Holy Cross School in the Kolar area. Jai, who was driving the car, reportedly lost control of the vehicle while trying to avoid hitting a cow that suddenly appeared on the road. The car broke through the side barrier and plunged into the canal.

The group managed to pull Harshita from the wreckage and rushed her to a private hospital in critical condition. However, she succumbed to her injuries on Friday morning. Jai and Sujal sustained only minor injuries. The police have booked Jai for negligent driving and stated that additional charges may be filed pending the postmortem report.

Harshita's father, Pradeep Sharma, shared that she was frequently posted out of town due to her job with Air India. On Wednesday night, Harshita had messaged her brother via WhatsApp, informing him of her plans to arrive in Bhopal on Friday for her birthday. Unbeknownst to her family, she had arrived a day earlier and was staying at a hotel near Minal Residency.

The family came to know about the accident after Harshita’s friend Shivani called them to say she had been hospitalized. Upon arriving at the hospital, the doctors informed them that Harshita was brain dead. She was officially pronounced dead the following morning.

Police sources confirmed that the trio had gone for a late-night drive when the accident occurred. The case remains under investigation, and police are gathering further evidence to determine the complete sequence of events leading to the fatal crash.