When we feel butterflies in our tummies at the prospect of new romance, little does our mind flitter to the possibility that relationships go beyond the phase of flowers and chocolates. While some bonds strengthen over time, others evolve into toxic relationships that often come to an end. While we often hear of physical abuse between spouses, emotional abuse can be just as toxic to a healthy marriage.
Shefali Jariwala who was most recently seen in Bigg Boss 13 sheds light on this aspect as she opens up about her mentally abusive first marriage. The belle, who first came in the limelight for the music video Kaanta Laga, had married composer Harmeet Singh. However, the duo was divorced in 2009. At the time, Shefali had allegedly accused Singh of domestic violence. Elaborating on the same, she adds that ‘every kind of violence is not physical’, reports IE.
“It is very important to understand that you are not being appreciated. Not every kind of violence is physical. There is a lot of mental violence that also happens and you are very unhappy in your life,” she said.
The actor admits that there is still a taboo around divorce, however, she decided to part ways because she was independent. “I think, one of the reasons why I could make the decision for myself, was because I was independent. I was making my own money. The biggest fear in our country that we have is of society.
She adds, “Divorce is considered to be taboo but the way I have been raised is to not really care about society but just do what we feel is right. I could take such steps in my life and had strong support.”
Jariwala has been happily married to fellow actor Parag Tyagi since 2014. Shefali says that they are quite ‘similar and also different in many ways’. She added that this has let them balance each other.