Veteran actress Rati Agnihotri, who has completed 37 years in the film industry, recently decided to end her 30-year-long marriage to Anil Virwani owing to domestic violence. What surprised everybody was that the 54-year-old actress had chosen to not speak about it, till few days back.
Rati Agnihotri was surprised at the reactions she got from the media and others and how her personal matter became a point of gossip for other people. In an interview to BollywoodHungama.com, she says, "I am surprised and hurt that my motives for speaking out to the law enforcement and legal machinery about my domestic problems are being questioned. Just because I chose to not speak about it, some sections of the media doubt the veracity of my claims. But the truth, as they say, will prevail. They're calling up my son while I am running around with my lawyers trying to make sense of what has happened in my life. Tanuj, poor thing, is just a young man. He doesn't know how to react to media pressure."
The actress, who has acted in movies like 'Ek Duuje Ke Liye', 'Shaukeen' and 'Hum Tum' among others, says she stuck on to the marriage just for her son Tanuj.
"Tanuj is the only reason I stuck on (in the marriage). He is 28 now and man enough to face the truth in his mother's life. He knew the truth 10 years ago. He knows the truth now. He knows what his mother has endured. Finally, he has told me. 'Mom, don't live your life for me. Live for yourself. Do what you think is right for yourself,'" adds Rati.
She, however, is not happy to see the reactions she has been getting. She thought people would show more sympathy and empathise with her, if nothing else, but the media people, especially the women, doubting her intentions, has left her saddened.
"It saddens me to see the way my life is being projected in the media. Some sections of the media have forgotten I have a 37 year connectivity with the media. Don't they grant me some grace dignity and honesty? Does the media know how hard it is on me to make the decision that I did after keeping quiet for 30 years? I feel it is important for me to have my say in this one conversation with you. Just because I kept quiet all these years about what I was going through and finally decided to do something about it, doesn't mean my motives are questionable," she says.
Rati Agnihotri bore the frequent episodes of domestic violence for long, until the last one that ensued and she left her home to stay at her Lonavla farmhouse. The actress says that the last beating still hurts.
"After the latest violence, I couldn't stay in the same house any more. I had nowhere to go, so I drive down to my home in Lonavla overnight. My son was shooting in Pune. He came to meet me in Lonavla and advised me to do what is right for me. This (ending the marriage) was my son's decision for me. I am taking his advice. He knows he is the only reason I stayed in this marriage. He said, 'No matter what, you'll always be my mother.'
"Every time something of this sort happened within the four walls of my home, he's the only person I reached out to. In the past, I've called him for help and he has immediately come to my rescue. I am still hurt because of the last beating. I don't have the strength to go and see my ailing mother. I've never failed as a mother. And I don't the world to tell me otherwise. No matter what happens, Tanuj will continue to be the centre of my universe," says she.
Ending the conversation, Rati Agnihotri says that she would like to encourage other victims of domestic violence to come forward. And speak out, while she herself is trying to go on with her life as normally as possible. She, surely, is a strong lady, as she asserts that she is not depressed and is trying to move on. "I am not depressed. I have my career, my mother and most important, and my son. I've gone through a lot. I am angry, but determined. I don't want any of what I've gone through to affect my son's life and future marriage," she signs off.
Veteran actress Rati Agnihotri, who has completed 37 years in the film industry, recently decided to end her 30-year-long marriage to Anil Virwani owing to domestic violence. What surprised everybody was that the 54-year-old actress…
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