Call it a strange anomaly or lack of interest in your partner, but this story is one for the books. Once touted to be the 'next big thing' in the Indian film industry, actor and director Deepak Tijori today finds himself in strange waters.
As it turns out, a woman he called his 'wife' for 20 years is allegedly not his legal wife. Yes, that's correct!
Reportedly, the Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander actor was been kicked out of his 4BHK apartment in Goregaon, Mumbai, by his 'wife' Shivani. In fact, she has also filed for divorce and is now asking for maintenance for herself as well as her 20-year-old daughter Samara Tijori.
Tijori's 'wife' is not his wife!
She has filed the case under 125 CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure) and stated "I am a deserted wife. I cannot maintain my expenses. My husband is liable to do the needful for me and my daughter."
Apart from this, Shivani has also restricted his access to their home to just one room.
"Deepak barely manages to enter his house. Shivani allows him to use only one room. Worse still, Shivani has strictly told the servants that they should neither give him food nor clean his room," a source quoted as saying.
But there is a dramatic twist in their tale. Tijori has found out that Shivani may not legally be his wife.
A twist in the tale
As it turns out, when Tijori consulted a counsellor, he found out that Shivani did not divorce her previous husband and was therefore, not legally eligible for compensation and maintenance from the Aashiqui actor.
"Shivani's marriage to Deepak is null and void if she hadn't divorced her first husband. So why should Deepak maintain her cost of living?" a source told SpotboyE.
But what about their daughter, Samara?
And as far as Samara is concerned, the source told the daily, "Samara is not a minor, she is 20 years old. So she doesn't qualify for maintenance. As far as her relationship with her father goes, it's nice but tilted in favour of Shivani; Samara is closer to Shivani than to Deepak."
This seems like a pretty twisted case, but for Samara, just as any other child of a broken marriage, this could be a hard time.
How does a broken marriage affect children?
We spoke to Anuja Kapur, a Delhi-based clinical psychologist who explained, "The revolution in sexual relationships is wrecking children's lives as well as those of adults. It can greatly affect child development and emotional health. Children don't just sail through parental conflict, separation, divorce, and remarriage. There are lasting consequences. Children are affected by single parenting and step-parenting turn out to be no substitute for a missing father or mother. Children feel that living in an unhappy marriage may be far better for them than separation or divorce."
3 ways parents going through an ugly divorce can help their kids
There may be no tougher task in the world than to help your children cope with your divorce and a subsequent remarriage.
- Be honest with them: Telling your kids the truth about what’s going on is paramount. Tell them why the marriage failed, but do it without badmouthing your former spouse. Admit to your own mistakes and faults that contributed to the failure of the marriage – kids see these things clearly anyway! Reassure them that it was in no way their fault. Tell them you love them unconditionally and you’re committed to help them through the difficult road that lies ahead.
- Protect your kids from negativity: Being honest with your kids does not require that you expose them to all the violence of emotion involved. Keep the negativity as private as possible.
- Your kids are not your spies: Adults have to learn to talk. If you have something to tell your former spouse, don’t ask your kids to tell them for you; tell them yourself.
Read: 5 ways to divorce-proof your marriage
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[All images courtesy: Instagram]
