‘When my parents split up, everything changed’

Shruti Haasan, the daughter of veteran actors Kamal Haasan and Sarika, opened up about their divorce and the valuable lessons she learned from the separation. Born into an artistic family of great influence, Shruti had a comfortable childhood, but her life took a drastic turn when her parents decided to part ways.

“See, I was born into a very beautiful family - artistic, intelligent parents and by the grace of God, lots of comforts. But I have seen the other side of it as well. When my parents split up, everything changed. That’s when I realised the value of financial independence and personality-dependent independence. Especially being a daughter and seeing that mum walked out of a marriage, it taught me an important lesson on why it is important for a woman to be independent,” Shruti candidly shared in a podcast with a popular entertainment agency.

Kamal Haasan and Sarika’s love story began on the set of the 1984 film ‘Raaj Tilak’ and they eventually tied the knot. However, their marriage wasn’t without its challenges. Despite their efforts to make it work, they ultimately decided to go their separate ways. Their divorce was finalised in 2004. Shruti said that her parents were mature enough to have an open and honest conversation about their decision and they prioritised their children’s well-being above all else.

“We always see how men’s independence is greatly celebrated,” Shruti noted, emphasising the importance of women’s independence. “I’d also like to say that we don’t need to announce, ‘I am an independent feminist’. We don’t need to do it every day; it’s a very silent, ‘un-applauded’ battle, truly. A lot of women relate to this one topic that there is no one to applaud for us, we’ll have to do it ourselves, we have to live every day and pay our bills and it’s a normal part of life.”