The issue is never a nagging wife or an ignorant husband: Anurag

Filmmaker still misses former partner Kalki Koechin and accepts responsibility for split

He handles complex relationships with rare finesse and ease on reel  but in real life, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap doesn’t hesitate to admit he’s “not good at relationships”. Almost two years after separating from actor Kalki Koechlin, he says there was “no bigger loss” for him, reported IANS.

“Kalki is a great actor. What happened between us, why we went separate ways, all that remains between us. But she gave me six years of her life. I respect her for what she is. She really changed my life. Even if she left me, it’s because of my own shortcomings. I am not good at relationships,” said Kashyap.

That’s quite a paradox considering how he manages to handle complex relationships on screen. Isn’t it? “Yes, but perhaps as they say... the man who makes people laugh, is often the saddest. So, maybe it’s just a case of that... Every person has a weakness and strength... But yes, for me, there is no bigger loss that Kalki is not with me today,” he admitted candidly.

Kalki, 29, who is an Indian of French descent, and Kashyap, 41, noted for his films Black Friday, Gulaal and Gangs of Wasseypur, met and fell in love while working on Dev D in 2009.

Kalki played Chandramukhi in Kashyap’s modern take on Sarat Chandra’s classic Devdas. The two sealed their romance by getting married in April 2011, but they announced their separation in 2013.

For now, Kashyap is focused on promoting his forthcoming mega project Bombay Velvet with full gusto. Accompanied by the film’s actors Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Karan Johar, Satyadeep Misra, Siddharth Basu and Vivaan Shah as well as crew members, he was in Goa on a unique two-day event. The movie, set in ‘Bombay’ of the 1960s, is slated to release on May 15. Kashyap is then eyeing a much-needed break.

Earlier, Kalki opened up about her split with the director and said that she is in a happy space after a year-long struggle, as she didn’t know where their relationship was going, reported The Times of India. In December 2014, Kalki was quoted as saying that people won’t understand her and Kashyap’s relationship. She had admitted that her marriage is over, but not because of naive or petty issues.

Kashyap also maintained that the country is not prepared for a woman like his ex-wife. “This country is not mature enough to understand Kalki. I don’t understand why people bother asking us why we split. It’s not as simple as a nagging-wife-and-ignorant-husband issues. That’s never the issue.”

“I have been with that woman for six years and not once has she asked me how much I earn. This is not an idea that fits into the head of these people. We are very independent people individually. Relationships in India are often about owning the other person.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 8^th, 2015.

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