This Women’s Day must bring mixed feelings for you outwardly empowered and yet deweaponized by personal tragedies. What are your feelings? How are you coping with the crises?
Women’s Day, for me, is no longer symbolic. It is deeply personal. I stand here as a woman who has lost much in a short span of time my marriage, access to my children, and the physical presence of my only sibling, who remains in detention abroad. Yet I do not see myself as deweaponized. If anything, adversity has stripped me of illusion and left me with clarity. Coping is not glamorous. It is discipline. It is waking up even when your heart is heavy. It is showing up for court hearings, for lawyers, for appeals, and for your children’s future. It is leaning into the values my late father, Vikram Kumar Jaitly, instilled in us resilience, dignity and service. Pain can either paralyze you or refine you. I am choosing refinement.
That is so inspiring. A broken marriage compounded by an absent brother can it get any worse? Where do you derive your strength from?
When life dismantles the structures, you once relied on, you discover whether your foundation is external or internal. My strength comes first from my children. A mother does not have the luxury of collapse. It also comes from my upbringing in a fauji household. My brother gave his youth to the service of our nation. Watching his dignity being challenged has not weakened me it has activated me. If he could serve in uniform, I can serve his cause in civilian clothes. It also comes from faith, not blind faith, but conscious faith in justice, in due process, and in the belief that truth may be delayed but it does not disappear. Yes, it has been unimaginably difficult. But difficulty is not defeat.
What is your advice to women who find themselves trapped in abusive marriages?
Abuse rarely begins with violence. It begins with a subtle erosion of confidence, voice and autonomy. By the time a woman recognizes it, she is often emotionally and financially entangled. My advice is to be strategic and practical. Document everything. Build financial independence steadily. Seek professional therapy not just friendly reassurance. Understand the law before making emotional decisions. Most importantly, never normalize disrespect. Leaving is not always immediate, and sometimes survival requires planning. But endurance must never be mistaken for acceptance. Your dignity is not negotiable.
Have your friends stood by you during these trying times, or do you feel isolated in your battles?
Adversity is the greatest litmus test of relationships. Some people surprise you with their strength and loyalty. Others quietly disappear. I have been fortunate to have a few steadfast friends across India and Austria who have stood by me with moral and logistical support. The support I have received from my late father’s military colleagues, who served with him, has also been deeply reassuring. At the same time, there are moments of profound isolation. Legal battles are lonely. Courtrooms are lonely. But loneliness is not the same as being alone, and I remind myself of that distinction every day.
Would you say marriage as an institution has lost its relevance?
No, I would not say that. I have grown up witnessing some of the most beautiful marriages in my own family. The fauji marriages of my grandparents and my parents were built on deep love and commitment across generations. I have seen infantry officers serve away from their families for years because duty called, and I have also seen my mother and grandmother cope alone through countless highs and lows including the wounds carried home by battle-hardened soldiers. Those marriages were not performative; they were partnerships forged through resilience, distance, sacrifice and unwavering loyalty. Marriage only works when there is mutual respect, emotional safety and shared responsibility. It cannot survive on sacrifice from only one side. Both partners must consciously protect each other’s dignity and individuality. The institution itself is not irrelevant. But blind endurance within it is. I still believe in partnership. I do not believe in endurance at the cost of self-respect.
Women’s empowerment is not about rejecting marriage. It is about ensuring that within marriage, a woman does not disappear.
Also Read: Celina Jaitly opens up about alleged abuse in 15-year marriage with Peter Haag
The post Women’s Day Special: Celina Jaitly on losing her marriage and fighting for her missing brother; “Pain can paralyze you or refine you – I choose strength” appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
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