Malayalam actress Manju Warrier took to Facebook on Tuesday to post an open letter, handwritten in Malayalam, urging her fans to respect her privacy and to stop blaming her close friends for the breakdown of her marriage. Last Thursday, actors Dileep and Warrier filed a joint divorce petition at a family court in Kochi to dissolve their marriage of 14 years.
The break-up of Kerala’s sweethearts didn’t go down too well with their fans and the rumour mill has been working overtime to get to the bottom of their split. Several conspiracy theories — such as Warrier’s ambition to revive her acting career and ill-meaning friends who goaded her to walk away from her marriage — have been thrown around.
“I took this step of writing an open letter because I felt certain clarifications are needed when personal events in my life affect those around me ... our decision to part ways was our joint decision. I have a close set of friends who have stood with me through thick and thin,” said Warrier, singling out actresses such as Geetu [Mohandas], Samyukta [Verma], Bhavana, Shweta Menon and Poornima [Indrajith]. “Some are blaming them for our break-up and such allegations are untrue and are hurtful to them.”
“No one has influenced me into taking this decision. Such allegations that they have caused our break-up have begun to affect their career and personal life. I hope this letter serves as an end to such baseless allegations. The decisions I take in my life are my own and its repercussions are my responsibility,” said Warrier, adding that she’s sorry that the developments in her personal life has caused them pain.
In a letter that avoided bitterness, Warrier also wished her estranged husband “Dileepettan” the best in his life.
“I pray that all the decisions made by Dileepettan are fruitful and good and I hope he scales new heights in his career in future,” said Warrier.
Dileep’s response
Her husband is one of Kerala’s most influential producers and has acted in several blockbusters, such as Twenty20 and Sallapam. When tabloid! contacted the actor by telephone, he declined to comment on his wife’s open letter, saying “whether she says positive or negative things about me, I will always consider her as my daughter Meenakshi’s mother. That will never change and I prefer not to discuss this matter with anybody.” Their daughter is currently living with her father.
Warrier, 35, who made a robust comeback last month with the drama How Old Are You (a tale of a housewife grappling with a husband who takes her for granted), also expressed her confidence that her “Meenutti” will be safe and secure under Dileep’s watch.
“Meenutti’s love for her father is best understood by me ... That’s one of the reasons why I don’t want to launch a custody battle. She knows that her mother is just a telephone call away. And I don’t think she’s far away since a child always remains in the heart of the mother,” said Warrier, whose career peaked in the mid-1990s with a string of hits. After her marriage to Dileep in 1998, she took a sabbatical from films and scaled down her public appearances.
But her life has taken a dramatic turn now.
“Now, I am beginning my life from scratch. It’s like a re-birth to me even though I am aware that a film’s success is not a yardstick for happiness in one’s personal life,” wrote Warrier.
Money-spinner
How Old Are You was embraced by Warrier loyalists and was a money-spinner at the box-office. She ended her plea with “an ocean of thank yous”.
“In my second winnings, I have earned bouquets and brickbats in equal measure. Thank you for everything,” said Warrier, who signed off with a quote that’s often attributed to Jamaican reggae icon Bob Marley.
“You never realise how strong you are until being strong is the only option you have left,” wrote Warrier. As many as 24,000 people have liked her post and the letter has been shared 2,511 times within a few hours of it being posted.
