‘Divorce with Anurag Kashyap was bitter initially, hurtful to see him with someone else’: Kalki Koechlin recalls how parents’ hated each other after ‘nasty’ split

Kalki Koechlin hinted that her divorce with Anurag Kashyap might have stemmed from witnessing her parents’ troubled relationship while growing up.

By: Entertainment Desk

Chennai | Updated: July 21, 2025 02:13 PM IST

3 min read

Kalki Koechlin talks about her divorce with Anurag Kashyap.

Actor Kalki Koechlin and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap were married for four years before they parted ways in 2015. In a recent interaction, Kalki hinted that her divorce might have stemmed from witnessing her parents’ troubled relationship while growing up, and how their ‘nasty’ divorce made her more prone to jeopardizing her own relationships.

Speaking to Zoom about how her understanding of relationships and love was shaped by her parents’ difficult marriage, she said, “My parents divorce when I was 13, and it was really bad. They were really nasty to each other and it was like cold and mean growing up between them. That was very tough. Maybe that’s why I’m divorced.”

Kalki admitted that growing up in such a toxic environment conditioned her to sabotage relationships. She said, “There is a certain part of you that jeopardise relationships once they start turning bad, but you are like ‘oh this happens’ because you have witnessed that as a child. I have witnessed as a child my parents separating and hating each other. A part of you loses the faith to walk through the worst.” Kalki acknowledged that over time, “consciousness and therapy” helped her overcome this conditioning and come to terms with her parents’ divorce.

She also opened up about her divorce from Anurag and how it was difficult for her to see him with someone else post-separation. Speaking about how it took time for them to be civil with one another after their divorce, she said, “The first few years after the divorce were not easy for us. Then came a point when we were like ‘we need to stay out of each other’s lives’ because it was hurtful to see the other person with somebody else, just the reminders are so strong.”

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She added, “It does take a few years. We didn’t get to it immediately and distance helped. Now we are in a good place and we are able to catch up once in a while.” Kalki was present at Anurag’s daughter Aaliyah Kashyap’s wedding last year. Aaliyah is Anurag’s daughter from his first marriage with Aarti Bajaj.

Kalki made her acting debut with Anurag’s Dev D. Shortly after the release of Dev D, the two tied the knot in 2011. However, they parted ways in 2015.

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