Abhishek Bachchan addresses divorce rumours with Aishwarya Rai, says ‘I have never done anything wrong’; psychotherapist decodes his strongly-worded response

Adding, the Kaalidhar Laapata actor said in a podcast with Peeping Moon, “I have been brought up to believe that the media is the conscience of the nation…At the end of the day, you need to think that you are talking about another human being, somebody’s kid, father, child, husband, or wife. There has to be a certain amount of responsibility. As far as I am concerned, say as you will. Talk about my family, you have to deal with me because that’s off-limits. I will not tolerate any falsehood, manufactured rubbish about me or my family vis-à-vis my family and that’s a full stop right there.”

Abhishek also shared that he will not clarify everything until he feels like it. “What I feel like doing when I feel like doing. I have never done anything wrong. So, I don’t see why I need to go around clarifying stuff. There is no need for that. If there is something I feel which has gone out of hand, like if you are going to be talking about my family wrongly, I am going to correct you.”

Opening up about how well Aishwarya has brought up their 14-year-old daughter, Aaradhya, Abhishek said that while she may be aware of the rumours, she won’t believe anything from outside.

Abhishek said, “Aaradhya is a mature girl. And her mother has done a wonderful job… she is aware, but I don’t think it is a priority for her. She doesn’t have a phone. She’s 14. If her friends want to get in touch with her, they have to call her mother’s phone. That is something we decided a long time ago. She loves school. She won’t believe anything. I think her mother has taught her well enough not to believe everything she reads. Like my parents, we are completely honest with the family. There has never been an occasion where anybody has to question anybody.”

Here’s what you should consider (Photo: Freepik)

During the conversation, he also mentioned that, contrary to popular belief, he did not meet Aishwarya on the sets of Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke in 2000; he had met her for the first time over dinner with Bobby Deol, who is a “good friend”. Dismissing statements like marriage impacts fan following, Abhishek served some husband goals and shared, “My wife is an example. We are happily married. It’s our 18th year, and I have not seen that fan following. I think it’s something the media uses very conveniently to try and justify something.”

On how marriage tends to change people, he shared his viewpoint. “Marriage changes you. When your goals change, when your stories change, when your reasons change, your choices change too. Today, I am a father. I feel a certain responsibility to my entire family, so I choose accordingly. I think life changes you. Time, age, circumstance, everything changes you as it should. I don’t think an actor can be an island and just be narcissistic and a megalomaniac about everything. That’s where the rot would start. If you think you are the greatest, you will never want to improve, and you will become complacent. Situations in life would change, and your compulsions would change with that. That’s important.”

Reflecting on the actor’s strong words, Dhara Ghuntla, a psychotherapist and independent practitioner affiliated with Sujay Hospital, 7 Hills Hospital, and Criticare Hospital, said they convey an essential act of “boundary setting” in response to repeated violations of informational and relational privacy. “By rejecting fabricated narratives, his response is aimed at restoring personal autonomy.”

According to Ghuntla, by firmly rejecting the false stories, “he is engaging in a protective coping strategy that helps preserve emotional stability and personal dignity”.

Public figures are especially vulnerable because their private experiences are repeatedly reframed through external narratives they cannot correct fast enough, she said. “This also highlights a broader issue: when the public normalises intrusive gossip, it reinforces patterns that can harm mental wellbeing, not just for celebrities but for anyone whose life becomes a subject of speculation.”