Piyush Mishra is once again speaking candidly about his marriage, this time shedding light on why his wife chose to stay despite his infidelity. Recalling her unwavering stance, the actor-writer said, “She told me, ‘I will not divorce you no matter what,’” even as he reflected on his own delayed understanding of responsibility as a husband, a phase he had earlier documented in his memoir Tumhari Auqaat Kya Hai, Piyush Mishra.
“Now I am a good husband; I wasn’t earlier”
In a conversation with Shubhankar Mishra, Piyush reflected on his journey as a partner, acknowledging his shortcomings in the early years of marriage.“Now I am a good husband; I wasn’t earlier. Back then, I wasn’t responsible at all, and marriage is a very big responsibility. When you fall in love at 20, there’s no logic to it, that’s the beauty of it. But after 35, you love the person who is willing to grow old with you,” he said.He added, “Love is defined by the woman who is ready to grow old with you, and she accepted that she would grow old with me.”
“It took me 10–15 years to realise she is my wife”
The actor went on to make a striking confession about how long it took him to truly acknowledge his marriage.“I accepted very late that I had become a husband, it took me a long time. Nearly 10–15 years to realise that she is my wife. Before that, she was just a woman who had my children, cooked for me, and took care of the house. I had no feelings beyond that,” he admitted.Describing his emotional state at the time, he said, “I was a very dry person, not just with Priya, but with everything. I didn’t feel anything.”
“After Vipassana, I began to feel”
Piyush credited introspection and spiritual practice for the shift in his outlook.“For the last 15 years, after practising Vipassana, I began to feel. I started understanding that the other person also suffers and deserves empathy. Before that, I was a strange man, very antisocial. If I hadn’t had work, I might have been completely isolated. Work saved me,” he shared.
“She said she will not divorce me no matter what”
When asked why his wife chose to stay despite his infidelity, Piyush spoke about her unwavering commitment.“She loved me. She had run away from home for me and married me against her parents’ wishes. She had sacrificed so much. She said, ‘I will not divorce you no matter what, you can do anything, but I won’t leave you,’” he revealed.Acknowledging her strength, he added, “It was her greatness that she stayed with me. Today I understand it, there’s no other word for it. It was her greatness that she held the marriage together. I am fortunate.”
“We told each other everything and felt lighter”
Piyush also spoke about coming clean to his wife about his past mistakes.“When I realised my mistakes, I sat her down one day and told her everything I had done. We were both crying, and we embraced each other. After that, we felt lighter,” he said.Recalling her response, he added, “She said, ‘You made mistakes, I did too, you made more, I made fewer. Let’s end these matters here.’ Our understanding became very strong.”
“If she had made mistakes, I would have forgiven her too”
On being asked how he would have reacted if the roles were reversed, Piyush said, “If she had made mistakes, I would have forgiven her too. It’s not possible that only one person makes mistakes, I must have done my share too.”The actor concluded by revealing that it took years for both of them to reach complete honesty.“We both needed to improve our lives—it wasn’t just about me. Priya was also struggling, and so was I. We were both going through a difficult mental phase,” he said.“It took 5–6 years to finally say it all. One day, we decided to do it. Initially, it was a shock for both of us. But after that, life became much better. There was nothing left to hide—and then we could move forward.”Piyush married Priya Narayanan in 1995, and the couple have two sons.