When it came to her marriage or her strained relationship with her husband, Chitrangada Singh had a very categorical reply: “All reports are false”.

 Chitrangada Singh

Even after a petition of divorce was moved at a Gurgaon family court, official responses from her office were always the same.

Now, that her divorce papers have landed up in the public domain, I hope that Chitrangada Singh has realised that she had made a mess of her media strategies for the last three years.

It was foolish to aggressively deny reports in the press when you have actually petitioned the court.

It turns out that the media reports never died down because there were truth in it.

Who advised her to deal with the press in such a manner? The ‘friend’ who advised her, is definitely, isn’t her friend.

I feel let down today because I had taken initiative in the past to scuttle ‘rumours’ as I completely believed in what she said.

Today, I am disappointed.

The story started way back in 2011.

 Chitrangada with Jyoti Randhawa during happier times

My colleague — who was covering the Fashion Week  in Mumbai — came back in office with a “huge gossip”.

She told me that an acclaimed fashion designer had volunteered the information that Chitrangada Singh is preparing herself to file for divorce from her golfer-husband.

I didn’t believe her words because it sounded like the designer is trying to back-stab the actor. As a senior, I felt that we should not fan these rumours.

I immediately spoke to Chitrangada and as expected, she categorially denied the rumours. In order to preempt others from putting that gossip out, I wrote an article the next day.

For the next three years, I completely believed in Chitrangada as she went on denying those ‘reports’ at regular intervals, right from 2011 to 2013.

The rumours and the regular denials kept circulating for another three years. The last time I spoke to her about the topic was when she was promoting a film (with Arjun Rampal).

I remember that my senior colleague had met her for an interview where she insisted that she is going through a trying time managing her career in Mumbai and her family in Delhi. She also insisted that she is being singled out by the Mumbai press because she is a married woman. Her words were convincing and there were no reasons not to believe her.

But then a reporter spotted her at a family court in Gurgaon, Delhi with a few police bodyguards. Even before the article got picked up online, came the denial. This time a leading news agency quoted Chitrangada and said that she was there to settle a property dispute.

How can somebody go to the family court to settle a property dispute?

I support the point-of-view that personal affairs of film stars should not be the subject of media reports. I also agree that a forever-hungry filmi press constantly poked her for the truth and she must have been fed up.

But coming on record to deny a court petition? That was naive and foolish.

I am sure Chitrangada consulted somebody before doing all that.

Whoever advised her to deal with the press by lying about the divorce petition, made a terrible mistake.

It was a terrible tip.

In my opinion, she should have maintained a dignified silence about the whole issue.