Imran Khan opens up on his divorce with Avantika Malik; says, “We weren’t empowering each other to be our best selves”

Imran Khan and Avantika Malik married in 2011 and separated in 2019.

Imran Khan has opened up about the deeply personal reasons behind his separation from ex-wife, Avantika Malik. In an interview with Filmfare, Imran reflected on the evolution of their long-term relationship and how, despite good intentions, it eventually became emotionally unsustainable.

The actor, who married Avantika at the height of his stardom in the early 2010s, revealed that their relationship began when he was just 19. “I entered this relationship when I was very young. I was 19, and in all good faith and good intention."

He continued, "But as is sometimes the case with these kinds of long-term relationships, particularly when you start at a very young age, a lot of the interpersonal dynamics and patterns get set in how you were as a teenager and as you grow, perhaps, I think all of those did not grow and evolve enough and in some way, we were not supporting or empowering each other to be the healthiest version of ourselves."

Describing this stagnation as “an unfortunate facet of our dynamic,” Imran noted that the decision to separate came after he had already begun focusing on his mental health. “ I was a couple of years into my mental health journey and in the middle of that, is where I made the choice to separate,” he shared. Imran and Avantika were married for nearly eight years and share a daughter Imaara.

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Despite the end of their marriage, Imran emphasised the importance of his bond with his 10-year-old daughter. He said it has become a cornerstone of his life. “We have formed a tremendously close and open relationship,” he said.

He expressed a desire to create a space where his daughter feels secure and unjudged. "I wanted her to have a sense of comfort and security, to have the sense that I am there for her, I got her back, but also the sense that she should feel easy and open about talking to me without the fear of judgement,” he said.