Kishwer Merchant- Suyyash Rai on inter-faith marriage and 8-year age gap; he says, “She broke up with me when she first found out my age”

Kishwer Merchant and Suyyash Rai have been one of the most loved TV couples of all time. The two have been open about their love story. They recently appeared on a podcast with Rashami Desai, where they spoke about their marriage, parenthood journey, and much more. Here’s a look at all you need to know:

Suyyash said, “I think her parents have been really, really chill, especially her mother. I think she is the coolest mother I know. Trust me, I’m saying this—she has always felt there was no problem. Even her father was very cool about everything. My mom is a typical Punjabi mom. She was like, ‘My son has fallen in love with an older woman,’ and all, but all she wanted was to meet Kishwer. It took some time for everyone to settle in and understand, but it eventually happened.”

Suyyash said, “She got evicted from Bigg Boss on the 94th day, and I came out on the 89th day. There was just a five-day gap. I came out on Saturday, she came out on Thursday. On Monday, they called me to the office and asked if I wanted to go back inside. I said, ‘Send me.’ There were only a few days left anyway. Then they said, ‘You have to go inside and get married.’ I said okay, but first send me inside. I want to talk to her. I can’t enter the house with a baraat while she’s brushing her teeth. This can’t be a wedding.”

Suyyash said, “Our marriage was more like a party. There was a lot of trolling because of social media- religion, age, everything. There was so much. But I never felt like I had to save my wife. If ever there comes a day when I have to protect my partner, no one has seen that side of me. What I can do, no one knows. When it comes to your loved ones, you don’t think about what people will say or what society will say.”

Suyyash said, “If she’s eight years older than me, then yes, she has seen more of life. If she has been in the industry eight or nine years before me, then she has seen much more than I have. So if she has the experience, the fame, and the name, that belongs to her—she worked hard for it, she earned it. How can I even feel insecure thinking she’s more famous than me? Dude, she’s been there for twenty-five years. Show me anyone who can stay in this industry for twenty-five years, with dignity and consistent work. It’s no joke.”

Suyyash said, “I still remember, when we were going for Bigg Boss, 15 days before entering the house, I sat with my mom and dad. I said we both are going inside together and this is what we feel. I don’t know what the house has in store for us. Anything could happen after coming out because we’ve seen so many experiences. But the best part is, when we walked out, that was the strongest we ever were.”

Talking about their parenthood journey, Kishwer added, “It wasn’t a planned child, but we just accepted him with open arms. Two weeks before realising that I was pregnant, we told my mom that we are pet parents and we don’t want to have a child. However, after two weeks, I was standing in front of my mother and saying, ‘I’m pregnant.’ She was like, ‘What? How did you manage in two weeks?’ We conceived in November and I didn’t know. In January, I realised that I had skipped my periods, which meant I was pregnant.”