Eva Grover has finally broken her silence on her troubled marriage to Hyder Ali Khan, Aamir Khan’s stepbrother, and the painful details are nothing short of harrowing. In a candid conversation, the actress revealed that she realised within days of tying the knot that she had walked into a nightmare. From ignoring red flags to enduring years of physical and emotional abuse, Eva’s story is a stark reminder that fairytale weddings don’t always lead to happy endings.
The actress, best known for her work in television, admitted that marriage had been her obsession since her teenage years. “I was completely obsessed with the idea of marriage. I must have observed more 16 Somvar fasts than most people because all I wanted was for Shiv Ji to bless me with a marriage,” she recalled. But reality, she says, turned out to be far from the romantic dream she had imagined.
Married after just 18 days of dating
Eva revealed that she didn’t even know her husband properly before saying ‘I do.’ “The truth is, I had dated him for only 18 days. In 18 days, you don’t really know a person,” she shared. Ignoring warnings from her mother and friends, she eloped with Hyder despite their different backgrounds. “My career was taking off at that time. We belonged to different religions, but on the 19th day, I left with him and we got married,” she said.
But the bubble burst soon after the wedding. “When I entered the marriage, I realised very quickly that he was not the person I thought he was,” Eva recounted. She described his anger issues as “beyond anything I could have imagined” and confirmed that he was physically violent. “Yes. He was violent. I don’t want to focus on specific days, but yes, he was physically violent,” she stated bluntly.
For years, Eva stayed in the marriage, hoping things would improve. She often blamed herself, especially since she was constantly told that she was the problem. “I was also constantly made to feel that I was the one at fault. I was told that I was the problem, that I wasn’t capable enough, that I couldn’t handle things properly,” she shared. At that time, mental health was a taboo topic, making it even harder for her to seek help.
Having a child doesn’t fix a broken marriage
Like many women in similar situations, Eva believed that a baby might bring about change. “After four years, I allowed myself to get pregnant because I genuinely believed things would improve. That’s what many people in our country are taught — that a child will save a troubled marriage,” she said. But she quickly realised that “in severe situations, it usually doesn’t work that way.” She continued working throughout her pregnancy, clinging to the hope that her husband would soften.
However, the birth of her daughter turned out to be the turning point — just not in the way she had expected. “Within a month of her birth, I reached my breaking point. I simply couldn’t take it anymore,” Eva recalled. It was the arrival of her little girl that gave her the courage to finally walk away.
Interestingly, it was the support from her colleagues on the set of Waqt Batayega Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya that helped her take that leap. “One day, the entire unit decided they would help me. They came to my house, spoke to my mother, and encouraged me to leave the situation,” she said. Her mother welcomed her back with open arms, and Eva finally got out of the abusive relationship.
Kind words for Tahir Hussain and Shahnaz
Despite the trauma, Eva had nothing but praise for late filmmaker Tahir Hussain, who raised Hyder and is also the father of actor Aamir Khan. “Tahir Hussain saab was a gem of a person. Whenever he got the opportunity, he would speak to me about it. He would get emotional and even cry,” she shared. She also called her former mother-in-law, Shahnaz, “a golden-hearted woman.”
Today, Eva says she is grateful for having rebuilt her life and remains especially thankful for the support system that helped her walk away. Her story is a powerful reminder that no matter how deep you are in a toxic situation, there is always a way out — and sometimes, it takes a little one to show you the way.