Celina Jaitly, who has filed for divorce from her husband, Peter Haag, wrote an emotional message to her three sons on the occasion of Republic Day, reminding them of their Indian roots. Celina claimed she has been denied access to her children despite joint custody and a subsisting order from the Austrian Family Court. Hence, she wrote a letter to her sons on social media, hoping they would retain their half-Indian identities.
Celina Jaitly's letter holds significance as her brother, Major Vikrant Kumar Jaitly, has been detained in Abu Dhabi since September last year. Coming from an Army background, Celina often shares glorious posts for soldiers and their families.
Citing their yearly ritual of watching the Republic Day (R-Day) parade, Celina began her note with these words: "Letter to my sons: My dearest Winston Viraaj Arthur. Mummy is writing to you three here since I cannot reach you.
"My heart is very heavy today as we can't watch the Republic Day parade together every 26th January. I cannot be there to sing the National Anthem for you.
"To tell you to salute and cheer when your Nana's Kumaon Regiment, Dumpy Mama's Para SF, or great-grand-Nana's Rajrif contingent marches by. I hope you remember how Mummy cried every time Nana's regiment marched by."
Reminding her sons of their roots, Celina wrote: "I hope you will be allowed to be true to your Indian roots and not be forced to erase your Indian identity. That is why I write to you here, hoping someone will make you read this. Someone who understands how devastating it is for a mother to be alienated from her beloved children.
"My loves, do not forget you are half Indian. You belong to a lineage of great, honourable men and women. The blood of the man-eating tigers of Kumaon and the veer Rajputana Rifles flows in you."
Celina Filed for Divorce
The actress, represented by the law firm Karanjawala & Co., sought ₹10 lakh in monthly maintenance and urged the court to restrain Haag from entering her Mumbai residence. She has also sought custody of their three children, who are currently living with Haag in Austria. In addition, she has demanded ₹50 crore as compensation for loss of earnings allegedly caused by her husband.
In her petition, Jaitly, 47, described Haag, 48, as a "narcissistic" and "self-absorbed individual" who shows "no empathy" toward her or their children.
She further alleged that after the birth of their children, Haag "prohibited" her from working under various pretexts and "robbed her of her financial independence and dignity."
Jaitly and Haag married in 2010. They became parents to twin boys in March 2012. Five years later, she gave birth to a second set of twin boys, one of whom died due to a hypoplastic heart.