- Olga, a Russian PhD student, married in India in 2019 but faced marital collapse by 2023
- Her husband vanished after missing a visa interview, prompting her to file a missing-person report
- She discovered him alive via Instagram, living as a sadhu and later reconnected with him
A Russian woman's account of love, marriage, and alleged betrayal in India has gone viral, sparking widespread reactions on social media. Olga, who moved to India in 2015 to pursue her PhD at Jawaharlal Nehru University, shared her story on Humans of Bombay, describing how her relationship, which began in 2014 and led to marriage in 2019, eventually collapsed. In her post, she claimed she was abandoned by her husband and had to face financial struggles and legal challenges that prevented her from returning to Russia. Her emotional note has drawn significant attention online, with many users expressing sympathy for her.
Things were initially rosy, and Olga was excited to make India her permanent home. "I came to India for love. I never imagined that same love would become the cage I'm still trying to escape. I'm from Russia, and in 2015 I arrived in India to pursue my PhD, excited and hopeful for a new beginning. I had already met him the year before, and falling in love with him felt natural and effortless. By 2019, we were married. I told myself, ‘This is it. India is home now. He is home," she said.
The Husband's disappearance
Problems began in November 2023 when she applied for a spousal visa. According to her, her husband was required to attend an interview as part of the process but failed to appear. Two months later, in January 2024, he allegedly disappeared without informing her or offering any explanation.
Olga filed a missing-person report and lived in fear for six months that he was dead. "I filed a missing-person report. For six months, I answered every police question, waited for every call, and lived with the fear that he might be dead. I had no money, no family here, and the friends who tried to help me suffered consequences; some were even forced out of their homes. And because my visa was stuck, I couldn't leave India. I was trapped in every possible way," she explained.
During this time, she said she faced severe financial and emotional strain. With no family support in India and limited funds, she claimed that even friends who tried to help her faced repercussions, with some allegedly being forced out of their homes. She also stated that visa complications prevented her from leaving the country, leaving her feeling completely stranded.
The Discovery
Olga later discovered through Instagram that her husband was alive. She said she saw him dressed as a sadhu in a Japanese tourist's post from Varanasi. "Dressed as a Sadhu. Smiling. Leading tourists in the hills as if the world he left behind didn't exist. My hands were shaking. He knew I thought he was dead. He knew what I was going through. And he simply walked away from it," she wrote.
She said her husband eventually contacted her again and apologised, expressing regret and saying he loved her. Wanting to believe him, she decided to give the relationship another chance.
The Second Betrayal
Olga stated that she later took up a job in Himachal Pradesh, and her husband joined her there in December. She believed they were trying to rebuild their marriage. For six months, she claimed she continued to support him financially, cook for him on weekends, and hold on to a marriage he had already abandoned.
However, she later discovered he was living with another woman just 15 km away and allegedly tried to have her fired by telling her employer she was mentally unstable.
"When I confronted him, he didn't deny it. Instead, he called my boss and told them I was mentally unstable. He and his girlfriend wanted me fired, broken, erased," Olga added.
In a subsequent update, Olga said she was eventually scheduled to return to Russia but was deboarded from her flight after a missing complaint was allegedly filed by her husband. She is currently seeking legal assistance to resolve her visa issues and return home.
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