Himanshi Khurana has opened up about her traumatic childhood, recalling growing up amid domestic violence and an alcoholic father who would physically abuse her mother. Speaking to Paras Chhabra on his podcast, the actor-singer said she and her younger brother often went without food and that she would run out of the house with him whenever violence broke out.

Himanshi, who rose to wider national recognition with her stint on Bigg Boss 13, said she had rarely spoken publicly about what happened inside her home when she was growing up.

‘My father used to beat my mother so much’

Recalling her childhood, Himanshi said she witnessed a deeply troubled marriage between her parents.

“When I was little, I saw my father and mother’s bad marriage. I would come home and there would be so much violence. Sometimes food was being cooked, sometimes it wasn’t. My younger brother would go hungry. We would go to school without tiffin; sometimes my mother would give us money and we would eat in the canteen. Many times, when we came back home, there would be no food because there were no groceries,” she said.

She said the violence at home was so severe that she would worry about her mother’s safety.

“My father used to beat my mother so much,” she recalled.

Himanshi said her father was frequently under the influence of alcohol and that the situation could turn violent at any time.

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“My father was always drunk. Whenever there was violence my job was to take my younger brother in my arms and run out of the house,” she said.

She recalled trying to find help from people outside the home.

“I would bring whoever I could find outside and ask them to save my mother. My mother would be unconscious after being beaten so badly. Sometimes my father even broke her hand,” she said.

Himanshi said she would find a corner of the house with her younger brother and sit there in the dark.

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“My job was to run away with my younger brother, find a corner of the house and sit there in the dark,” she said.

She said those childhood experiences still affect her today. Even in her own home, she prefers a quiet and peaceful environment.

“Even today, there is just one lamp lit in my house,” Himanshi said.

Himanshi said she chose not to speak about her family circumstances in public for years.

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“But if you look at any of my old interviews, I always said I came from a very good family. I never spoke about this,” she said.

‘I wanted a house where there was peace’

Himanshi said the environment she grew up in shaped the kind of life she wanted for herself as an adult.

“Back then, I used to think that one day I would have my own house where there would be peace. I have that today,” she said.

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The violence and shouting she witnessed as a child, however, continue to affect how she responds to noise and conflict.

“I cannot tolerate noise or shouting because I saw so much of it as a child. I endured so much that now, if someone even raises their voice a little, I feel I won’t be able to take it,” she said.

Himanshi began modelling as a teenager, won the Miss Ludhiana title and later gained recognition through Punjabi films and music videos before appearing on Bigg Boss 13.