"I prefer to be addressed as Lissy Lakshmi now,“ says South actress Lissy, announcing that her marriage with director Priyadarshan ended on Friday. She tied the knot with the director, known for his films including Billu, Bhool Bhulaiyaa and Hera Pheri, in 1990. Confessing that she is “relieved that it is all over now,“ she admits that the divorce process was indeed ugly. “This has been a real ordeal. It was often a fierce and uncivilised battle, until a compromise was reached. Both of us have signed the final papers,“ she says.

The divorce proceedings had been on since 2014 and there were all kinds of speculations about the reasons for the split. In an earlier interview, Priyadarshan had said that 'Lissy was a good wife and mother' while he was 'driven by ego'.

Commenting on their painful separation, Lissy shares, “The ugliness of our divorce proceedings says a lot about the kind of marriage we have had. In recent times, all celebrity divorces have been by mutual consent. I am sure it must have been painful for those couples too, but whatever differences they may have had, they all decided to respect each other. Ours was the only exception.“

She adds, “This is the end of a long and often very difficult road. All of us can now move on. I am grateful to both my children for their love, affection and support.“