Mumbai, March 23 : National Award-winning actor and filmmaker Saurabh Shukla believes that honesty forms the backbone of any meaningful relationship, especially when it comes to love.

Speaking about the idea of being a â??Khuli Kitabâ?? or â??an open bookâ?? in a relationship, Saurabh shared that withholding the truth often causes more serious damage than the truth itself.

â??You should not hide things, at least I believe that. Hiding has a problem because once it is broken or exposed, it creates a feeling of betrayal. And I have seen this very sensitively; Iâ??m telling you this very clearly, and Iâ??ve understood it many times,â?? Saurabh, whose latest film is â??Jab Khuli Kitaab,â?? told IANS.

According to him, the pain in such situations is not always about what happened, but about being kept uninformed.

â??Itâ??s not about the act; itâ??s about the fact that you were kept in the dark. That becomes a bigger betrayal,â?? he explained.

â??It starts questioning everything. It makes you feel that your partner didnâ??t trust you enough to understand and that hurts more.â??

He stressed that openness strengthens the foundation of a relationship, allowing partners to truly know each other.

â??So, I think that ideally, you should have a relationship where you can be open,â?? said Saurabh.

Reflecting on love and truth, he recalled a line by poet Rumi: â??Light always enters through the crack in the wall.â??

â??I came across a line by Rumiâ?¦ her line was, â??Light always enters through the crack in the wall,â?? and it was so wonderful.â??

Talking about the story of his film, he said: â??So what happens here? This couple was leading a perfect life. It was a strong love a wall without any cracks. One truth came, it broke the wall, it cracked everything. But as a by-product, what entered was the light of truth, and the room got illuminated by this light.â??

He added that once everything is out in the open, there is nothing left to hide, and partners begin to understand each other completely the good and the flawed.

â??So, interestingly, when the truth comes out, there is nothing left to hide. Then you know the odds and evens of your partner. And if, knowing everything, you still stay together, how truthful that relationship becomes. Because you have understood: this is how it is, or how it was, or how it happened.â??

â??So thereâ??s nothing left to hide. And thatâ??s exactly what they discover. Then their romance and their love find a new definition.â??

/IANS