Shashi Tharoor has married three times. Tilottama Mukherji in 1981, with whom he has twin sons. Christa Giles in 2007. And Sunanda Pushkar in August 2010, at his ancestral home in Kerala.
Sunanda Pushkar died in a Delhi hotel room in January 2014. Tharoor was charged in 2018 and, on 18 August 2021, a Delhi court discharged him of all the charges. Most articles about his personal life stop before that last sentence. This one does not.
| Born | 9 March 1956, London |
| First wife | Tilottama Mukherji, married 1981 |
| Children | Twin sons Kanishk and Ishaan, born 1984 in Singapore |
| Second wife | Christa Giles, Canadian, married 2007, divorced 2010 |
| Third wife | Sunanda Pushkar, Dubai-based entrepreneur |
| Third wedding | 22 August 2010, at his ancestral home in Elavanchery, Palakkad district, Kerala |
| Her death | 17 January 2014, at The Leela hotel, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, aged 51 |
| The case | Charged in May 2018 under IPC sections 306 and 498A |
| The outcome | A Delhi court discharged him of all charges on 18 August 2021 |
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Who is Shashi Tharoor?
Shashi Tharoor was born in London on 9 March 1956. He spent a long career at the United Nations, rising to Under-Secretary-General, before returning to India and entering politics. He is also one of the most widely read Indian non-fiction writers of his generation.
His first marriage, to Tilottama Mukherji
Tharoor married Tilottama Mukherji in 1981. She is an academic, of Kashmiri and Bengali parentage, and a few years older than him.
Their twin sons, Kanishk and Ishaan, were born prematurely in 1984 at a hospital in Singapore. Both went on to become writers themselves. The marriage lasted for many years before the two grew apart and divorced.
His second marriage, to Christa Giles
In 2007 Tharoor married Christa Giles, a Canadian national who worked with him at the United Nations.
The marriage did not survive his move into Indian politics and the life that came with it. They divorced in 2010.
Sunanda Pushkar, and the wedding in Kerala
Sunanda Pushkar was a Dubai-based entrepreneur. She and Tharoor met professionally and married on 22 August 2010 at his ancestral home in Elavanchery, in Kerala’s Palakkad district. It was a third marriage for both of them.
They were, for a while, one of the most photographed couples in Indian public life.
What happened in January 2014
On 17 January 2014, Sunanda Pushkar was found dead in a room at The Leela hotel in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. She was 51.
The days before her death had been difficult and public. She had alleged that her husband was involved with the Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar, and the exchange had played out on social media. That allegation was hers; it was never established as fact, and both Tharoor and Tarar denied it.
The case, and how it ended
In May 2018 Tharoor was charged under sections 306 and 498A of the Indian Penal Code, relating to abetment of suicide and cruelty by a husband.
On 18 August 2021 a Delhi court discharged him of all charges. A discharge means the court found there was not enough material to even frame charges against him, so no trial took place. Tharoor said afterwards that his faith in the judiciary had been vindicated.
It took seven years. Anyone writing about his marriages without that ending is telling you only half of it.
Shashi Tharoor’s marriages: your questions answered
How many times has Shashi Tharoor been married?
Three times. To Tilottama Mukherji in 1981, to Christa Giles in 2007, and to Sunanda Pushkar in August 2010.
Who is Tilottama Mukherji?
Shashi Tharoor’s first wife, an academic of Kashmiri and Bengali parentage. They married in 1981 and have twin sons, Kanishk and Ishaan.
Who is Christa Giles?
A Canadian national who worked with Tharoor at the United Nations. They married in 2007 and divorced in 2010.
How did Sunanda Pushkar die?
She was found dead at The Leela hotel in New Delhi on 17 January 2014, aged 51. The circumstances were the subject of a long investigation.
Was Shashi Tharoor convicted in the Sunanda Pushkar case?
No. He was charged in May 2018 and a Delhi court discharged him of all charges on 18 August 2021, before any trial took place.
Does Shashi Tharoor have children?
Yes, twin sons, Kanishk and Ishaan, born in 1984 during his first marriage.
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