The petite director of Aamir Khan’s Peepli Live is in celebratory mode. The Delhi High Court has cleared her husband, Mahmood Farooqui of rape charges, after setting aside the verdict of a lower court which had sentenced him to seven years’ imprisonment. Farooqui had been found guilty of raping an American woman of Indian descent in 2015, and had been given a prison term.

It has been a gruelling time for the couple and Anusha admits that the judgement hasn’t really sunk in yet. Recounting her feelings as she headed to the court, she admits that she was extremely nervous as she didn’t know what lay in store. However, even before she could reach the judgment room, a group of people including lawyers made a beeline for her and started congratulating her. In that moment she knew her ‘darling husband’ was a free man.

Anusha has been a loyal wife, standing up for her husband all through this nightmare ever since Mahmood got sentenced in 2015. She has been tough, too. Putting it down to the human tendency to fight back when in crisis, she reveals that she did just that. Terming the entire incident as an unfair attempt to malign them, she adds that she wouldn’t allow herself to sink into self-pity.

Through it all, her faith in her husband’s innocence apparently remained firm and unshakeable. She claims that she always knew the truth, as she knew the evidence thoroughly.

Refusing to be drawn into any further discussion about the entire rape claim being an attempt by the girl to malign Mahmood, Anusha prefers not to dwell on this side of the issue, simply grateful that this part of the case is over. Right now, the mood is naturally ecstatic and that is all she is focused on. Future plans will be chalked out once her husband joins her and takes over. Their respective mothers are in celebratory mode, and the relief is immense that justice has been done.

It compensates for the dark days after Mahmood was sentenced. An atheist herself, Anusha reposed her faith in a higher power – the judiciary. She accepts that verdicts in India do get badly delayed but the legal system, by and large, does deliver justice. Fans of Anusha’s work can look forward to another film announcement in the near future – the clouds have lifted.