By Entertainment Desk
LAHORE:Pakistani actor Sunita Marshall has spoken out against husbands who ridicule, silence or dismiss their wives in front of others, arguing that such behaviour reflects a broader problem of disrespect within relationships.
Appearing on Good Morning Pakistan with host Nida Yasir on Monday, Marshall was responding to a viewer who complained that her husband frequently devalued her opinions in public.
Marshall said she believed the tendency to make jokes at a wife’s expense or dismiss what she says was particularly widespread among men in the Subcontinent.
“In my opinion, 98 per cent of men in the Subcontinent do this,” she said, describing husbands mocking their wives in gatherings and among friends.
Her figure appeared to be an expression of personal opinion rather than a statistic based on cited research, but Marshall used it to emphasise what she sees as a widespread social attitude.
She contrasted the behaviour with her perception of attitudes in Western societies, where, she said, publicly humiliating a spouse was more likely to attract disapproval.
Disagreement does not require humiliation
Marshall said disagreements between husbands and wives were normal, but objecting to a spouse’s opinion did not justify embarrassing them in front of other people.
She gave the example of a wife offering advice during a conversation only for her husband to immediately silence her or suggest that she did not understand the subject.
Instead, Marshall argued, a husband who disagrees can discuss the issue privately with his wife rather than publicly undermining her.
Her comments shifted the discussion away from ordinary marital disagreements towards the manner in which couples communicate when other people are present.
Marshall points to deeper social attitudes
The actor also linked such behaviour to traditional ideas about hierarchy within marriage, saying some men may grow up believing that their opinions deserve greater weight than those of their wives.
Marshall referred to differences in forms of address in Urdu, noting that wives commonly use the more respectful “aap” for their husbands, while husbands may address their wives with the less formal “tum”.
She suggested that seemingly small social and linguistic practices could reflect deeper assumptions about authority and status within relationships.
According to Marshall, when a husband begins to see himself as inherently superior, making fun of his wife or dismissing her opinions may become normalised.
Tone can turn disagreement into conflict
Marshall also cautioned that responsibility for respectful communication applies to both partners.
She advised men and women to pay attention to their tone during disagreements, saying the manner in which something is said can turn an otherwise manageable difference of opinion into an argument.
Her remarks highlighted a distinction between disagreeing with a partner and disrespecting them.
Couples do not have to agree on every issue, but publicly ridiculing a spouse, repeatedly interrupting them or treating their views as inherently worthless can damage mutual respect.
Public jokes can carry a private cost
Jokes between spouses can be harmless when both people genuinely enjoy them. The dynamic changes, however, when humour repeatedly comes at one partner’s expense or leaves that person embarrassed in front of family and friends.
Marshall’s comments have brought attention to everyday interactions that may sometimes be dismissed as harmless teasing but can become hurtful when they are persistent, one-sided or intended to establish superiority.
The issue can also extend beyond the couple. The way parents speak to and about each other can influence how children understand respect, disagreement and relationships.
Marshall’s central message was straightforward: disagreement is inevitable in marriage, but humiliation does not have to be.
For couples, she suggested, maintaining respect — particularly when disagreements arise in front of others — can make the difference between expressing a different opinion and diminishing the person expressing it.
