Social media in meltdown as Feroze Khan reveals wife was his ‘therapist’

Netizens are arguing over Feroze Khan’s approach towards “ethical boundaries” when it comes to the relationship between a patient and his or her therapist, since after the actor revealed that his second wife was his “shrink”.

As per the details, Khan was recently honoured with the prestigious Star of Pakistan award at the UK House of Lords for his contributions to the Pakistani cinema. The Khuda Aur Mohabbat star received the award from Baroness Paula Uddin, MP Rup Haq, Lord Kuldip Singh and entrepreneur Mansoor Shafique.

However, what was meant to be a celebratory moment turned into a hot topic of debate on social media, especially within Pakistan’s mental health community, as Khan, at the event, revealed that his wife used to be his therapist.

Speaking to reporters, he described his relationship journey with his wife, saying, “She’s the kindest soul. She came at a very rough time in my life… my wife was actually my shrink. I needed someone to talk to, and one day I just asked her out and told her I’d like to marry her.”

The candid confession raised serious concerns among mental health professionals, especially those trained in clinical psychology. Shortly after the clip went viral, content creator aeman.haroon shared a video questioning the ethical boundary allegedly crossed.

“Did he just say what I think he said? A psychologist is not allowed to get romantically involved with a client. In many countries, it's illegal. At the very least, it’s unethical,” she explained, adding that such a relationship could lead to emotional manipulation and misuse of the therapist’s knowledge of a client's vulnerabilities.

Another clinical psychologist and content creator, Amna Arshad, who runs the page your.desi.therapist, posted a detailed video titled “Why Psychologists and Clients Cannot Have Relationships Outside of Therapy”.

“When a person is sharing deep emotional wounds, addiction issues, fears of abandonment, and personal trauma, they are in an extremely vulnerable state. The therapist holds all the power in that dynamic. If that power turns into a romantic connection, it creates a dangerous imbalance,” she said in her video.

Amna emphasised that such situations could lead to emotional dependency, blurred boundaries and even therapists avoiding necessary confrontations for fear of upsetting the partner — ultimately harming the client’s healing process.

While Khan and his wife have not yet reacted to the debate, mental health professionals are calling for stricter regulations around therapeutic practice and licensing. This situation has opened up a wider conversation about the need for a national ethical board in Pakistan to govern clinical practices and prevent such scenarios in the future.