I Was The Other Woman

Rehema Adam Issas story reads like a Bollywood movie. She speaks to ANDANJE WOBANDA about being the other woman, dealing with the other woman, and rebuilding her life from scratch.

- Andanje Wobanda

Rehema was just 23 when she met the love of her life, Raj – a dashing half Indian, half Swahili man. ‘We met in the office, and I immediately knew it was going to be romantic,’ she says. ‘From the onset he was very protective and loyal. All our weekends were spent together going for movies or just dates. I loved the fact that he was so good-hearted and well-groomed.’

The office romance blossomed, but Raj had forgotten to tell her one important detail: he was already engaged.

‘We never discussed marriage because it was just the beginning of our relationship, and we were really young,’ Rehema says. ‘I only found out that he was engaged to marry another woman on his wedding day, after a year of dating. In fact, I had unknowingly bought him his wedding shirt!’

A heartbroken Rehema retreated into herself. ‘I was crying every day, wondering why he had not just told me that he was engaged. I weighed 48kg at the time and if I was to be any thinner I would die.’

But that was not the end of their story. After the honeymoon, Raj was back, pleading for another chance. ‘He was so apologetic,’ says Rehema. ‘He kept telling me that he did not love his wife, and that he only went through with the wedding because it was an arranged marriage.’

Despite her misgivings, Rehema took him back. ‘We would meet on weekends for movies, he would eat supper at my place, and when he went home we would have long conversations on the phone. This convinced me that he did not have a relationship with his wife.’