Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil reflects on heartbreak after dealing with hurtful rumours

Maria Thattil wrote an emotional column on Wednesday reflecting on the nature of heartbreak.

The former Miss Universe Australia, 30, wrote in the 9Honey article she became well-equipped at handling a broken heart after being betrayed by those she cared about.

‘I was heartbroken when, at age five, the little boy I had a crush on told me that he couldn’t like me because I was “a monster with dirty skin”,’ she began.

‘Heartbroken at 12 when my childhood best friend engaged in a campaign of unkindness against me inspired by gossip and rumours.’

She then revealed one of the biggest challenges for her was coming out as bisexual last year because she was worried about how people would react.

‘As a publicly straight woman from a culturally conservative family who really wanted to know the taste of a woman – but didn’t think it would be possible.’

The raven-haired beauty then said she had come out a stronger woman overall by continually dealing with and overcoming various forms of heartbreak.

‘Having my heart broken is what led me to where I am in this exact moment. The world can make you hard and scare you into hiding, but if your heart doesn’t break, was it ever loving?’

The former Miss Universe Australia, 30, wrote in the 9Honey column she became well-equipped at handling a broken heart after being betrayed by those she cared about

Maria came clean about her sexuality in January last year while competing on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

She later said she’d kept her sexuality hidden for years because there were ‘many homophobic sentiments in [her] school around being a lesbian’.

‘It is something I have felt for a very long time,’ she told The Daily Telegraph.

‘I was heartbroken when, at age five, the little boy I had a crush on told me that he couldn’t like me because I was “a monster with dirty skin”,’ Maria began

‘I grew up having crushes on girls in school and just completely invalidated it because of religion and also because there were many homophobic sentiments in my school around being a lesbian, around anything other than heteronormativity.

‘You don’t have a lot of bisexual visibility in popular culture and so you don’t understand what it is.’

In April 2022, Maria revealed she was no longer scared of dating women in public, after previously admitting she was worried how it might be perceived.

‘I’m no longer scared of the narrative being taken out of my hands,’ she told Who magazine.

The raven-haired beauty then said she had come out a stronger woman by continually dealing with and overcoming various forms of heartbreak