Throwback to a time when Govinda's highly speculated affair with Neelam Kothari took a toll on his committed engagement to his then-wife-to-be, Sunita Ahuja.
Govinda and Neelam were a hit jodi in Bollywood back in the 90s. The duo had worked in some of the most iconic films, and their unbeatable on-screen chemistry had simply won the hearts of the audience. Gradually, what kickstarted as friendship seeped into love and the duo became frequent reason for headlines due to their apparent relationship. Interestingly, on the other hand, Govinda, by this time, was already engaged to his now wife, Sunita and thus his close proximity with Neelam took a massive toll on the same.
Govinda’s affair with Neelam Kothari ran parallel to him being engaged with Sunita. Naturally, it did take a toll on the latter since Sunita was jealous of the divided attention and with the apprehensions of getting cheated on. And with such ill-feelings, one fateful day, Sunita had a heated argument with Govinda where she said something mean about Neelam. This infuriated Govinda so much so that he immediately called it quits with her. Recalling the same in an interview, Govinda had mentioned:
“After I started getting busier, my relationship with Sunita went through a change. She began feeling insecure and jealous. And I was of no help. She would nag me and I would lose my temper. We had constant fights. In one of those fights, Sunita said something about Neelam, and I lost my head and called it quits. I asked Sunita to leave me. I broke off my engagement with her. And had Sunita not called me after five days and coaxed me into it again, I would probably have married Neelam."
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Govinda had met Neelam for the first time when the latter arrived at a producer’s office, where he too was present. Naturally, Neelam’s drop-dead gorgeous looks was the first element of attraction Govinda felt for her. However, he was afraid and shy of making the first move towards her, since he was seemingly made aware of Neelam’s intellectual quotient, as compared to his bare minimum, rather embarrassing knowledge of the English language. Recalling the same, Govinda had mentioned:
“I remember the first time I met her. At Pranlal Mehta’s office. She was wearing white shorts. Her long hair falling straight, like an angel’s. ‘Hello’ she said politely, and I was scared to reply because my knowledge of English was embarrassing. It still is. And I wondered how I would communicate with her on the sets. I had never imagined I would work with her. She was a distant dream. I had seen her in ‘Jawani’, and seen the film again and again only to see her."
In the same revelation, Govinda had further mentioned how despite their vast cultural differences, he had madly fell in love with Neelam, and their bonding grew fonder with each passing day. Moreover, he highlighted how there was no vulgarity or loudness about Neelam, and for him, she appeared as the perfect figure of piousness. In his words:
“I was very conscious of her. Of the difference in our backgrounds and upbringing. But gradually, we crossed these obstacles, and I started opening up. I would play pranks, crack jokes and she would laugh. We became friends. And we had so many films together. We met so often and the more I got to know her, the more I liked her. There was dignity in her. A kind of piousness in her eyes. And strength of character. There was no vulgarity about her, no loudness. She was the kind of woman any man would have lost his heart to. I lost mine."
While Govinda had gradually fallen in love with Neelam, on the other hand, he was aware of his burdening engagement to his fiancee, Sunita Ahuja, which he started to detest. In fact, totally charmed with Neelam, he now wished if his fiance would start behaving like Neelam, so that he may still find a reason to be with her. Speaking on the same, Govinda had once mentioned:
“I would tell Sunita to change herself and become like Neelam. I would tell her to learn from her. I was merciless. Sunita would get irritated. She would tell me, ‘You fell in love with me because of what I am, don’t ever try to change me’. But I was so confused. I didn’t know what to own."
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Govinda has never been afraid of hiding his feelings for his ex-flame, Neelam and had once quite frankly recalled how he wished to marry Neelam. He revealed how he considered her as the ideal woman in his life, and further highlighted how he already had started to visualise her as his wife. In his words:
“Yes, I wanted to marry her. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Neelam was the ideal girl, the kind every man visualises for a life-partner. The kind of girl I wanted. But that was getting emotional. There was another practical side. Just because I had fallen in love elsewhere, I couldn’t overlook my commitment towards Sunita. If there was no sense of duty in a man, this would go on. Leave one for another and another for another."
Unfortunately, the flip side of the Govinda-Neelam affair was the fact that the latter never wanted to marry Govinda at all. She had her own bucket list of ambitions to fill, and she always laughed off Govinda’s ideas of settling down with her in marriage. Speaking about the same, Govinda had once mentioned:
“And anyway, Neelam had ambitions of her own to fulfill. Every time I broached the topic of marriage, she would laugh it off. She wanted to become the Number One heroine. She loves this profession and she’s lying when she says so matter-of-factly that she doesn’t much care about what happens to her career. And that it doesn’t affect her. She is very ambitious, take it from me."
Despite having counted so many years of marital bliss with his wife, Sunita Ahuja, Govinda in one corner of his heart still harbours the pangs of regret of not marrying Neelam. In one of his interviews, he mentioned how he still missed Neelam and that every time he bumped into her, he still feels a deep sense of despair. Revealing how he would never stop caring for Neelam, Govinda said:
“Of course, she’s very cordial to me whenever we bump into each other. But my heart still misses a beat when I see her. I feel like screaming in despair. If only I had not promised to marry Sunita. If only… I still care for Neelam. And I always will. “
What do you think about this unheard anecdote from Govinda’s love life between Sunita Ahuja and Neelam Kothari?
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