When Kabir Bedi was married to Protima Bedi, he had an extra-marital affair with Parveen Babi and it was none other than his first wife, who had encouraged their relationship.
Born into a Sikh family, Kabir Bedi chose a path to become a successful actor and he indeed did! Starting his journey in theatre and then moving on to films, Kabir eventually became an international star as he is a prominent actor in Europe. To name a few, films including Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story, Khoon Bhari Maang, Kurbaan (1991), Maine Dil Tujhko Diya, Main Hoon Na, Bewafaa, Dilwale and Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3, became hit in the Hindi film industry. More than Kabir's professional life, his personal life has been the talk of the town.
At the age of 70, Kabir Bedi had married his soulmate, Parveen Dusanj, who is a London-based Indian social researcher and is 29 years younger than him. Parveen became Kabir's fourth wife and their wedding didn't go well with his daughter, Pooja Bedi, from his first wife, late Protima Bedi. To mark her father's fourth marriage, Pooja called Parveen 'a wicked witch'. Pooja had tweeted, "Every fairytale has a wicked witch or an evil step-mother! Mine just arrived!"
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Before Parveen Dusanj, Kabir Bedi was married to Protima Gupta, his first wife, Susan Humphreys, his second wife, Nikki Bedi, his third wife and had a fling with actress, Parveen Babi. When Kabir was married to Protima, he had an extra-marital affair with Parveen Babi and it was none other than his first wife, who had encouraged their relationship. Back in 1997, Protima, in a magazine interview, had said that she was so busy untangling complications from her own life that she wanted Kabir off her back.
Revealing that she and Kabir were not sexually attracted to each other, it was one of the parties at her house when she witnessed him exchanging vibes with Parveen Babi. She went out of her way to encourage them, which is why she didn't blame Parveen Babi for breaking her marriage. Although Protima wanted Kabir and Parveen to have fun, she had also warned her to not make the mistake of getting serious with him.
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However, in his memoir, Stories I Must Tell: The Emotional Journey of an Actor, Kabir Bedi had revealed how he broke the news of his affair with Parveen Babi to his first wife, Protima Bedi. Elaborating on the same, Kabir had revealed,
"There was no easy way to break the news (to Protima). 'I'm going over to Parveen's tonight,' I said softly when she came in. 'Parveen's?' she repeated in surprise. I could see her computing what must have happened. 'But I've only just arrived. Can't you stay tonight at least?' I shook my head. 'No, I have to be with her tonight ... and every night.' In that moment, she realised that our relationship had changed forever. She let out a deep breath and looked at me. 'Do you love her?' I nodded, not without sadness. 'Does she love you?' she asked, her voice a notch higher. 'Yes,' I said gruffly, wanting to cry."
Recalling their 'open marriage was over' moment, Kabir Bedi had continued,
"I knew I was ending a relationship where we'd shared life-changing experiences together, happy and unhappy, moral and immoral, for six tumultuous years. But I didn't want to show vulnerability. I had to be strong to end it. I held her by the shoulders to embrace her goodbye. She clung to me and burst out crying. Then she sat down on the bed and sighed deeply before she spoke. 'Please leave me alone now,' she said in a firm voice as tears welled in her eyes. 'Leave me alone. Please go!' Our 'open marriage' was over."
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Kabir and Protima got divorced in 1977, eight years after their marriage.