Rajesh Khatter and Neelima Azeem were a hit jodi back in the day. For the unversed, after her divorce from Pankaj Kapur, Neelima got married for a second time to Rajesh Khattar in 1990. They were blessed with a son, Ishaan who followed the footsteps of his parents into acting. Unfortunately, the marital bliss of Rajesh and Neelima was short-lived and they parted ways in 2001. And now, after 22 years of their split, the former opened up on his love story with Neelima for the first time in a while.
In a recent interview with Siddharth Kannan, Rajesh Khattar opened up on his love story with his ex-wife, Neelima Azeem and mentioned that they met on the sets of a film shoot in Mumbai and they had instantly hit off as good friends. Thereafter, they dated each other for about a year before tying the knot in 1990. Calling their years of togetherness having yielded to beautiful memories, he mentioned:
“It started with friendship. We met on the set. One thing led to another and in fact, we landed up in Mumbai together. We have beautiful memories together.”
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Going further in the interview, Rajesh opened up on maintaining a cordial connection with his ex-wife, Neelima Azeem. Moreover, he also mentioned how his second-wife, Vandana is good friends with Neelima. For the unversed, after his divorce from Neelima, Rajesh married Vandana Sajnani in 2008 and the duo was blessed with a baby boy, Vanraj after 11 years of marriage. Speaking about the bonding of his ex-wife, Neelima with his second wife, Vandana, he said:
“100 percent. Definitely. I am still in touch with her. Vandana and Neelima are good friends. They are also in touch with each other.”
In the same interview, Rajesh also touched upon the fact of his failed relationship with Neelima Azeem and subtly mentioned that it was a long story. Highlighting how the reason for their split a long time back has of vague relevance now, he mentioned:
“Let me tell you one thing, if you ask someone what went wrong with their relationship, and if that relationship happened 5-10 years ago, no one has a clear answer. People just say I don’t know.”
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Once in an earlier interview with Bollywood Bubble, Neelima Azeem had reminisced about her second marriage with Rajesh Khattar and gave out some candid revelations regarding how the duo failed to keep up their marriage intact. Citing a few uncontrollable and difficult situations, she mentioned how in the end, she had her sons, Shahid and Ishaan acting as the ultimate inspiration amidst everything tumultous. In her words:
“The second marriage would have lasted if certain things didn’t happen which were difficult to encounter… It was difficult, it was an impossible feat. I think it would have worked out if there was more control and more logic and sense in it. But it went, it flew out. And it happens in Bombay with all the struggle and with all the pressures, sometimes people succumb to it. But I have the ability to get up and start walking again, and I have these lovely boys in my life, my sons, they were a great inspiration for me and a source of so much happiness and encouragement.”
In one of her other interviews, Neelima Azeem also spoke about her unusually comfortable bonding with her ex-husband, Rajesh Khattar’s wife, Vandana and mentioned how she always respected and encouraged her and there was never any animosity. In her words:
“I’d like to give Vandana the credit here because Vandana is somebody who has always seeked me and I would say she has taken the initiative to be a friend of mine. And she respects me like I am an elder in a family. She’s just always respected me and admired me and encouraged me to be there for her. I feel comfortable with Rajesh because of that.”
What do you think about Rajesh Khattar recalling his love story with ex-wife, Neelima Azeem?
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