Bollywood actor Neelam Kothari has broken her silence on the long-standing rumours about her alleged romance with Govinda during the 1980s and early 1990s. During a recent interaction, Neelam admitted that she was unaware that Govinda was married when they worked together in films.
‘I didn’t know Govinda was married’
During an interview with Times Now, Neelam shared that she was too young when she starred opposite Govinda and that her strict parents would never have allowed her to pursue a relationship.
She said, “I was too young. I didn’t know that he was married. I learnt about it later. I was too young, and I had very strict parents. So a relationship was never an option. I was always accompanied by a family member because I was very young. It wasn’t because the industry was a bad place.”
Not just Neelam, her husband and actor Samir Soni also reacted to the rumours and admitted that he remained unbothered by them. “Something that may or may not have happened 20 years ago – I don’t know about it. So how can I hold on to it? He still claims he was madly in love with you,” Samir shared.
When Govinda broke off his engagement with Sunita Ahuja as he wanted to marry Neelam
During a 1990 interview with Stardust, Govinda had openly spoken about his feelings for Neelam and revealed that he had even broken off his engagement with Sunita Ahuja, his now-wife, because he wanted to marry Neelam. Govinda admitted that his infatuation with Neelam had become difficult to conceal.
He had said, “We met so often and the more I got to know Neelam, the more I liked her. She was the kind of woman any man would have lost his heart to. I lost mine. I couldn’t stop praising her. To my friends, to my family. Even to Sunita, to whom I was committed.”
The actor acknowledged that he compared the two women and even broke off his engagement with Sunita. “I would tell Sunita to change herself and become like Neelam. I would tell her to learn from her. I was merciless. I asked Sunita to leave me. I broke off my engagement with her. Had Sunita not called me after five days and coaxed me into it again, I would probably have married Neelam. I wanted to marry her. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”
For the unversed, Neelam’s comment comes at a time when Govinda and Sunita have reportedly hit a rough patch in their relationship and have openly criticised each other in public.