When Govinda confessed he was 'merciless' in telling wife Sunita Ahuja to become like Neelam as he had lost his heart to her: 'I would tell her to learn from her'

Govinda had fallen in love with Neelam before he got married to Sunita Ahuja. Infact, even after he was engaged to Sunita, he broke it off. In an interview, Govinda had once confessed that if Sunita had not coaxed him back into it, then he would have married Neelam. Now, Sunita and Govinda have been married for more than 30 years and Sunita has now become an internet sensation with a loyal fan following of her own. But at that time, when the actor was at the peak of his career, here's what he had confessed in an interview about Neelam. He also admitted to the fact that he was really 'merciless' in comparing Sunita to Neelam.

Talking about how he fell in love with Neelam, Govinda had said in an 1990 interview with Stardust, "I was very conscious of her (Neelam). 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."




That time, he also added that he had no intention to get serious about Sunita. He said, "I had never meant to get so seriously involved with Sunita. I was looking for a girl to go around with. I had signed a few films by then, and one day, my elder brother Kirti came to visit me on my sets. I had to do a romantic scene, but couldn't bring myself to do it. I felt very uncomfortable and awkward holding a girl in my arms. So, later, my brother told me, ‘Why don't you have an affair just to get some experience of romance? You'll at least, learn how to hold a girl in your arms'. At that point in time, I met Sunita. I admit that my involvement with her was a totally calculated move on my part. And I paid a heavy price for it."

"I realised too late that one needn't experience death to perform a death scene, similarly one needn't experience romance to perform romantic scenes. It came naturally, one only had to let oneself go. But the harm was done. I had already committed myself to Sunita. I am very impulsive," he added further.

Later, he confessed how he asked Sunita to become like Neelam. "I couldn't believe that such a young girl, even after attaining so much name, fame and wealth, could be so simple and down-to-earth. I couldn't stop praising her. To my friends, to my family. Even to Sunita, to whom I was committed. 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."

Govinda tied the knot with Sunita in 1987. Meanwhile, Neelam Kothari went on to marry UK-based businessman Rishi Sethia in 2000, though the marriage ended in divorce soon after. In an episode of 'Fabulous Lives Vs Bollywood Wives' season 3, Neelam reflected on her troubled marriage and the challenges she faced. Speaking about the restrictions imposed on her, she said, “I was told to wear Indian clothes, give up non-veg, and don't drink. I was fine with everything, but changing my identity, that is something I was not okay with.”

Neelam then married Samir Soni in 2011.

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