When Govinda admitted he ‘played dirty’ with Neelam; kept marriage to Sunita a secret

Bollywood in the '80s and '90s wasn't afraid of controversy and was full of stories of love, drama and secrets. One such story is about the famous actor Govinda, his co-star Neelam, and his wife Sunita Ahuja. Govinda once openly admitted that he “played dirty” with Neelam by not telling her he was already married to Sunita. This honest confession shocked many fans and gave a rare glimpse into the complicated personal life of the star.
The Govinda-Neelam magic on-screen
As per News18, Govinda and Neelam were a popular on-screen pair back in the day. But neither of them expected their reel-life chemistry to slowly turn into something real. As Govinda started falling for Neelam, he also began feeling unhappy about his engagement to Sunita. He was so taken by Neelam that he even wished Sunita would be more like her, thinking it might help him stay in the relationship. But the more he compared the two, the worse things got.


A breakup… and a quick reunion
Tensions grew, and one day, Sunita lost her temper and made a comment about Neelam. That was the final straw for Govinda, and he broke off the engagement. However, just a few days later, Sunita called him, and they made up. Soon after, they had a quiet wedding in a temple. But Govinda kept the marriage a secret, worried it might hurt his film career. He didn’t even tell Neelam he was married.


‘I played dirty with her’
In a throwback interview with Stardust magazine, Govinda didn’t hold back about how he handled the situation with Neelam. “Neither did Neelam know about it. She got to know only after a year. I probably did not tell her because I did not want to break this successful screen pair. And to be honest, to a certain extent, I did exploit my personal relationship with Neelam for professional ends. I played dirty with her. I should have told her that I was married,” he said.

He also said, “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.”