Mahesh Bhatt and Parveen Babi's heart-wrenching love story

Bollywood has seen many love stories over the years, both on screen and off screen. While few love stories overcame all odds and triumphed, few succumbed to societal norms and differences. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and actress Parveen Babi's love story is a tale of heartbreak and grief. In a detailed interview with Filmfare, Mahesh Bhatt untangled all those broken threads of his heart and expressed his love and grief for Parveen Babi.

Here's an account of what he had said in the report...

Parveen was at the peak of her career when she fell in love with filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt. Their love blossomed in 1977. Though Bhatt was a married man, he decided to live in with Parveen Babi, who was a superstar then. Parveen was shooting for Amar Akbar Anthony and Kala Pathar in those days. Theirs was a life filled with love where there was no place for failure or stardom. At home, Parveen was just an ordinary girl who was madly in love with Mahesh Bhatt. But this fairytale had a bitter ending.

On an unfortunate evening in 1979, Mahesh Bhatt came face-to-face with the biggest truth of his life. When he came home, he found Parveen dressed up in a film costume, sitting curled up in a corner of the house. She had a kitchen knife in her hand. On seeing him, she gestured him to be quiet and said, "Don't talk! The room is bugged. They're trying to kill me." This was the first instance when Mahesh Bhatt saw her in this condition. Soon the attacks became frequent. Parveen was diagnosed with one of the most dreaded disorder - paranoid schizophrenia.

Doctors and filmmakers, who sensed their films on the verge of being stalled, wanted Parveen to undergo 'electric shock treatment' which seemed like the only temporary option to calm her down at that time. But Mahesh Bhatt stood rock solid by her and tried his level best to protect her. Kabir Bedi, who was Parveen Babi's ex, suggested a couple of hospitals to Mahesh Bhatt in the US for her treatment. Danny Dengzongpa, who was once Parveen's neighbour and boyfriend, also helped Bhatt during this phase.

Parveen's panic attacks refused to cease. A continuous threat of someone trying to kill her hounded her. At times she would feel the AC had a bug, at other times she felt their car had a bomb and she could hear it ticking. She felt that Amitabh Bachchan, with whom she had done a number of films, wanted to kill her. Parveen believed that she had harmed him in some way, and so he wanted to kill her. Her constant attacks made it necessary to hide her from the public.

Electric shock therapy was the only option they were left with. When Mahesh Bhatt opposed this, he was tagged as a 'user' who used her fame and stardom. Parveen had become uncontrollable by this time. She refused to take medicines and forced Mahesh Bhatt to eat first, just to check if he had added medicine in her food and drink. And at times, Mahesh even used to eat her food just so that she takes the medicine.

When there was no hope left, Mahesh ran away with Parveen Babi to Bangalore. He thought that a peaceful life would bring her back to him. He wanted to keep her stress free. The same year, Mahesh Bhatt left Parveen and came back to his wife Lorraine. Parveen's philosopher in Bangalore advised Bhatt to stay away from Parveen as his presence was worsening her condition. It was during this time that Mahesh Bhatt had started writing Arth, a film which was totally inspired by his own life.

Soon after Bhatt, Parveen too returned to the city without a complete treatment. Mahesh Bhatt, who was with his wife, could not stop himself from being there for Parveen. One night, while they both were about to make love, Parveen asked him to choose between her and her philosopher UG. UG did not want her to go back to films and neither did Bhatt. He knew that this was the end of their relationship and he walked out in the middle of the night. Reportedly, Parveen followed him, stark naked, but Bhatt did not stop. He walked away, from her and from her life.

In 2005, Mahesh Bhatt was flooded with messages of Parveen Babi's mysterious death. When he got to know that no one had come forward to claim her body, he offered to bury her. Bhatt still believes that he owes it all to Parveen. The depth and bond they shared, was brought on celluloid by the filmmaker himself. His films like Arth and Woh Lamhe vouch for his gratitude towards the actress.

Disclaimer: All the facts stated here were recounted by Mahesh Bhatt in his interview with Filmfare. The facts have been written as is.

According to a Bombay Times report, when asked about the inexhaustible concept of love triangle in his films, Mahesh Bhatt spoke about the love triangles he came across in his life. He said, in an interview with BT, that his mother found herself in a triangular situation of his father and his legitimate wife. Bhatt further said that he experienced the emotional trauma of that triangle in his cradle. He was then hurled into an extra-marital affair with an actress (Parveen Babi) who was fiercely lonely, confessed Bhatt. She somehow reminded him of his mother, she was alone, and he needed to play the prince on the white horse, Bhatt added.

Mahesh Bhatt has always spoken openly about his relationship with Parveen Babi. Read further to know more about their heart-wrenching love story...