Exclusive: Splitsvilla 10 fame Mohit Hiranandani spills the beans on his grand yacht proposal to Steffi Kingham, live-in relationship and marriage

Mohit Hiranandani, who is known for shows like Splitsvilla 10, Patiala Babes and Pavitra Bhagya, got engaged to girlfriend of 3 years – Steffi Kingham. The actor proposed to her on December 31 and hopes to tie the knot by this year as well. In an exclusive chat with ETimes TV, Mohit got candid about his girlfriend-turned-fiancé, live-in, past relationships and more. By: Sukarna Mondal

It feels great. I have been in a live-in with her for 3 years now. And I feel 3 years is long enough to know each other. I am not going to get anyone better than her. I am not going to find someone whose gonna be treating me the way she does. So I finally thought that I should pop the question. One day, I was sitting with my friends and Steffi wasn’t there. I told them that I am thinking of popping the question.

Shruti Sinha (Splitsvilla fame) is the main girl behind all the plan. She said she will be flying down to Mumbai. It was mad chaos. Another friend of mine, who played my brother in Pavitra Bhagya, he also flew from Delhi. For good two weeks, we were planning and Steffi had no idea about it. I used to tell her that I am going for auditions.

There were many ideas in my mind. First I thought of doing the air proposal – book a helicopter for the two of us, because she’s a cabin crew and she love flying. Then I had thought of proposing to her at a theatre. But all plans kept changing because of Steffi’s roaster. I wasn’t getting the exact date of her day-off so that I could plan. Finally, I planned that we all will go for a yacht party. If Steffi is there, I will propose, else I would have partied with my friends.

Hopefully, by the end of this year. But I can’t confirm because we have to go back to Kolkata, we have to meet our parents, we’ll have a pandit and proper discussion hoga and get the dates. We will wait till then. We will have to wait for Steffi’s family to be ready as well. Then yes.

My family’s side knew about it. I couldn’t tell Steffi’s parents because I was worried that they might get excited and tell Steffi about it. But I did drop a hint to her mom. She had messaged me on Christmas to wish and I asked her what gift she wants. She said, ‘I want you two to be happy, to be together and love her for the rest of your life’. So I said alright, ‘I am going to gift you on 31st.’

It is insane. We have known each other, stayed with each other but the moment I saw her on 31st, I was so nervous. I remember my legs were shaky and my hands were shivering. Though I have shared with her everything, that moment was frightening. It is weird. My friends keep telling me, ‘She is not your girlfriend anymore, she is your fiancé’. That took a long time to sink in.

It’s just about finding the right person. I have had lot of relationships in the past. I have dated a lot of women. With some, there were no intentions because we were young and with some there were intentions of getting to spend the rest of my life. But, if she’s not the one, she’s not the one. The only tip is, you wait for the right person. I have had serious and long relationships, but it just didn’t feel right. With Steffi, we never have been a zone where we think, ‘Ok, let’s take a break’. We talk it out before going to bed. We put our ego aside and if that’s not happening then we give each other that space and after a few hours, we come and talk. It’s just about the right person. If it has to happen, it will happen. Also, transparency is required. We are aware of each other’s habits, whereabouts and we have accepted each other with each other’s flaws. We are best friends… she gets all my TV gossips, I get all the airline gossip.

We met at a mutual friend’s party. We just hit it off. We were not looking for a relationship back then. We didn’t exchange numbers for good six months. We would talk to each other on social media and we exchanged a lot of conversation. One fine day, she asked me out and I wasn’t ready. She said, ‘I am.’ I told her that I want to focus on my career and I had just come out of a relationship. They get very toxic and taxing at times. I wasn’t ready. She agreed and said, ‘I love you and if you are scared of the tag, then it’s fine. If you find someone, you can leave.’ She told me later that she knew I love her and was just scared of the tag. That surprised me. I think that was the best decision of my life.

Steffi suggested that we should move-in together and I was scared again. I was skeptical that she will notice my flaws and habits. She told me to trust her and I did. I would tell every couple to live in together first. Once you stay together, you are an open book. You can’t hide anything. My parents were ok with it but my dad rolled his eyes at me. He was like, ‘Is this why you went to Mumbai?’ I told him to look at the brighter side that the rent will get divided. I had to meet Steffi’s mom and win her trust. She liked me.

She is supremely caring about whoever she likes. Even if she has 1% liking towards you, she will go out her way. And second, the way she speaks to her parents. It is a delight to watch. I was in a boarding school and I would not be in touch with my parents for months together. So I never had the habit of speaking to them or anyone over the phone for long hours. She is very obedient. For Steffi, she respects her parents’ words and that is the most important. She is a beautiful girl.