Veteran actor Shabana Azmi has carved a niche for herself in the entertainment industry over the last 50 years, and has established herself as one of the most respected names. While she has always been in news for her sheer talent, Shabana’s personal life and her love story with renowned lyricist and writer Javed Akhtar have been the subject of interest for many. As the actor turns 74 today, we look at the 5 lesser-known details of her relationship with lover-turned-husband Javed Akhtar.

The First Meeting

In an interview earlier, Shabana had revealed that the first time they met, “I was 3 years old and he was 8.” She further shared, “Both our parents were friends. His father and my father are so similar in their views. They were lyricists, poets, progressive writers. They loved Urdu. People often tell me and Javed that we should have had an arranged marriage because our backgrounds were so similar.  I started seeing him around the late 70s when he’d come to my father to show him his poetry.”

Shabana told the interviewer that she used to stay away from Javed initially because of the reputation he had. “I had heard that Salim-Javed were very arrogant. They were from a world I didn’t want to be part of. I would stay away.”

Winning The Heart

Looking back at falling in love with the Sholay writer, she shared, “When he saw Sparsh, he came to me and talked about it. That really surprised me. I used to think of him as someone completely different. He carefully remembered every dialogue. We started meeting slowly. I found that he was not at all like his image, he was a very intelligent and fun man.”

Shabana found comfort in Javed and the two would talk to each other for hours about anything and everything. “I really enjoyed meeting him. He made me laugh and gave me emotional support. All these qualities were in one man,” she shared.

A Bitter Relationship with Honey Irani

Shabana Azmi fell in love with Javed at a time when he was already married and had two children- Farhan and Zoya. And this new relationship caused a lot of trouble, ultimately wrecking Javed’s home with his first wife Honey Irani in 1980.

Recalling how that led to bitterness between her and Honey, Shabana shared in an interview, “Today, even with Honey, we have a really, really good relationship. I know that Honey has the confidence to call Javed in the middle of the night if she needs something, and he would come… We decided that there should be no bitterness involved. Of course, in the beginning, she was very bitter, and she felt rejected. But he kept at it, he kept at it, he kept at it. And today, what’s come from it is really something that I’m extremely proud of.”

Reason Behind The Successful Marriage

Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar tied the knot in 1994 and recently completed 30 years of this bond. When asked about the reason behind this strong connection, especially in times when it’s so easy to break marriages, Azmi gave a very amusing reply. She said, “I think we meet so rarely, that is the reason for the success of marriage (laughs). And more than anything else, we are friends.”