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Rajesh Khanna’s Unhappy Love Life

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Thye King of Romance was unable to sustain relationships with the two women he loved

Rajesh Khanna

India’s first superstar, Rajesh Khanna, who passed away recently, lived life king size. His last few years may have been tough but his contribution to cinema and the impact of his stardom, will perhaps always remain immeasurable. Despite a hazy start Rajesh Khanna was unstoppable once he shot to fame. A lot has already been written about his vast female fan following. Women used to throng at his premieres and would wait for hours outside his bungalow to get a mere glimpse of him and many even got ‘married’ to his photographs! He received thousands of fan letters, some of which were written in blood! Rajesh however, had someone’s name etched on his heart – Anju Mahendru. Theirs was a dream love story but shockingly, he suddenly married then upcoming star Dimple Kapadia, leaving Anju distraught. Masala! revisits one of the most controversial love stories of its time…

BEFORE RAJESH’S SUPERSTARDOM

Struggling Together

Jatin (Rajesh’s real name) met Anju Mahendru when they both were struggling to find a foothold in the industry. Anju was an aspiring model and actor at the time. But her claim to fame was a torrid relationship with cricket legend, Sir Gary Sobers. She broke up with him and soon started seeing Rajesh. In the early days of their relationship, Anju supported his dreams like a devoted girlfriend. Rajesh too cared for her and reportedly lavished his affection and earnings upon her. Once the actor became super successful he charmed and convinced Anju into putting aside her career for him. The madly-in-love starlet obliged and soon she officially became Rajesh Khanna’s girlfriend and the two of them shared a happy relationship for close to seven years.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE

The Personality Clash

Anju was a free spirit while Rajesh was very traditional. While success didn’t alter his orthodox beliefs, ironically, he always fell for modern women. Their clashing values and opinions led to many altercations. In one of her interviews, Anju stated, “He is a very orthodox man, yet somehow, is always attracted to ultra-modern girls. Confusion was a part of our relationship. If I wore a skirt, he’d snap, why don’t you wear a sari? If I wore a sari, he’d say, why are you trying to project a Bhartiya nari look?”