Neelam Kothari’s life has been nothing less than a fairytale. She became an actress while on vacation in Mumbai. The director, Ramesh Behl, approached her, and the rest is history. She signed her first film, Jawaani, which was released in 1984, making her a famous heroine.
Neelam Kothari has been featured in almost forty films. And young girls would look up to her. But when it comes to her personal life, she had a terrible first marriage. She happily gave up her career and her identity and shifted to London to be with him. But her marriage ended on a sour note. However, not many know that Neelam was married to a millionaire. Currently, Neelam is married to fellow actor, Samir Soni.
Who is Neelam Kothari’s millionaire husband, Rishi Sethia?
Neelam was married to UK-based businessman, Rishi Sethia in 2000, but their relationship didn’t last long. Rishi belongs to a powerful and wealthy family based in the UK. He is the son of the industrialist, Nirmal Kumar Sethia and the late Chitra Devi Sethia. The family moved to London in 1969, and built a successful business.
Neelam Kothari’s first husband, Rishi Sethia is a millionaire with a net worth of Rs. 65,000 crores
Rishi Sethia owns a chain of businesses in the luxury tea brand Newby and caters to five-star hotels and Mischelin-star restaurants worldwide. His family’s combined net worth is around Rs. 65,000.
When Neelam Kothari was asked to change her name, and wear Indian clothes after marriage
In one of the episodes of Fabulous Lives Of Bollywood Wives, Neelam Kothari discussed the ordeals she faced in her first marriage to Rishi Sethia after so many years. The actress opened her heart while talking to filmmaker, Ekta Kapoor. She shared that she was told to wear Indian clothes and give up non-veg and alcohol, which she did happily. She even changed her name to save her marriage, but then the question came to her identity. She said:
“I was told to wear Indian clothes, give up non-veg, and don’t drink. I was fine with everything. Changing my name also, according to me, people do that, but changing my identity, that is something I was not okay with.”
Neelam Kothari recalled hiding her identity at supermarkets and while going out on lunch dates
Neelam also recalled when she would visit a supermarket or go out for lunch, people would come to her and ask if she was the actress, and she would deny it. Neelam shared that it made her question why she was allowing herself to change so much. This incident made her decide she didn’t want to stay in the marriage. She said:
“I reached a point where I questioned myself, ‘How am I allowing this?’ I used to be in a supermarket or going out for lunch, and someone would come up to me and ask, ‘Are you Neelam the actress?’ I had to say no.”
Neelam Kothari is now in a happy marital life with Samir Soni
Neelam found love again in Samir Soni. After dating for a couple of years, the duo got married in an intimate wedding ceremony in 2011. They even embraced parenthood by adopting a baby girl. Talking about Rishi Sethia, he found love again in former Miss India, Queenie Singh, his second marriage reportedly led to tension within his family.
Well, Neelam Kothari might have married a millionaire, but all the money didn’t grow their relationship. One thing is sure: The lesson taught her to take pride in her identity as an actor.
Next Read: Neelam Kothari Cleared The Buzz On Dharmendra Being The Reason Behind Her Split With Bobby Deol
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