Honey Irani has often been asked how she managed to maintain a warm relationship with former husband
Javed Akhtar and his wife, actor
Shabana Azmi, even years after their separation. Addressing it head-on, Honey believes that bitterness serves no purpose once two people part ways.
“If you’ve separated, then why sit with anger?” she said in a recent interview with Vickey Lalwani, adding that whatever happened in the past is “under the bridge”. For her, separation didn’t mean labelling anyone as a bad person. “That doesn’t mean someone is a bad human being. I have a lot of respect for both Javed sahab and Shabana,” she shared.
A bond that began with humour and intelligence
Recalling her first meeting with Javed Akhtar, Honey said it was his sense of humour that instantly drew her to him. “The first moment I met him was when he was narrating my lines on set. I was rehearsing and he was explaining my character’s background. The first thing that attracted me towards Javed sahab was his sense of humour. He was very funny.”
Having already known Salim Khan since childhood, she was comfortable in that space. “We used to sit together between shots, talk and laugh. That’s when I realised how intelligent Javed sahab was. You could talk to him about any topic. His knowledge was very attractive.”
Interestingly, humour became the common thread. “He always says he was attracted to me because of my sense of humour. Maybe humour pulled us towards each other,” she said.
A proposal born out of chance — and luck
Honey recalled how Javed Akhtar proposed in the most unexpected way. “He proposed, but not directly for marriage,” she said, explaining how they began meeting off sets.
“One day he was playing cards and losing. I picked a card for him and it turned out right. He won back his money and said, ‘Come on, you’re very lucky for me, let’s get married.’ That’s how he proposed.”
Within six to seven months, they were married.
Choosing family over ambition — without regret
Explaining why she did very little work after marriage, Honey said acting was never an obsession. “I was around 19 during Seeta Aur Geeta and got married immediately. I never had that kind of craze for acting. I was happy settling down.”
She added that stepping away from work was a personal decision. “I wanted to do something behind the scenes, but children happened very quickly. Javed’s career was doing very well. There were people coming home all the time, like a mela. Time just passed. No regrets.”
When success changed everything
Looking back at why the marriage didn’t last, Honey admitted there wasn’t one single reason. “If I analyse now, there were many reasons. Everything was happening very fast. Success came very quickly, and with success, people and surroundings change. Demands change. Maybe I couldn’t handle it.”
She also acknowledged that Javed Akhtar’s drinking became difficult for her to cope with. “He drank earlier too, but later it became much more. After drinking, he became a completely different person. I couldn’t cope with that.”
‘It was both our decision to separate’
Honey clarified that the separation was mutual. “It was both our decision because it wasn’t working at all. Instead of fighting and blaming each other, it was better to separate. It was the most sensible decision.”
What stood out, however, was her approach to life after separation. “If you’ve separated, then why carry anger?” she repeated. “What has happened is under the bridge.”
She stressed that preserving respect mattered more to her than holding grudges. “I didn’t want to lose them as friends,” she said, reiterating the respect she holds for both Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi.
‘It took many years, but we made it work’
Speaking about her equation with Shabana Azmi, Honey admitted it took time. “It took many years. Children were involved; they kept moving here and there. Both of us made efforts from our respective sides.”
Today, the relationship has evolved into friendship. “Now we are good friends. We attend each other’s birthday parties and even travel together. Everything is fine now,” she said.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the
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