Suneel Darshan On Why Akshay Kumar-Shilpa Shetty Didn't Marry: "Shilpa's Parents Placed Conditions, It Was Wrong"

Akshay Kumar and Shilpa Shetty were once in a serious relationship in the 1990s, and filmmaker Suneel Darshan has now said that the two had even reached a point where marriage was being discussed. 

What's Happening

• In a conversation with Bollywood Thikana, Suneel Darshan revealed that the relationship hit a roadblock because Shilpa's parents had set certain conditions before agreeing to the match.
• According to him, the couple appeared well-matched, but fate played out differently. 
• Suneel recalled hearing an astrologer connected to Rajesh Khanna - Twinkle Khanna's father - predict that Akshay and Twinkle would eventually marry. 
• At that time, he didn't give it much thought since, as he put it, "They had nothing to do with each other at the time." 
• He added that things may have unfolded differently "had Shilpa's parents not placed those conditions."
• Darshan did not spell out the specific demands but noted that they revolved around the kind of assurances parents usually seek. 
• "As parents, whatever the parents need for the security of their daughter. That's not wrong," he said when asked about the matter. 
• When prodded about whether this meant financial expectations, he replied, "Security of all kinds, all parents want that." 
• However, he also clarified his own view, adding, "I thought it was wrong of the parents. It was not destined to happen. Let's look at it that way."

Background

The split, he said, took place shortly before the filming of Ek Rishta. Suneel mentioned that Akshay wasn't emotionally shattered at the time. 

"His heart was not broken. I thought he was doing well. He was coming back," he said, noting that the actor was fully occupied with projects like Dhadkan, Hera Pheri and Ek Rishta during that phase.

Akshay Kumar went on to marry Twinkle Khanna in 2001, and the couple has two children. Shilpa Shetty married Raj Kundra in 2009; they also have two kids.