By Srijony Das Last Updated:
Sonali Bendre and Goldie Behl are one of the sweetest couples in B-Town. The duo looks like a match-made-in-heaven who have exemplified the power of love to be stronger than any other bond. While they may prefer to stay out of the limelight, nevertheless, even after so many years of their marriage, nothing has changed between them. So let us take a look at their whirlwind of a kind of love story.
Sonali and Goldie’s first meeting occurred during the shooting of the former’s film, Naraaz. And like most of the actress's fans, Goldie was smitten by the gorgeous beauty of Sonali. But, considering Sonali to be a megastar by then, it was difficult for Goldie to even think about pursuing her romantically. But that’s when destiny planned their union, and it turned out that Goldie’s sister was Sonali's best friend, so taking his sister's help, he was introduced to Sonali. In an interview, Goldie recalled the first meeting and mentioned:
“I bumped into Sonali on the sets of the film Naaraaz. My sister Shrishti Arya knew her well but I didn’t know her at all. I just found her attractive. I still do. Believe it or not, what appealed to me the most was how slowly she ate her food. We were having lunch together and I commented on her eating pace. She got a little upset with my comment. At least, it broke the ice and we started talking. So our first conversation was about food and to date most of the times, we simply talk about food. Now most of it is about how little I should eat.”
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After the much-needed ice-breaking between the two, they became very good friends and would often sneek out some free time to hang out together. Moreover, their bonding blossomed when Sonali started acting in a film where Goldie was the producer. Therefore, it gave them enough space to learn more about each other. Goldie recalled that phase while working with Sonali as an actor and mentioned:
“After some time, she signed Angaaray, a film I was producing. I was also assisting Mahesh Bhatt who was directing the film. I had to relay messages from the director to the actor. Thanks to that job, Sonali and I started talking more and became good friends.”
Ironically, the foundation of their relationship began as a case of one-sided love from Goldie. From the minute he had laid eyes on her, he was madly in love with her, and these frequent meetings only added to his love and adoration for her. However, that much-needed U-turn from Sonali changed the direction of their relationship. Revealing an important incident, post-which Sonali came out of denial and agreed to go on a date with Goldie, the latter once mentioned:
“Eventually, our friendship turned into romance. But initially, the affections were one-sided. She was in denial. I didn’t give up on her though. Even my mom asked me not to let go of her. She thought Sonali was an amazing girl. For the first time in my life, I heeded my mom’s advice and thank God for that. Long drives and heated political discussions were instrumental in strengthening our bond. And in no time, we were seeing each other. I see no particular reason why she agreed to be with me but I’m glad she did. “
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As the duo gradually fell into a romantic relationship, all of their common friends started to count the days until Goldie asked the most important question to Sonali. And finally, it did happen, but with the help of Sonali and Goldie’s best buddy, Abhishek Bachchan. Well, it so happened that Goldie was nervous about the proposal, and only after Abhishek decided to lighten up the matter by pretending to throw a casual party with his friends. It was only then that Goldie planned a dreamy proposal for Sonali. And as expected, Sonali gave an excited nod of yes to him.
Like a total filmy romantic movie, Sonali and Goldie also shared a slight setback in their love story when Sonali’s parents became apprehensive about their daughter’s choice of groom. Their primary objection against Goldie was that he was not only younger than Sonali but also less experienced and comparatively less educated than her. Moreover, he did not even belong to the same Maharashtrian culture. However, it was with sheer love, patience and dedication that Goldie finally won over Sonali’s parent's hearts.
After so many pauses in their love story, the couple finally sealed the deal by tying the knot on November 12, 2002. Their wedding was a lavish extravaganza with high-profile guests such as Mumbai’s then-Chief Minister, Vilasrao Deshmukh. Moreover, mostly all the A-listers of the film industry were also present to bless the couple, such as Monisha Koirala, Abhishek Bachchan with his family, Hrithik Roshan and others.
After three years of marital bliss, the couple was blessed with their bundle of joy, their son, Ranveer. Indeed, both Goldie and Sonali consider him the apple of their eyes. In an interview, Goldie had fondly mentioned how Ranveer had been the greatest gift his wifey could have given him. Revealing how Sonali has been like any other ordinary hands-on mother for their son, Goldie mentioned:
“Our son Ranveer is the most special gift Sonali has ever given me. She’s a hands-on mother. Even though she has all the help in the world, she makes it a point to help Ranveer get ready for school. She keeps a tab on what he’s taking in, mentally and physically. She keeps a check on what he’s exposed to. She doesn’t restrict his friends circle. She tries to give him the best of everything. She’s extremely close to him and she’s serious about her responsibilities as a mother.”
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While all things were smooth sailing in the couple's life, it was out of nowhere in 2018 that Sonali Bendre was diagnosed with metastatic cancer. The times were tough and traumatic for the actress and her immediate family, who could not fathom any part of it. While Sonali did not waste any time shifting her base to London and getting treated immediately, it was most unfortunate that the beautiful actress had to shave her head completely before chemotherapy. Sonali announced her condition in a tweet, shocking millions of her fans. Her post could be read as:
“Sometimes when you least expect it, life throws you a curveball. I have recently been diagnosed with high-grade cancer that has metastasised, which we frankly did not see coming. A niggling pain led to some tests, which led to this unexpected diagnosis. My family and close friends have rallied around me, providing the best support system that anyone can ask for. I am very blessed and thankful for each of them.”
Sonali underwent multiple surgeries and treatments to be fit and fine. And luckily, she was declared cancer-free after a few years of rigorous treatments, surgeries and medication. While the journey was not smooth, she never lost hope. In an interview with Hindustan Times, she recalled how her doctors motivated her to recover quickly. In her words:
“The first thing that my doctors were telling me is that we want you out of the hospital as fast as possible. Post-surgery, my surgeon was like, I want you walking in 24 hours. In 24 hours, I was holding my IV and walking in the corridor. It was hard because I had a cut which is 23-24 inches.”
While amidst so much pain, medication and treatments, one tends to lose hope with the subsequent passage of time. But, for Sonali, her man, Goldie, stood beside her like a strong pillar of strength in all such situations. Never for once did he lose hope or let Sonali lose her self-confidence to jump back to her everyday life. Moreover, his strength increased, especially for their son, Ranveer, who needed all the love and support at that time. Recalling the tough times, Sonali once praised her hubby and mentioned how selflessly he stayed beside her in such distressful times. In her words:
“Goldie has been my rock and pillar of strength to help me fight cancer. Thank God, I decided to get married to him.”
After many years since Sonali’s successful battle against cancer, the actress is back to the bay and has been actively involved in returning to the silver screen. While she may have been declared cancer free and healthy, the actress makes sure to stay healthy, fit and fine as a precautionary measure. On the other hand, Goldie, too, has been endlessly working on his production-related work. However, amidst all their busy schedules, the duo still keeps up their love no matter what. Talking about their eternal promise of loving one another, Sonali once mentioned:
“What we promised each other is that we appreciate each other's good things and can laugh at each other's bad things. He thrives on chaos and I need to be organised and lots of incidents come from this situation. He has a lot of patience and is mature for his age. What he likes about me is that he knows he will get an honest reply from me as I don't lie well. He is the romantic and I am the logical person. More than anything else you have to be friends and he is my best friend. I would love to say that I love my son Ranveer most but even today, I love Goldie the most in the world. I couldn't ask for more.”
What do you think about this powerful love story of Sonali Bendre and Goldie Behl?
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