Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh met for the first time on the sets of Rahul Rawail's Bekhudi, which was supposed to be the launch vehicle of the "chhote nawab". Saif was smitten, and wasted no time in asking her out to dinner. He thought she turned him down when she said no, but to his surprise, Amrita asked him to come to her house for dinner. One thing led to another and they kissed at the end of the night. As Saif told Simi Garewal on her show, "I never left the house after that."
In 1991, Saif tied the knot with Amrita, 12 years his senior, after a whirlwind romance. They had two beautiful kids - Sara and Ibrahim. However, 13 years later, Saif and Amrita's marriage came to a bitter end, and they got divorced in 2004.
Saif bared his heart out in an interview with The Telegraph in 2005. "My wife and I have gone our separate ways. I respect my wife's space. But why am I being constantly reminded of how terrible a husband I was, and how awful a father I am. I've my son Ibrahim's photograph in my wallet. Each time I look at it, I feel like crying. I miss my daughter Sara all the time. I'm not allowed to meet my children. They aren't allowed to come to visit me, let alone stay with me. Why? Because there's a new woman in my life who'd influence my children against their mother. That's so much hogwash and Amrita knows it," he said.
The Race actor said that he was tormented by the constant guilt trips that Amrita was trying to send him on. "I really want my kids. But I don't want to put up a constant fight over them. If they are to be taken away from me, then let Amrita call them Sara Singh and Ibrahim Singh. Let my daughter become 18 and ask me, 'Where were you Dad when my brother and I needed you?' Let me die of shame. But please don't kill me with a feeling of constant guilt just because I've had the courage to finally walk away from an impossible relationship to find some solace."
Not only did Amrita not allow Saif to meet their children, she would constantly abuse him, he claimed. "It isn't nice to be constantly reminded of how worthless you are and to have taunts, jeers, insults and abuses thrown at your mother and sister all the time. I've gone through all of it," he said.
Back then, Saif was not as successful as he would be in later years. But that did not stop Amrita from demanding crores of rupees in alimony. "I'm supposed to give Amrita INR 5 crore, of which I've already given her approximately INR 2.5 crore. Also, I'm paying INR 1 lakh per month until my son becomes 18. I'm not Shah Rukh Khan. I don't have that kind of money. I've promised her I'll pay up the rest of the money, and I will, even if I've to slog till I drop dead. Whatever I've earned from doing ads, stage shows and films is being given for my children. I've no money. Our bungalow is for Amrita and the kids, and never mind the relatives who've joined her after my departure," he said.
However, Saif's woes are in the past. Today, he is happily married to Kareena Kapoor Khan, and they welcomed their first child, Taimur Ali Khan, on December 20 last year.
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