When ‘frightened’ Dimple Kapadia said that she ‘never got a word of praise’ from Rajesh Khanna: ‘Spent all my energy doing what he wanted’

Also read – ‘Scared’ Dimple Kapadia apologised with folded hands when Rajesh Khanna snapped at her: ‘Ab tum mujhe sikhaogi?’

“I was always waiting for some reaction, but it never came. All my energy was spent in doing what he wanted and anticipating his approval. It was like climbing a ladder. No matter how fast I climbed, he was still many rungs ahead,” Dimple said. She was also a first-hand witness to Khanna’s decline. “He neither shared his happiness nor his sorrow and I was too frightened of giving him any kind of support. All I could do was wait in attendance just in case he needed me,” she said.

Rajesh Khanna married actor Dimple Kapadia in 1973. They have two daughters, Twinkle Khanna and Rinke Khanna. (Photo: Express Archives)

In another interview, this was conducted in 1985, when she was re-launching the acting career that she had put aside during her marriage, she said, “It was my first encounter in life with failure. When a successful man goes to pieces, his frustration engulfs the entire surroundings. It was a pathetic sight when Rajesh waited at the end of the week for collection figures but the people didn’t have the guts to come and tell him.”

After she separated from Khanna, Dimple moved back in with her mother. At an event in Jaipur, she praised Twinkle for the responsibility that she showed. “She’s an amazing child. She must have been all of seven or eight when I got separated. The kind of maturity… She was only wanting to take care of me, to see if I was okay, if everything was alright with me,” she said.