Before making a smashing comeback in Race 3, Bobby Deol saw a rough phase in his career. During this time, Bobby’s work opportunities dried up and he started drinking more than usual. However, his wife Tanya Deol always stood by him like a rock. In a recent interview, Bobby opened up about the lowest phase of his life, when Tanya got the ‘worst’ of him. He also spoke about his mother, Prakash Kaur, and how he credits her with managing the household successfully while his father Dharmendra managed his film career.
‘My mother is an amazing woman’
During a podcast with Ranveer Allahbadia, he mentioned how his mother Prakash Kaur’s upbringing goes unnoticed, because she doesn’t belong to the film industry . “My mother has been a housewife all her life. People keep thinking that our dad is the biggest reason for the way we are, but it is never that way. It’s the mother who plays the biggest role in how the kids are. Because my mom is not an actor, so we end up talking more about my father. But my mother is just an amazing woman. She was so young when she got married to him. The fame and the glory that came, she never really got into it. She was a simple woman and still is… totally grounded,” he reflected.
Dharmendra and Prakash Kaur got married in 1954, before he moved to Mumbai. They welcomed four children – sons Sunny and Bobby, and daughters Ajeeta and Vijayta. Dharmendra later married Hema Malini in 1980.
Bobby further added that he sees the same happening within his own family and wife, Tanya Deol. “I am seeing that happening with my own personal life, with my wife. My wife works. We come from a very strict culture where women don’t work and men go out to work, but people make it sound like women are not working. But, they are doing the most important job – taking care of the house. The women has to keep worrying about the house. They are so strong, I have a lot of respect for them.”
‘My wife is my backbone’
The actor then recalled how his wife was his support system during tough times. “I have learnt so much from my mother that way, and from my wife. My wife is like my backbone. I am what I am today is because my wife stood by me. I would have been scattered without her. The problem is… Your family would never be that blunt with you. But a wife can see you and she knows what you’re capable of. She stood by me throughout those dark times, for those 10-15 years, she was working and taking care of things, financially and everything. She has brought up my boys so well,” he shared.
ALSO READ | Bobby Deol recalls family’s ‘difficult financial phase’, says Dharmendra ‘felt most pain’
Bobby-Tanya’s love story
Bobby Deol and Tanya Deol’s love story started in late 1995 when Bobby spotted Tanya at a bar. “When I look back, 30 years ago when I used to party a lot, I went to this card party. I didn’t play cards and I was in crutches which slowed me down a little bit. I saw this woman sitting there and that was it. I had seen her somewhere earlier as well, when I was with a few friends. I still remember she was wearing a striped top. I told someone to tell her that I said ‘Hi’,” he recounted.
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He continued, “So when we met at the card party for the second time, I hate gambling and I was losing to her. I asked her, ‘Can I take you out for dinner instead?’ Then, I chased her and I used to gatecrash parties to meet her. Finally, the day I spoke to her, we spoke for hours and hours, it was just meant to be. Despite having a very reckless lifestyle, my father-in-law agreed to our marriage because he had so much respect for my father.”
‘Nothing is perfect’
When asked about how marriage is treating him after nearly 30 years, Bobby replied, “I have learnt one thing that nothing is perfect. You go through ups and downs in your relationship. Every time the other person is trying to change the other person for their own desires and wants, and you learn. Marriage is not like ‘Oh, I am married now, I have to behave this way’.”
He said, “You learn, you realise, and you see that you cannot change each other. But, try to compromise at times and be something for the moment, because the other person wants it, but you can’t change the other person completely. That’s one of the most important things in a marriage, and respect, trust.”
‘My wife got the worst of me’
The 57-year-old opened up about his drinking problem and how his wife Tanya became his inspiration through this phase. “When I wasn’t intoxicated anymore and started looking after myself. She was my inspiration because I was sitting at home and she took care of everything. I never thought of what all she was going through. That’s when I realised, I had just taken my wife for granted. What kind of example am I as a parent? That changed everything,” he said.
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“My wife got the worst of me. She was the only one who took and was still there for me. My wife is many years younger than me and she has taught herself the business she is doing. She was into interiors, very good at it, and she used to do my clothes for many years. She is my inspiration,” Bobby concluded.
Bobby Deol tied the knot with Tanya on May 30, 1996. The couple has two sons – Aryaman and Dharam. On the work front, Bobby was recently seen in Anurag Kashyap’s Bandar. The actor will next star in Alpha, alongside Alia Bhatt and Sharvari.
Disclaimer: The information presented in this article is derived from interviews, public appearances, and statements made by the individuals mentioned. The publisher does not independently verify personal claims, recollections, or opinions expressed by interviewees. Any references to family relationships, personal experiences, financial matters, or health-related issues reflect the speakers’ perspectives at the time of the interview. Readers are advised to treat such statements as personal accounts rather than established facts.
Bobby Deol with his mother Prakash Kaur. (Photo: Instagram/Bobby Deol)