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Prateik Babbar reflects on the dark phase before his second marriage, says, ‘I became vengeful, followed thousands of women on Instagram’

Prateik Babbar has opened up about the emotional upheaval following the end of his first marriage and recalls how he fell in love once again.

Prateik Babbar recalls meeting girlfriend Priya Banerjee during the lockdown,

Actor Prateik Smita Patil, who recently tied the knot with longtime girlfriend Priya Banerjee on February 14, 2025, has opened up about the emotional upheaval following the end of his first marriage. Speaking to Bollywood Bubble, Prateik revealed that the dissolution of his relationship with producer Sanya Sagar left him disillusioned with the idea of love and marriage.

“It was a huge mental block,” he said. “After what I went through, I had made up my mind that love and marriage were never an option. I gave it my all in my previous marriage. I stepped up to my role, no matter what life or that relationship threw at me. I wanted to be the best partner. But unfortunately, it didn’t work out. So I was extremely bitter about love and marriage.” But just when he thought he had shut that chapter forever, love unexpectedly returned. Prateik described meeting Priya as nothing short of “divine timing.”

“I wasn’t looking for it, neither was Priya. We weren’t looking for it, but we were meant to meet at this particular time in our lives. I don’t think it would have worked out if we had met earlier. It had to be at this divine timing.” Calling theirs a classic case of “lockdown ka pyaar,” Prateik shared, “She had broken her previous engagement and I was going through a divorce. That’s when we happened to meet in the lockdown. Kafi logon ke liye lockdown negative raha… kafi logon ki shaadiyaan toot gayi… par humne pyaar dhoond liya aur humari shaadi pakki ho gayi (For many people, the lockdown was a negative experience… a lot of marriages broke… but we found love, and our marriage got fixed).”

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Reflecting on the dark period before meeting Priya, Prateik admitted he had gone into a phase of emotional turmoil and impulsive behaviour. “I was very angry at my situation and vengeful. And out of vengeance, I ended up following thousands of pretty women on Instagram. I was like, ‘I was so good in my marriage… now let’s see.’ And ladies, be aware. It was really ladies vs. Prateik… the beast in me unleashed. That was my mindset,” he confessed.

Out of those thousands, Priya was one of the people he followed—and she followed back. “For the first three months, we didn’t strike a conversation. But finally, I had the courage to reply to her story and next thing I know, we were going on drives, we were meeting regularly… and the rest is history.”

In March 2025, the actor officially changed his name from Prateik Patil Babbar to Prateik Smita Patil, in honour of his mother, the legendary actress Smita Patil. He stated the name change was a personal decision, rooted in the absence of his father, actor Raj Babbar, during his formative years.

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