Meet woman who became Dilip Kumar's second wife, was already married and a mother of three, her name was...

India.com

18-06-2025

Meet woman who became Dilip Kumar's second wife, was already married and a mother of three, her name was...
In the glitzy and glamorous world, we often hear the picture-perfect tales of actors, whose dazzling lives are idealised. But behind these fabricated masks is a story that's far from reality.
One such tale is of a legendary superstar who redefined Indian cinema, and his love story was considered straight out of a fairytale, a perfect romance. However, in reality, their romantic partnership involved a third person, who loved in silence and suffered in the shadows.
The names in question are Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu, and Asma Rehman. Dilip Kumar tied the knot with Saira Banu when he was 44 and Saira was 22; they had a gap of 22 years, and their marriage lasted for 16 years. During this time, he was introduced to a Hyderabad-based woman by his sisters called Asma Rehman. Both of them met at a cricket match, and this brief interaction was the start of their love story
that ended up in their wedding. When Asma met Dilip, she was already married and a mother of three.
Dilip and Asma got married secretly, and Saira Banu had no idea about this; she discovered it through the newspaper. At first, she didn't believe it. Later, when she got to know the truth, she was devastated
However, their marriage didn't last long; it became a hot topic of discussion and a controversial part of both Dilip's and Asma's lives. In his autobiography, Dilip wrote that he regretted his decision to marry Asma; it was a 'mistake' and he was manipulated into doing it. Bearing the consequences of marrying a superstar, Asma was always under high scrutiny with no personal space.
To escape this attention, Asma had to move to Canada since she faced a 'total lack of privacy' there. Later in an interview, Asma opened up about her decision of moving to Canada and emotional turmoil she faced after her divorce from Dilip Kumar 'Even in India, the media was after my life. I thought it would be more peaceful in Vancouver, but it feels like I am not meant to have peace,' she shared. Even after being miles away from Mumbai, the constant shatter of her past relationship didn't stop. 'There is a total lack of privacy, no matter where I go,' she said.
She even stated that most of the facts stated in her name are false and hold no truth. 'Ninety-five percent of what was written about me was fabricated,'
Though her name got somewhere lost over the years, Asma Rehman remains an integral part of a forgotten but deeply human story, a reminder that the coin of fame has two sides to it.