{"id":264949,"date":"2026-02-03T04:34:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T04:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/264949\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T04:34:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T04:34:09","slug":"honey-irani-on-maintaining-a-good-equation-with-javed-akhtar-and-shabana-azmi-after-separation-i-didnt-want-to-lose-them-as-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/264949\/","title":{"rendered":"Honey Irani on maintaining a good equation with Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi after separation: \u2018I didn\u2019t want to lose them as friends\u2019 |"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Honey Honey Irani<\/a> has often been asked how she managed to maintain a warm relationship with former husband Javed Akhtar<\/a> and his wife, actor Shabana Azmi<\/a>, even years after their separation. Addressing it head-on, Honey believes that bitterness serves no purpose once two people part ways.\u201cIf you\u2019ve separated, then why sit with anger?\u201d she said in a recent interview with Vickey Lalwani, adding that whatever happened in the past is \u201cunder the bridge\u201d. For her, separation didn\u2019t mean labelling anyone as a bad person. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean someone is a bad human being. I have a lot of respect for both Javed sahab and Shabana,\u201d she shared. <\/p>\n

Shabana Azmi & Javed Akhtar Mark 41 Years Of Marriage<\/p>\n

A bond that began with humour and intelligence<\/p>\n

Recalling her first meeting with Javed Akhtar, Honey said it was his sense of humour that instantly drew her to him. \u201cThe first moment I met him was when he was narrating my lines on set. I was rehearsing and he was explaining my character\u2019s background. The first thing that attracted me towards Javed sahab was his sense of humour. He was very funny.\u201dHaving already known Salim Khan since childhood, she was comfortable in that space. \u201cWe used to sit together between shots, talk and laugh. That\u2019s when I realised how intelligent Javed sahab was. You could talk to him about any topic. His knowledge was very attractive.\u201dInterestingly, humour became the common thread. \u201cHe always says he was attracted to me because of my sense of humour. Maybe humour pulled us towards each other,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

A proposal born out of chance \u2014 and luck<\/p>\n

Honey recalled how Javed Akhtar proposed in the most unexpected way. \u201cHe proposed, but not directly for marriage,\u201d she said, explaining how they began meeting off sets.\u201cOne day he was playing cards and losing. I picked a card for him and it turned out right. He won back his money and said, \u2018Come on, you\u2019re very lucky for me, let\u2019s get married.\u2019 That\u2019s how he proposed.\u201dWithin six to seven months, they were married.<\/p>\n

Choosing family over ambition \u2014 without regret<\/p>\n

Explaining why she did very little work after marriage, Honey said acting was never an obsession. \u201cI was around 19 during Seeta Aur Geeta and got married immediately. I never had that kind of craze for acting. I was happy settling down.\u201dShe added that stepping away from work was a personal decision. \u201cI wanted to do something behind the scenes, but children happened very quickly. Javed\u2019s career was doing very well. There were people coming home all the time, like a mela. Time just passed. No regrets.\u201d<\/p>\n

When success changed everything<\/p>\n

Looking back at why the marriage didn\u2019t last, Honey admitted there wasn\u2019t one single reason. \u201cIf I analyse now, there were many reasons. Everything was happening very fast. Success came very quickly, and with success, people and surroundings change. Demands change. Maybe I couldn\u2019t handle it.\u201dShe also acknowledged that Javed Akhtar\u2019s drinking became difficult for her to cope with. \u201cHe drank earlier too, but later it became much more. After drinking, he became a completely different person. I couldn\u2019t cope with that.\u201d <\/p>\n

Shabana Azmi Opens Up About Her Controversial Marriage<\/p>\n

\u2018It was both our decision to separate\u2019<\/p>\n

Honey clarified that the separation was mutual. \u201cIt was both our decision because it wasn\u2019t working at all. Instead of fighting and blaming each other, it was better to separate. It was the most sensible decision.\u201dWhat stood out, however, was her approach to life after separation. \u201cIf you\u2019ve separated, then why carry anger?\u201d she repeated. \u201cWhat has happened is under the bridge.\u201dShe stressed that preserving respect mattered more to her than holding grudges. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to lose them as friends,\u201d she said, reiterating the respect she holds for both Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi. <\/p>\n

\u2018It took many years, but we made it work\u2019<\/p>\n

Speaking about her equation with Shabana Azmi, Honey admitted it took time. \u201cIt took many years. Children were involved; they kept moving here and there. Both of us made efforts from our respective sides.\u201dToday, the relationship has evolved into friendship. \u201cNow we are good friends. We attend each other\u2019s birthday parties and even travel together. Everything is fine now,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Honey Irani has often been asked how she managed to maintain a warm relationship with former husband Javed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":264950,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[156,151265,151270,61729,151268,151271,151272,151269,151267,409,111,139,69,151266,66025],"class_list":{"0":"post-264949","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-honey-irani","10":"tag-honey-irani-equation-with-javed-akhtar-shabana-azmi","11":"tag-javed-akhtar","12":"tag-javed-akhtar-honey-irani-divorce","13":"tag-javed-akhtar-honey-irani-kids","14":"tag-javed-akhtar-shabana-azmi-honey-irani","15":"tag-javed-akhtar-shabana-azmi-marriage","16":"tag-maintaining-friendship-after-separation","17":"tag-movies","18":"tag-new-zealand","19":"tag-newzealand","20":"tag-nz","21":"tag-separation-and-divorce","22":"tag-shabana-azmi"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=264949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264949\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/264950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=264949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=264949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=264949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}