‘Now just waiting’, Raj Babbar’s family wanted to convert his first wife Nadira to religion

Last Updated:January 16, 2025, 07:39 IST

Juhi Babbar told how father Raj Babbar resisted the family pressure for mother Nadira’s religious conversion and respected both religions equally.

Raj Babbar and Nadira were married in 1975.

New Delhi. Not only Dharmendra, Raj Babbar also fell in love after marriage and without divorce, he got married to Smita Patil for the second time. Before Smita Patil, Raj Babbar was married to Nadira Babbar. Apart from films, Raj Babbar was also in the news for his personal relationships. When Raj Babbar was struggling, he fell in love with Nadira Babbar, after which both of them got married in 1975. If Nadira belonged to Muslim religion then Raj was Hindu. Both were in love, but their families were against it.

Raj Babbar’s family wanted Nadira to convert to Hinduism. But, Raj stood against this decision. His father also supported his decision. Nadira maintained her Muslim identity, setting an example of religious harmony in her family.

‘We’re just waiting’
This was recently revealed by Raj Babbar and Nadira’s daughter Juhi Babbar. In an interview with Lehren Retro, he talked about his parents’ relationship and his family’s values. Juhi told that her father’s family had initially suggested mother Nadira to adopt a Hindu name like Nirmala or Nirdesh, but her grandfather stopped it. Juhi said jokingly, ‘We are a symbol of Indianness. We are just waiting for a Christian girl so we can have all religions represented. We belong to all religions.

Diwali and Eid both at home
In her childhood, both Diwali and Eid were celebrated in Juhi’s house. He said, ‘There is no such festival where both our parents are not present. I wouldn’t say we are a very religious family, but we are very cultural. It is part of our tradition that we celebrate festivals, birthdays and New Years together.

Religious differences created tension between Raj and Nadira?
When asked whether religious differences created tension between Raj and Nadira? Juhi rejected this outright. He credited their lovely relationship to mutual respect and understanding. Juhi also talked about her maternal grandparents, Sajjad Zaheer and Razia Sajjad Zaheer, and described them as culturally grounded people. He did not follow strict religious practices. They celebrated festivals like Eid as community and cultural occasions.

Smita Patil returns to first wife
However, after this love-filled relationship, Raj Babbar fell in love and married famous actress Smita Patil without getting a divorce. But he died at the time of birth of his son Prateik Babbar. After this tragic incident, Raj Babbar once again returned to Nadira.

At the age of seven, father had mentioned about second marriage.
Juhi also opened up about the complex dynamic of her family and how Smita tried to build a relationship with her and her brother Arya Babbar. Juhi shared, ‘My dad told me about his marriage to Smita Patil when I was barely seven years old and hence my memories of Smita are very different’.

How was your relationship with stepmother Smita?
Juhi further said, ‘He did a lot for me. I think he also had this thing in his mind that we are the children of the person who is most special to him and hence we are also special to him. She loved us very much, brought gifts for us whenever she went somewhere and made sure that at home we were served only the food we liked. These little memories are nice, but unfortunately, there aren’t many of them.