'Not Even Worth My Husband's Toenail': When Nutan Publicly Slapped & Humiliated Sanjeev Kumar

Sanjeev Kumar, remembered as one of Hindi cinema’s most versatile and sensitive actors, continues to captivate hearts decades after his passing. Known for his performances in classics such as Sholay, Seeta

Aur Geeta, Aandhi, and Angoor, the late actor had carved an indelible niche in Bollywood with his understated yet powerful artistry. Yet, behind the brilliance of his cinematic journey lay a life shadowed by loneliness and heartbreak.

Despite enjoying immense fame and critical acclaim, Sanjeev Kumar’s personal life remained unfulfilled. The actor, who died young, never found lasting happiness in love. His name was often linked with leading actresses of his time, but none of those relationships found a happy ending.

According to revelations made by his niece Jigna Shah and journalist-author Hanif Javeri, who have spoken in detail about the actor’s life and emotional struggles, Sanjeev Kumar’s heart truly belonged to only two women, Hema Malini and Nutan.

His love for Hema Malini, often described as deep and one-sided, left a lasting scar. After she rejected his proposal, Kumar reportedly vowed never to marry. But long before that heartbreak, another chapter had already unfolded in his life, his relationship with Nutan.

In a recent conversation about the late actor’s life, his niece, Jigna Shah, and Hanif Zaveri, the journalist-turned-author of the authorised biography An Actor’s Actor: The Authorised Biography of Sanjeev Kumar, offered fresh details about relationships that have been the focus of persistent rumours.

Speaking to Vickey Lalwani, Zaveri sought to separate confirmed facts from speculation. On the subject of the actor’s alleged links with contemporaries, he said, “Hema Malini wala maamla sach tha aur Nutan wala sach tha. Unka relationship tha Nutan ke saath (Rumours regarding Hema Malini and Nutan were true. He was in a relationship with Nutan). But other rumours after that, it was one sided. For instance, Sulakshana Pandit wanted to marry him but he was not interested. She also took him to temple to get married but he said no because he had this intuition that he won’t live long so he did not want to spoil someone’s life.”

Zaveri traced the beginnings of the relationship with Nutan to their collaboration on the film Devi. Nutan was then married to naval officer Rajnish Bahl. “It happened during the making of ‘Devi’ and they were quite serious. Director Govind Saraiya who was a common friend between Nutan and him and he used to make plans for them to meet. Saraiya has given me a quote in my book about it,” Zaveri told the interviewer.

Shah, reflecting family memory, confirmed that there had indeed been a relationship but said it did not endure. “Their relationship was there, but it just fizzled out because she was also married,” she said.

The exchange also revisited a long-circulated anecdote, an incident in which Nutan purportedly slapped Sanjeev Kumar on a film set. Zaveri relayed a version he had recorded from the actor’s sister, Gayatri Pandit, and from the contemporaneous milieu. “According to Sanjeev Kumar’s sister, Gayatri Pandit, one day before the slap incident, there was an argument between Nutan and her husband,” he said, adding, that the next day, just to prove to her husband that there was nothing between her and Sanjeev Kumar, she slapped him.

“It was during the shoot of ‘Devi’ and the film shoot stopped as Nutan left from there. Sanjeev Kumar went to director Aspi Irani and he advised him that you should not speak about Nutan and this incidence to the media. He never spoke about Nutan till his last breath to anyone,” Zaveri added.

Nutan’s own comments on the incident, published earlier in Stardust, were blunt and dismissive. On why she slapped him, she said, “I was disturbed and perplexed. Besides being my co-star, Sanjeev was nothing to me.” She went further in tone, stating, “Sanjeev Kumar isn’t even worth my husband’s toe nail.”

Family members also sought to explain Kumar’s lifelong decision not to marry. Shah recalled a serious early cardiac episode that shaped his view of the future, “He had a heart-attack once at a very young age and after that he had this mindset that he will not live for long, so why spoil someone else’s life by getting married. He had an intuition that he’s going to die early.” That conviction, according to those close to him, informed both personal choices and the reticence with which he discussed intimate matters.

In the years that followed, Sanjeev Kumar continued to deliver stellar performances, channeling his emotions into his craft. Yet, his personal life remained barren of companionship.