Naseeruddin Shah admits neglecting first family, calls Ratna Pathak his true love

Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah are widely admired as one of Hindi cinema’s most enduring couples, known for their honesty, mutual respect and lasting partnership. However, long before the two married in 1982, Naseeruddin experienced a turbulent first marriage with Purveen Murad, also known as Manara Sikri, the sister of late actor Surekha Sikri. The couple had a daughter, Heeba, and in his autobiography And Then One Day, the veteran actor candidly reflects on that chapter of his life, admitting he was an emotionally immature husband and a distant father in his early twenties.The story began in the late 1960s when a 19-year-old Naseeruddin Shah was studying at Aligarh Muslim University and had developed a deep passion for theatre. While his family disapproved of his acting ambitions, Purveen, then a 34-year-old medical intern at the university, became his strongest supporter.