Leena Chandavarkar recalls Kishore Kumar's first proposal; Asked about Madhubala and Yogita Bali; Rejected him initially

Veteran actress Leena Chandavarkar revisited one of the most memorable moments of her life during an upcoming episode of Indian Idol. Appearing on the music reality show with her son, Sumit Kumar, she spoke about her first meeting with legendary singer and actor Kishore Kumar. During her interaction with host Aditya Narayan, Leena was asked whether it was true that Kishore Kumar had proposed to her the very first time they met. Smiling at the question, she replied, "Ji yaad aaya..."

A film offer turned into a marriage proposal

Recalling the meeting, Leena said Kishore Kumar had initially approached her with a film offer. He told her that he had an excellent role in mind and wanted her to be a part of the project. As the conversation continued, he unexpectedly shifted the topic and asked whether she wanted to get married in the future.When Leena answered that she did, Kishore Kumar immediately responded, "Toh mera proposal sabse pehle."The sudden proposal left the actress surprised. She admitted that she had not expected the conversation to take such a turn during their very first meeting.

Leena Chandavarkar's playful response

Instead of accepting the proposal, Leena responded with humour. She jokingly asked, "Nahi nahi... jiske saath aap film karte ho aap shaadi karte ho?" Referring to Kishore Kumar's previous marriages, she questioned why he was already speaking about marriage when he had only invited her to discuss a film.

Sharing the rest of their conversation, she recalled, "Unhone kaha 'sabke sath nahi', kyunki unhone Madhubala ke sath shaadi ki, Yogita ke sath ki phir abhi mujhe filmo ke liye le rahe hai par shaadi ka kyun bola, 'accha baba cancel kar do, shaadi cancel.' Toh yeh mujhe yaad aata hai ki kaise woh ekdum se change hogaye, unko bura bhi nahi laga." ("He said, 'Not with everyone.' Since he had married Madhubala and then Yogita, I wondered why he was talking about marriage when he was only offering me a film.

Then he simply said, 'Alright then, let's cancel it... marriage cancelled.' I still remember how quickly he changed the mood. He didn't feel offended at all.")According to Leena, Kishore Kumar accepted her response with his trademark humour. Laughing off the moment, he replied, "Accha baba, cancel kar do... shaadi cancel." ("Alright then, forget it... marriage cancelled.")Leena also revealed how she first came into contact with the legendary singer.

She said Kishore Kumar's driver, Abdul, visited her residence and conveyed a message asking her to call him. She later visited his bungalow, where he narrated several story ideas before introducing a project titled Pyar Ajnabi Hai.The actress shared that she was going through a difficult phase in her personal life during that period. Meeting Kishore Kumar, however, brought a positive change to her outlook. Their friendship gradually grew stronger and eventually blossomed into a lifelong relationship.Before marrying Leena Chandavarkar, Kishore Kumar had gone through several phases in his personal life. He first married singer and actress

Ruma Guha Thakurta

in 1951, and the couple had a son, Amit Kumar. After their separation, he married actress Madhubala in 1960 and remained with her until her death in 1969.He later married actress Yogita Bali in 1976, but that marriage ended within two years. In 1980, Kishore Kumar married Leena Chandavarkar. The couple remained together until the legendary singer's demise in 1987 and welcomed their son, Sumit Kumar.