He ruled millions of hearts with his charming smile and soft-boy persona. Famously called Bollywood’s “Chocolate Boy,” he made generations fall in love with his effortless romance. Can you guess who?

His films like Bobby, Khel Khel Mein, Kabhi Kabhie, Amar Akbar Anthony and Rafoo Chakkar turned him into a national crush. Girls didn’t just admire him, they adored him.

But one admirer took it a little more to heart. It was Raveena Tandon. Yes, the Bollywood beauty once had a massive crush on Rishi Kapoor.

It was in 1980 when Rishi Kapoor broke several hearts and married Neetu Singh in a grand ceremony. The duo fell in love on the sets of Kabhie Kabhi when they were just teenagers and tied the knot on January 22, 1980.

While many celebs celebrated the union and wished them happily ever after, young Raveena attended the wedding, but she wasn’t smiling at all. She was quite angry when she got to know about his marriage.

In a throwback interview, Raveena confessed she sulked throughout the wedding because her biggest crush was getting married. “I was sulking because he got married. I had the biggest crush on him. Every time he used to go abroad, he used to get me like a doll or something. And I was sulking throughout his wedding,” she recalled.

Her only consolation? Rishi Kapoor married Neetu ji, someone she deeply admired and respected. “The only consolation was that he got married to Neetu ji. It was the best thing. I love them as a couple. I used to adore both of them,” Raveena added. (Photo: Instagram/Raveena Tandon)

Years later, fate brought them together on screen in the 1995 film Saajan Ki Baahon Mein. Rishi Kapoor even joked about Raveena having to call him “Chintu ji”, turning an old crush into a fond memory.

The romantic drama, directed by Jay Prakash, tells the story of an affluent young woman, Rashmi (played by Raveena Tandon), who falls in love with a talented singer, Sajjan (played by Armaan Kohli). The story explores themes of love, sacrifice, and societal pressure as Sajjan and Rashmi navigate the hurdles in their quest for happiness.

The veteran actor breathed his last on April 30, 2020, due to a recurrence of leukaemia. He was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai owing to breathing difficulties.

On Rishi Kapoor’s demise, Raveena Tandon posted a throwback picture and a clip of his newspaper interview. She captioned the posts as “Just totally love you! Seems like a part of my life, my childhood memories, my now… all taken away so fast. Not fair chintu uncle. Not fair on all of us Couldn’t even say a goodbye. We will miss you terribly. #memories. His infectious laughter, his wit, incidents, even when he used to scold me on sets when working with him.”

“Still seeing me as the same 5 year old he knew, My first walkie talkie doll he bought from Paris, a makeup gift for getting engaged to Neetu aunty without telling me” and “My heart had filled with pride when I read this praise coming from chintu uncle in the press… saved this cutting from the year 2009. So many memories and broken hearts you leave behind …. #farewell #foreverlove Will miss you too much chintu uncle,” she added.