From accompanying groom Zaheer Iqbal on his bachelor’s trip to holding phoolon ki chadar for bride Sonakshi Sinha during her bridal entry, actor Saqib Saleem was a part of his best friends’ wedding festivities from the word go.
“Sona and Zaheer have been a part of my life for the last six to seven years now. So, when you spent the most important years of your life with people like them, andar se woh ek awaaz aati hai. It doesn’t feel like you’re doing something [special for them]. It just felt like ki ghar ki shaadi ho rahi thi,” Saleem tells us.
Also Read: EXCLUSIVE | Sonakshi Sinha calls herself ‘lucky’ being married to Zaheer Iqbal: I feel everyone has attended my wedding
The 36-year-old adds that since he shares so many common friends with the newlyweds, there was no thought being put into who is taking care of what responsibilities during the celebrations.
“We’ve all grown together, travelled together, eaten meals together, watched films and partied together. So, after all this, you don’t think so much about who is doing what [during a wedding]. Sab log sab kuch kar rahe the. We were all there for the both Sona and Zaheer because this is a beautiful love story for the ages, and we wanted to be a part of it,” says the actor, who stars in upcoming horror-comedy Kakuda, where he plays Sinha’s onscreen husband.
However, on a lighter note, Saleem is quick to add he often found himself in a spot when he had to choose between being on either of the groom or bride’s side.
“If I used to take Sona’s side then I’d get a message from Zaheer, ‘Theek hai bhai, you be on her side’. If I go on his side, I would get a message from her. So, we were all walking on slight bit if eggshells trying to please both the lovely people, hence we decided hum dono ki taraf hain,” he tells us.
Soon after the wedding on June 23, Saleem had posted an Insta story wishing the newlyweds with a “genuine question”, ‘Bhaiya Bhabhi bolun ya didi jiju?’ Asked if he has figured a way out and he laughs, “Woh confusion abhi bhi chal raha hai. Dekhte hain abhi kya hota hai.”
While for all these years, Sinha and Iqbal never announced their relationship publicly, Saleem says that there was nothing awkward about it, or even when he was asked about his friends and their relationship status.
“Honestly, nobody was hiding anything. People were just being in their space and as friends, of course we are protective about Sona and Zaheer, but they were never hiding anything. Woh khush the apne jeevan mein and nobody likes to interfere in other people’s lives. Maybe social media gives a different impression but in normal life, people are very busy with their respective lives. And whoever was part of Sona and Zaheer’s life they were only happy for them,” he wraps up.
