Cricketer’s love crossed all boundaries… Bollywood actress rebelled against society, yet love remained incomplete.

New Delhi. The relationship between Bollywood and cricket has always been in the headlines. But about three decades ago, a love story started which shook the roots of Indian society. This was the story of West Indies’ greatest batsman Sir Vivian Richards and Indian cinema’s outspoken actress Neena Gupta. This was not just an affair, but a ‘bold’ rebellion as per those times, the echo of which is heard even today.

This is around 1987. When the passion for Reliance World Cup was running high in India. Richards was the biggest name of world cricket at that time. His height, his fearless style of playing fast bowlers without a helmet and his magical batting were feared all over the world. During this time, he met Neena Gupta in a party. Neena was known for her intellectual ability and passion for theatre. She fell under the spell of Richards’ personality.

Vivian Richards was married and was living a happy life with his wife Mary in Antigua. But his closeness with Neena Gupta increased. This relationship was so secret that Neena would often take time out from shooting and go to London, where Richards had another house. At the same time, Richards would also secretly come to Mumbai and spend time at Neena’s flat. The biggest turn in this love story came when Neena Gupta became pregnant. In the Indian society of that era, even imagining a live-in relationship or becoming a mother before marriage was considered a sin. Neena took a revolutionary decision. She decided to give birth to a girl child, going against the conservative opinion of her parents, well-wishers and society.

Wayne Richards was the explosive batsman of the world in the 80s.

Everyone was asking the same question, who is Masaba’s father?
When Masaba was born in a hospital in Mumbai, there was a stir in the entire country. Everyone was asking the same question. Who is Masaba’s father? Neena refused to register her father’s name in the hospital records and remained silent on the sharp questions of the media. Without any care, she got busy in her work and raising her daughter. This mystery would have remained for a long time. If an investigative journalist from Mumbai had not investigated the birth certificate documents of the Municipal Corporation. When a copy of that birth certificate was published in the newspapers, the whole world came to know that the great batsman Vivian Richards was Masaba’s father.

Neena Gupta got married to Vivek Mehra secretly in America
Interestingly, Vivian Richards never left his wife Mary. But he admitted in front of the whole world that Masaba is his daughter. Masaba also often went to Antigua on holidays, where Richards’s wife Mary accepted her wholeheartedly and Masaba spent time with her half-siblings. Richards and Nina never married. Richards being with his wife became a major reason for putting a ‘full stop’ on this love story.

After this, Neena’s name was associated with many people, but she found true peace after years. After about 6 years of romance, in 2008, Neena Gupta secretly married Vivek Mehra, a chartered accountant by profession, in America. Vivek is a partner in a big company like Price Waterhouse Coopers. He brought the stability in Neena’s life that she was looking for.