Jewellery designer Farah Khan Ali has confirmed that her father, veteran actor Sanjay Khan, was briefly married to actor Zeenat Aman before the two divorced under Muslim personal law. She also dismissed long-standing allegations that Sanjay physically assaulted Zeenat during their relationship.
Farah Khan Ali confirms marriage and divorce
Speaking on journalist Vickey Lalwani’s YouTube channel, Farah acknowledged the marriage when asked about persistent rumours surrounding the pair. “Yes, he had at that point (married her),” she said. Explaining how the relationship ended, Farah added, “There was a Muslim way of getting married, and he divorced her the Muslim way as well.”
Sanjay Khan was already married to Zarine Khan at the time. Zeenat Aman later married actor Mazhar Khan in 1985, and the two remained together until his death in 1998.
Farah rejects assault allegations
Farah also addressed allegations that Sanjay assaulted Zeenat at a public gathering in 1979, an incident that has remained the subject of public discussion for decades. Calling the claims “hogwash”, she said her father had never been physically violent towards women. “My father has never raised his hand on my mother or any of his daughters, and he is not a violent man to raise a finger on a woman,” she said.
Referring to conversations with her mother, Zarine Khan, Farah claimed that Zeenat had a pre-existing eye condition. “My mother told me that Zeenat’s mother suffered from an eye disease... My father never raised his hand on Zeenat Aman. So all this nonsense about a party where my father beat her is bullsh*t,” she said.
Impact on Farah’s family
Farah also reflected on the impact the relationship had on her family, saying her mother did not place the blame solely on Zeenat. “She said your father was attracted to her, so I don’t just blame her, I blame your father as well. There was an attraction on both sides,” Farah recalled. She added that the episode nearly ended her parents’ marriage. According to Farah, while pregnant with son Zayed Khan, Zarine temporarily left the family home for several months after giving birth.
“My mother was a very strong lady... She left Zayed behind with my father and with all of us and came back looking like a million dollars. I think that’s when my father realised she was independent and didn’t depend on him,” Farah said.
Decades-old controversy
Sanjay Khan has consistently denied allegations that he assaulted Zeenat Aman, previously stating in an interview that he “never slapped her” and describing the reports as a “PR attack.” Zeenat, however, has spoken in the past about experiencing public physical abuse without naming anyone. During a 1999 appearance on Rendezvous with Simi Garewal, she said she had chosen to mentally distance herself from the traumatic experience as a way of coping.
In 2023, the actor revealed she had undergone surgery for ptosis, a condition causing drooping of the upper eyelid. She said the problem stemmed from an injury she sustained around her right eye nearly four decades earlier, which had gradually worsened and begun affecting her vision. Photographer Jayesh Sheth has also previously recalled photographing Zeenat after the alleged 1979 incident, saying she completed the shoot with remarkable resilience despite an injured eye.
Neither Farah Khan Ali’s recent remarks nor Sanjay Khan’s earlier denials alter the fact that the alleged assault has remained disputed, with both sides presenting differing accounts over the years.
