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Meet Sonakshi's Beau, Zaheer Iqbal

June 18, 2024 11:20 IST

Sonakshi Sinha, who is basking in the success of her hit Netflix show Heeramandi, will reportedly wed her longtime boyfriend Zaheer Iqbal on June 23.

The couple have been dating for seven years and are finally making it official.

But just who is Zaheer Iqbal? Namrata Thakker finds out.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

Born on December 10, 1988, Zaheer attended Bombay Scottish school -- which has star alumni like John Abraham, Hrithik Roshan, Ekta Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor -- and hails from a non-filmi background.

 

IMAGE: Zaheer and his sister Sanam Ratansi attend a wedding in Thailand.Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

Zaheer's sister Sanam Ratansi is a well-known Bollywood celebrity stylist while his father is into construction and also has a jewellery business.

 

IMAGE: A throwback li'l Zaheer with Salman Khan. Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

Salman Khan shares a close bond with Zaheer's father, Iqbal Ratansi, and helped launch Zaheer's movie career. Zaheer worked as an assistant director in Salman's 2014 film, Jai Ho, before he made his acting debut.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

In 2019, Zaheer debuted alongside Pranutan Bahl in Notebook, which was produced by Salman Khan.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

Salman decided to launch Zaheer after seeing him perform at his sister Sanam's wedding.

Interestingly, Salman launched Sonakshi as well, in Dabangg.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Sonakshi Sinha/Instagram

In 2022, Zaheer and Sonakshi acted together for the first time in Double XL. But the movie didn't do well at the box office.

 

IMAGE: Chilling in the Maldives. Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

While the 35 year-old hasn't appeared in movies since 2022, Zaheer has many other passions apart from acting.

He loves cycling, competing in swimming marathons and manages his family's construction business.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

He is also a certified advanced open water diver, just like his ladylove Sonakshi.

 

Photograph: Kind courtesy Zaheer Iqbal/Instagram

Before getting into a relationship with Sonakshi, Zaheer dated Kuch Kuch Hota Hai actor Sana Saeed.

NAMRATA THAKKER