“If my only goal was to make money, I would have agreed”: Why did Preeti Jhangiani, star of the movie “Mohabbatein”, suddenly leave cinema?

“If my only goal was to make money, I would have agreed”: Why did “Mohabbatein” star Preeti Jhangiani suddenly leave cinema?

Preeti Jhangiani came to Bollywood from South India and is still demonstrating her creative potential in various films. It is probably not known to many that the actress, who beautifully portrayed the image of a young widow in the melodrama “Mohabbatein”, has starred in eighty films.

Preeti Jhangiani was born on August 18, 1980, in Mumbai. She was the youngest daughter in the family. Along with her older sister Deepa, Preeti dreamed of becoming a princess until she was 10 years old, which is why her parents gifted her a beautiful crown.

“Back then, looking in the mirror, I imagined myself going on stage and people admiring my beauty,” the actress recalls with a smile.

A few years later, advertising agents noticed the young Preeti, and after that, she entered the vibrant world of show business. Shoots, signing contracts, participating in commercials, and appearing in music videos paved the way for the girl into the world of cinema.

Due to being very busy, she was even forced to drop out of school and could not complete her studies. In 1999, Preeti debuted in three films. These were: the Telugu-language film “Thammudu” starring Pawan Kalyan in the lead role, the Malayalam romantic thriller “Mazhavillu” featuring Kunchacko Boban, and the Tamil romantic drama “Hello” starring Prashanth.

Thus, when she first appeared in Bollywood through the melodrama “Mohabbatein”, Preeti Jhangiani was not a newcomer to cinema. “Mohabbatein” received critical acclaim and also earned high revenues at the box office.

On the wave of success, Preeti participated in the comedies “Awara Paagal Deewana” and “Wah! Tera Kya Kehna”, as well as the action films “Anarth” and “Baaz: A Bird in Danger”. After them, she played roles in the dramas “LOC Kargil” and “Aan: Men at Work”, but Preeti could not manage to stand out from others in the film industry.

She managed to star in films in several languages, even participating in Pakistani cinema, but her roles were simple and did not distinguish the actress from others. Realizing this herself, she left Bollywood.

“I couldn't achieve the career I wanted. I was dissatisfied with the roles offered to me. I'm not saying I only dreamed of lead roles, but they had to have at least some meaning in the film that influenced the plot. This was important to me. Bollywood did not offer me such a thing. Therefore, I thought it was better to leave rather than disappoint myself or my fans,” Preeti admits.

“I received offers from many TV shows, even reality shows, but I didn't want to. If my only goal was to make money, I would have agreed. But acting is something else. I don't want to speak ill of television, but it is a long-term commitment. As a wife and mother of two children, I couldn't manage that,” she adds.

In the mid-2000s, Preeti became engaged to Mushtaq Khan, the brother of director Firoz Nadiadwala. However, the couple called off the engagement for unknown reasons.

In 2006, on the set of the film “With Love”, Preeti met actor Parvin Dabas. They got married on March 23, 2008, and had a son three years later. In 2016, Preeti gave birth to another son named Dev.

Later, Preeti and Parvin established their own production company, with her husband becoming the company's producer. After so many years, Preeti returned to the screens in Bollywood with the drama “Kafas”, which premiered on SonyLIV on June 23. This is the Indian adaptation of the 2019 British mini-series “Dark Money”. The lead roles in the film were played by Sharman Joshi and Mona Singh.