Shahana Goswami has broken her silence on her past relationship with fitness icon and actor-model Milind Soman. Speaking to host Siddharth Kannan in a recent conversation, the actress traced the entire arc of their story, from a schoolgirl crush in Delhi to a full-fledged relationship in Mumbai, and finally to a 2013 breakup that she describes as one of the most honest decisions of her life.
The story begins when Shahana was 16 or 17 years old and still a student in Delhi. Milind’s film, ‘Rules: Pyaar Ka Superhit Formula’, had just released. She went to watch it with school friends, initially with low expectations. “I also thought why are we going to watch a model’s film? It would have very bad acting,” she recalled. But the experience was the opposite of what she expected. She came out of the theatre completely taken by Milind Soman.
The search for a number
What followed was something few people would admit to publicly. Shahana went online and actively searched for Milind’s contact details. She found a landline number. On that number’s answering machine, Milind had left his personal cellphone number. She saved it and texted him on his birthday.
He replied. Immediately.
That text exchange, which started as a fan reaching out to her favourite celebrity, continued for the next six years. In all that time, the two never once spoke over a phone call.
“Basically, I was a stalker fan,” Shahana said with a laugh during the interview.
Mumbai changes everything
When Shahana moved to Mumbai for college, the dynamic began to shift. She and Milind started meeting in person. For the first time, the relationship had a physical dimension beyond words on a screen.
Eventually, at a point when both of them were single, Shahana sent him a message. This time, it led somewhere neither of them had quite expected. They began dating.
The age gap that never felt like one
There is a 21-year age difference between Shahana and Milind. For them, she says, it was not really a factor.
“I was always way more mature than my age,” she explained. She described growing up in an open family environment where she was always treated and felt like an adult. She did not feel younger than Milind in any meaningful way during their time together.
Lessons that stayed
Beyond the romance, Shahana credits Milind with shaping some of her most deeply held beliefs. One line he used to say has clearly never left her: “Nobody is responsible for your happiness or sadness.”
She says that idea resonated with her and still does. It is the kind of lesson that tends to come from someone who has lived longer and reflected more, and she absorbed it fully.
The influence extended to smaller things as well. Shahana used to be a dog person. She was not particularly fond of cats. Milind changed that. She described him as having a very cat-like personality, and spending time with him helped her understand and appreciate cats in a way she never had before.
Why it ended
The relationship came to an end in 2013. Shahana is careful and precise about how she describes the breakup. She does not frame it as a falling out or a failure. She calls it a matter of timing.
“Till the very end, we were in love with each other,” she said. But being in love was not enough. They had reached a point where the relationship could not move forward in a way that worked for both of them. Their visions of what they wanted from life and love had diverged.
“When you see that a relationship is not able to sync, you have to let it go,” she explained.
Milind Soman went on to marry fitness enthusiast Ankita Konwar in 2018. Shahana Goswami has continued building one of the more interesting acting careers in Indian cinema. Both, it seems, found their way.