They are famous faces in their own right, but it was with the Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives — which tracked not only the daily goings-on in their friendship but also captured their lives in all its unapologetic glory — did Neelam Kothari, Bhavana Pandey, Maheep Kapoor and Seema Sajdeh spring into the collective consciousness of the nation. The Netflix show, produced by Karan Johar, whose first season dropped in 2020, followed by the second two years later, had its latest outing — which saw the advent of a trio of Delhi socialites to challenge the “Bollywood Wives” — in October last year.
Recently, Neelam, Maheep, Bhavana and Seema were in Calcutta for the opening of ABID Interiors 2025, in association with t2, at Biswa Bangla. We caught up with the quartet for an exclusive chat.
Welcome to Calcutta! What is your favourite thing about the city?
Maheep Kapoor: Can I start with the food? I am waiting to have my mustard fish. Plus, I absolutely love the people. We have been coming here year after year with Shah Rukh (Khan) and our families (for KKR’s IPL matches at Eden Gardens) and the city has always been so welcoming and hospitable. I love being here.
Bhavana Pandey: The warmth of Calcutta and the people is irreplaceable. My husband, Chunky, comes here often for his Bengali films. I remember both the times I was pregnant, I used to ask him to get mishti doi. I am trying to be careful about my diet now, but earlier I used to have a blast!
Neelam Kothari: Calcutta holds a special part in my heart. I have done a Bengali film (Bodnaam) with Prosenjit (Chatterjee). The food is amazing! The mishti doi, fish and so much more. I also come to the city often for exhibitions of my jewellery line.
Seema Sajdeh: For me, it is two things — fashion in Calcutta and the food. Sabyasachi, Anamika (Khanna)... some of my favourite designers are from Calcutta and every time I go to an exhibition, I ask if there is someone from Calcutta and I tell them that I am visiting their store!
How would you sum up the experience of featuring across three seasons of The Fabulous Lives...?
Neelam: The whole experience has been phenomenal and overwhelming. ‘Fabulous’, is the word. I am back on screen and I never imagined things would turn around like this and I feel immense gratitude.
Maheep: It is always exciting when you see the love and you come to places like Calcutta and you hear people say: ‘We have seen the show twice or thrice!’ It is very encouraging.
Bhavana: Absolutely! Also, what we completely didn’t expect was men to like it so much. The best part, for me, is that it has been liked by all age groups.
Seema: It has been a rollercoaster ride and feels amazing!
To have your personal lives broadcast to the world must not be easy. How have you navigated that?
Seema: You have to trust your crew with your life! These are my friends and you just have to trust them with everything. Contrary to what people think, that reality is all glamour, it is really not. It is not even like an acting job where you are given a script and you know what to do and when. This is our lives. Even after the show, we continue to be the same people and the show has repercussions and ramifications on our personal lives. It is very hard. The only thing that helps is that we have each other’s back and will always do.
Maheep, you are known to be very straightforward. Have you said anything on the show and regretted it immediately ?
Maheep: No. I have always been like that and I stick to what I have said on camera. So far, so good!
Have your children watched the show and do they come back with feedback?
Bhavana and Maheep: Yes! They have watch parties!
Neelam: My daughter (Ahana) has not watched it!
Seema: She is a strict mom! (Laughs)
Neelam: Well, I think she has got a few more years to start watching shows like these...
Seema: Wishful thinking!
The Delhi girls — Shalini Passi, Riddhima Kapoor Sahni and Kalyani Saha — joined your troupe in the latest season…
Maheep: Yes! I think I was very reserved with them. See, I know who my friends are and I don’t know the Delhi girls as much. Honestly, I was very polite to them.
How much of the drama is real? Is this how your lives normally unfold?
Bhavana: All of it is very real! When we do a scene, it affects us a lot more when we go home. Especially when there are certain dynamics between us and we have to be vulnerable while being on screen. We have been friends for over 25 years and it is exactly how you would sort out stuff with your friends. Then there is another emotional rollercoaster that we go through when we watch the show because there are several interview diaries and things we say on the camera which others aren’t aware of, and that’s another layer we usually navigate.
Bhavana, you came across as very diplomatic in the first season. The following editions have seen you speak your mind unabashedly. What changed?
Bhavana: I know that the audience feels that way but I genuinely don’t think I was any different from who I normally am. I was nervous in the beginning... that is a given because I had never been on screen before, and this one had me being there while just living my normal life. Through the seasons, I am also growing emotionally and professionally; we were on this show from our mid-40s to now age 50, so I am finding myself while being on camera. It is a show with real feelings so we can’t go home and watch and then make changes accordingly.
The show has given your personal businesses a boost too...
Maheep: Oh, nothing succeeds like success. Tyaani (jewellery line) is both Karan’s (Johar) and mine and he’s also the producer of the show so I have the liberty to advertise pieces wherever I want! (Laughs) Everything just works.
Seema: I am very grateful that the show has given us visibility and I am aware that we are privileged to be sitting here. That being said, you could be on any TV show in the world but it is your product that eventually sells. It definitely puts our brands on the map but eventually the product has to be cutting-edge.