Chandni’s secret vivah!:Article

Chandni's secret vivah!

Even as she readies for her on-screen nuptials, few know that Manasi Parekh got married earlier this year
Shaheen Parkar
shaheen@mid-day.com

Though her character Chandni may be tying the knot with Aditya (Vipul Gupta) in the Star One daily India Calling, not many are aware that Manasi Parekh is married to singer Parthiv Gohil. The actress had opted for a quiet wedding in the city on April 17 this year and had refused to talk about her big day till now. "It was a personal moment and I did not want any media glare," she says.
Low key
Says Manasi, "There may be people unaware that I am married but I prefer it that way. I want to keep my personal life away from my professional life. I'd rather be low-profile and avoid unnecessary publicity."
She would rather talk about her screen nuptials, which she describes as "a big fat telly wedding with the works – an elaborate mehendi and sangeet ceremony being shot at Future Studios."
Hubby came calling
Manasi keeps her personal life so tightly under wraps that she prefers to be non-committal when asked about her hubby, who had dropped in on the India Calling sets a couple of days ago when she suddenly took ill.
She only admits that she was unwell. "I was terribly sick. Basically it was lack of sleep and irregular eating habits. My body has yet to get adjusted to the grinds of a daily shooting schedule."
Song of love
Manasi's husband Parthiv Gohil is a singer who has his own band called Aakruti. He belts out both popular and classical numbers. He had also staged Dosti concerts based on the friendship between the songs of two languages (Gujarati and Hindi). Parthiv has performed in shows here as well as abroad. Incidentally, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas had Parthiv render the alaap when the credits rolled as well as in several scenes throughout the film.
Manasi and Parthiv first met on the sets of Sa Re Ga Ma on Zee's Alpha Gujarati channel in 2000. Parthiv was the anchor and Manasi a participant. At that time, Manasi harboured aspirations of becoming a professional singer, an aspiration she still harbours. They kept bumping into each other at music concerts and were engaged in February 2005.
Offers on hand
Acting happened when Manasi took part in an MTV talent hunt and was pencilled in for the channel's show Kitni Mast Hai Zindagi. She played the yellow-haired Jo, followed by Sony's Kaisa Ye Pyar Hai where she was seen as the signer Tania. "I'm singing all the time. On the sets of India Calling, I am glued to the IPod and keep listening to music as well."
A while back, she had accompanied Parthiv for his US concert for a couple of days. "There are offers to sing in stage shows, but with a daily shoot schedule I need to take out time for it," she says.
The Rose Audiovisuals show India Calling has Chandni playing a small town character who learns the ups and downs of city life at her job in a call centre.