'He moved on': Neelima Azim on divorce with friend of 15 years Pankaj Kapur when Shahid Kapoor was just 3.5 years old

Shahid Kapoor grew up in a family where his father Pankaj Kapur got divorced from mother Neelima Azim, when the actor was merely three and a half years old. Neelima opened up about the divorce in a recent interview and said that she didn't decide to separate but he moved on.

Talking to Pinkvilla, Neelima said, "I would like to say that I didn't decide to separate. It's a fact. He (Pankaj Kapur) moved on and it was a difficult thing for me to stomach but he also had his reasons. We had been friends from a long time. I think I was 15 years old when I became friends with him. He had very good reasons and I understood it."

While Neelima was heartbroken then, she wishes him well. The actress added, "When there's a break-up, which is called divorce, it is painful for both. There was a lot of friendship and attachment but there was heartbreak. It's alright. He's very well settled with his family today and I wish him well."

Neelima said that Shahid was the reason she believed in life again. "After that, I had my own journey which was all about picking myself up and I had my friends and family to support. I had my cousins and my guru Pt. Birju Maharaj. But most of all, I had Shahid. He gave me an insurmountable belief in life. I was young so I was able to do it again. It took time though, it took me about a couple of years, but then I was fine," mentioned Azim.

While Shahid is close to Neelima and Ishaan Khatter, the actor also spends quality time with his father every now-and-then. In fact Shahid would work with Pankaj Kapur in his upcoming movie 'Jersey' which features Mrunal Thakur as the female lead.