By: Entertainment DeskMumbai | Updated: December 31, 2025 12:30 PM IST 4 min readShahid Kapoor and Ishaan Kahtter's mother Neelima Azeem on her divorce with Pankaj Kapur (Photos: Shahid Kapoor / Instagram)Shahid Kapoor’s parents, Pankaj Kapur and Neelima Azeem, got divorced in 1984 when the Deva actor was just 3-years-old. 40 years down the line, actress Neelima Azeem feels no regret about parting ways with Pankaj, she feels happy to have her two sons – Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter in her life. In a recent interview with Vickey Lalwani, Neelima Azeem opened up about her marriage with Pankaj Kapur falling apart. She said it was the distance between them that made them go their separate ways.In the interview, looking back at her marriage and separation with Pankaj Kapur, Neelima Azeem said, “I separated from Pankaj Kapur when Shahid was three, when I was a very young girl. I have stopped overanalyzing and intellectualizing things, but introspection is always there to evolve. As you grow older, there are quite a few moments when you reflect on things. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be; nobody gets married to separate, they get married to stay together forever. Maybe we were very different people, and also marriage is not about what anybody did or what happened, it’s about where you are in your mind or which phase you are in, in your life. If that vibration doesn’t have the same frequency, it doesn’t sit well.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ishaan (@ishaankhatter) Also Read: Shahid Kapoor says parents Pankaj Kapur-Neelima Azim divorced when he was 3, never used his dad’s nameShe further shared, “There was a very massive distance since he was in Mumbai and I was in Delhi. I was still very much the girl who was in Delhi with my parents because that’s how it was. Maybe it was not a good idea at that point in time for him to have taken off to Mumbai without me and later without Shahid. An artist is very much in his own artistic endeavours, which consumes the artist, and I went back to dancing in Delhi.”Also Read | Shahid Kapoor says he didn’t grow up with father Pankaj Kapur around him: ‘From a young age, I felt like man of the house’Neelima also clarified that Pankaj had asked her before making the big decision of going to Mumbai, leaving them behind. “He had asked me, and I supported him. I said, ‘Go ahead, you’re extremely talented.’ I don’t think we could afford to come to Mumbai then with a very small baby, so he was trying to make ground here, and I was in Delhi. It was years of distancing that made us go our own ways. 40 years down the line, I am a very different human being today. Back then, I was too young, so it was too much for my very young shoulders to handle. If I look at it from every angle, I have no regrets because I have Shahid and Ishaan. I wish well for everyone.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ishaan (@ishaankhatter) After getting divorced from Pankaj Kapur, Neelima Azeem married Rajesh Khatter, after which Ishaan was born. Today, while Pankaj Kapur is a celebrated name in the film industry, Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter are also well-known actors. On the work front, Shahid was seen in the film Deva this year. He has O’ Romeo and Cocktail 2 in the pipeline next. As for Ishaan, he was seen in the film Homebound and also featured in the web series The Royals.On the personal front, Shahid Kapoor is married to Mira Kapoor, and they have two children – Misha and Zain. Ishaan, on the other had is rumored to be dating a Malaysian model, Chandni Bainz.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd