Choreographer Pony Verma has shared details of her relationship with actor Prakash Raj, revealing that the actor was upfront about wanting marriage from the start and that their 12-year age gap was the reason the relationship worked rather than the reason it should not have.In a conversation with Prema, Pony Verma said the 12-year age difference between her and Prakash Raj, which drew attention and criticism when they married, was precisely what made the relationship work. “My friends were mad because I was marrying a man who was 12 years older than me,” Pony Verma said. “But I feel happy that we have a 12-year gap because I think a man like Prakash could really understand me and the depth of my life, where I have come from, how I think, and how I struggled,”She described howPrakash Raj brought calm into her life. “There is calmness that Prakash Raj brought into my life. So just sit back, enjoy the food, it’s all good. Nothing is going away, no time is running out, you’re not falling behind in life. Everything will work out,” Pony Verma said. “Honestly, only a guy who’s been through what Prakash Raj has could’ve handled me well,”Also Read: ‘Have several doubts about Vijay’: Prakash Raj reacts Tamil Nadu CM’s first 120 days in officePony Verma also spoke about her relationship with Prakash Raj’s daughters Pooja and Meghana from his first marriage. She described an active, ongoing family bond that has been maintained since before the wedding and continues 16 years later. “Pooja and Meghana keep coming home,” she said. “On the wedding day, they were standing in front of me during the ceremony, putting mehendi and haldi on the father during the wedding. They stood with us throughout.”“Every December, we are always together. We are together for every important milestone,” Pony Verma said. “It has been a really warm relationship between us, and we have maintained it.”Pony Verma said one of the things that drew her to Prakash Raj was the fact that he was direct about what he wanted and unapologetic about who he was.Story continues below this ad“He was very honest with his approach,” Pony Verma said. “He never tried to impress me. He never tried to make it all flashy for me, a girl from Mumbai. No, he was just himself, really simple. That’s what I loved about him.”She said Prakash Raj was clear from the beginning about his intentions. “One thing was very clear from Prakash Raj. He said he wants a long-term relationship. ‘I want to get married, and that’s just how it is. I’m not here to waste time,'” she recalled.Mumbai to HyderabadPony Verma said she never imagined she would leave Mumbai. As a choreographer who had built her career in the Hindi film industry since 2000, with credits across Bollywood films and television, the idea of relocating was not part of her plan.Also Read: Prakash Raj has lost work due to political opinions, refuses to live in fear: wifeStory continues below this ad“I could never imagine that I could leave Bombay and stay somewhere else,” she said. “Today, I am happily settled in Hyderabad and really happy with my decision. But I never thought life had so many surprises for you.”About the couplePrakash Raj and Pony Verma married on August 24, 2010, in an intimate Punjabi ceremony attended by his mother, his daughters and close friends. They have a son, Vedhant, born in 2016. In 2021, the couple remarried on their 11th wedding anniversary so that Vedhant, who was not present at the original ceremony, could witness his parents’ wedding.Prakash Raj was first married to actress Lalitha Kumari in 1994. They had three children: daughters Meghana and Pooja, and son Sidhu, who died in 2004 at the age of 10.Prakash Raj, born Prakash Rai on March 26, 1965, in Bengaluru, is one of Indian cinema’s most prolific actors, with a career spanning over three decades across Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and Malayalam films. Pony Verma, born Rashmi Verma on September 15, 1977, in Kolkata, is a choreographer who has worked across Hindi, Telugu and Tamil cinema since 2000.