In an exclusive interview during the 80s, to the leading Tamil magazine Kumudham, former chief minister of Tamilnadu, Jayalalitha had detailed on why she never married actor Shoban Babu, who was reported to be her lover.
Here's an excerpt from the sensational interview:
Question: Are you of the opinion that it isn't wrong for a woman to live with a man who's already married to another woman?
Jayalalitha: This is a Very generic question, which cannot be answered in the same way, as any woman would choose to live with a man, depending on her personal situations only. Like any other woman, even I was longing to live my life with a man for whom I'll be everything, and he'll be mine alone. But fate had other ideas, as I found deep attachment with Shobhan Babu, and it wasn't planned. In fact, he was married even when we met for the first time. It was neither his mistake, nor mine. Why didn't he marry me after divorcing his wife? Isn't this been done by many? You can even rephrase the question this way.
Question: Like Doctor Bali - Vyjayanthi Mala?
Jayalalitha: Yes, But we didn't want to do it that way. Why should he reject his wife, when she hadn't committed Any mistake? Besides, her health condition wasn't great either. Even when Shoban Babu met me for the first time, her health had worsened, and we both felt, it wasn't fair to further impact her health by giving Such emotional shocks. Shoban Babu has a son and 3 daughters. Since I thought that he must get his daughters married and that I should never become an obstacle or trouble to their future, I decided firmly, not to talk about our relationship, until this moment.
