So, as per plans, Shraddha Kapoor and Rohan Shrestha are (most likely) returning from Maldives tonight where they indulged in the pre-wedding festivities of Shaza Morani and Priyaank Sharma (who had a court marriage in Mumbai on February 4). The celebrations would have extended to either Aamby Valley or Khandala where the Moranis and Sharmas had planned to have a Hindu wedding, but the recent resurgence of COVID saw them postponing that: ETimes broke that story FIRST.

We had a chat with Shakti Kapoor a few days ago and it may be recalled that he had said he has no objection if his daughter Shraddha wants to tie the nuptial knot with Rohan.

It is now no hidden secret that Shraddha and Rohan are madly in love with each other. Time for the media to stop writing Rohan as Shraddha’s ‘rumoured’ beau?

A few minutes ago, we spoke to Rohan’s father, former ace-lensman Rakesh Shrestha. Shrestha Senior said that Rohan has started looking after his studio in Aram Nagar (Versova, Mumbai) and he himself has quit photography. “I am now involved with redeveloping Aram Nagar which is a vast land of 42 acres into Aram Nagar 2.0. The residents of Aram Nagar had approached me to carry out this endeavour and I started quite enjoying it. I have got almost all the formalities completed and am waiting for a word from the developer and the government.”

Coming to Rohan’s photography, Rakesh Shrestha said that his son has exceeded his expectations. “His pictures are very edgy and he is in tandem with the trends. He is doing very well and I don’t impose my views on him. There would be no point in Rohan becoming a clone of his father. Besides, today’s times demand a different output when it comes to pictures. The heroes and heroines are not photographed in the same way as their predecessors. If the era has changed, it is only natural for us to accept the transition and adapt ourselves to the need of the hour.”

Added Rakesh Shreshtha, “Rohan is doing fantastic in his professional life. I expect him to go far ahead. And you know what! He completed his studies in every possible way and only then switched over to treat the camera professionally. It wasn’t a case of tagging behind me in the studios and watching my work. And, it is this factor that’s chiefly responsible for his style of shooting pictures to be far different from mine.”

The conversation naturally drifted towards Rohan’s relationship with Shraddha. “As far as I was told, they were friends from their college days. Besides, they have many common friends in Juhu. They both are doing so well in their professional lives, so any decision they take about being together will also be a sensible and mature one.”

Rakesh Shrestha was clear that he would welcome Shraddha if she wants to marry his son. “If they decide to marry each other, I will happily do everything for them. The word ‘objection’ does not exist in my dictionary. And let me tell you, I call Rohan as ‘My Dream’, I rarely address him as ‘Rohan’.”

Towards close, Rakesh Shrestha revealed that the Kolhapure sisters (Priyaank’s mother Padmini, Shraddha’s mother Shivangi, Tejaswini) have played a huge role in his career. “When I started as a photographer, I didn’t have a studio of my own. I used to go to shoots on my bike and shoot there. And where did I eat my lunch for at least 20 days every month? In the Kolhapure household!”

The concluding question was an obvious one: How many portfolios has he shot of Padmini? “Don’t even ask. Plennntyyyy,” he stretched and laughed.

Rakesh Shrestha was simply brilliant when he handled the camera; he shot for over 600 films and almost every actor in his time.