Bollywood Fairytales: Bad first meeting, intimate wedding to welcoming daughter Vamika, look back at Anushka Sharma-Virat Kohli's love story

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Who doesn't believe in fairytales? While storybooks highlighted dreamy and perfect love stories of princes and princesses, they certainly educated people about the meaning of true love. Bollywood celebrities made them understand and showed what unconditional romance looks like. One of the couples that reinstated the trust in the institution of marriage are Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Anushka, an actor in the Hindi film industry, fell in love with Indian national cricket team member, Virat. With diverse backgrounds, the couple is showing what an ideal wedding should look like. The actress met the cricketer for the first time on the set of an ad film in 2013.

In an interview on AB de Villiers' chat show, Virat revealed, "I remember it was 2013. I had just been named the captain for the Zimbabwe Tour, I was excited. Then my manager called up about a TV commercial. He told me that I was shooting with Anushka Sharma. She was a well-established, one of the top actors. As soon as I heard that, I was shivering. I was so nervous. I was so, so tensed before walking on the set (of the ad shoot in 2013). I was thinking 'how am I going to say hi to her? What am I going to say?'. I was so completely out of it."

The cricketer shared the first meeting with her was 'bad'. "It was so bad. I was so nervous. But then the shoot went on and I kind of figured out, along the whole day, she was a pretty normal person. We could connect on the same things that a usual middle-class household would experience. We really connected on those experiences," he said.

Rumours of Anushka and Virat's relationship gained ground in 2014 when he was seen visiting her after returning to India from the South Africa tour. Later that year, the couple was spotted together on the streets of Auckland. He would often visit her on movie sets in 2014.

Virat had said in the interview with AB de Villiers that he and Anushka didn't start dating immediately. "It was not like we started dating immediately. We spoke for a long time. I thought I was dating her already. We had hung out for a few months and I remember, one day I sent her this message. When I used to be single, I used to do this and that...' She is like 'What do you mean you used to be?'. I had already decided in my mind that we were dating. That was again a little awkward. But then eventually, she found me to be a decent guy," he added.

In October 2014, they made their first public appearance when they went to watch an Indian Super League game together. Since then, the actress went to watch his matches. After a certain achievement, Virat would either wave his bat at her or blow a kiss. Reportedly, they were in a live-in relationship in 2014.

Workwise, Virat grabbed eyeballs by lending support to Anushka and her films. Be it her debut as a producer, NH10 or Phillauri, he broke the internet with his wishes. There was a point when Anushka would be blamed for Virat's poor performance. However, she maintained a dignified silence and focused on herself and Virat.

Virat reacted to the trolling on X and wrote, "Shame on those people who have been having a go at anushka for the longest time and connecting every negative thing to her. Shame on those people calling themselves educated. Shame on blaming and making fun of her when she has no control over what i do with my sport. If anything she has only motivated and given me more positivity. This was long time coming. Shame on these people that hide and take a dig. And i dont need any respect for this post. Have some compassion and respect her. Think of how your sister or girlfriend or wife would feel if someone trolled them and very conveniently rubbished them in public."

Anushka and Virat often made public appearances in 2015-2016. Amid engagement rumours in 2016, the couple visited her spiritual guru Anant Maharaj at the Anant Dham Atmabodh Ashram. A picture of the trio added fuel to the rumour. Virat dismissed it as false.

On Valentine's Day in 2017, Virat posted a photo of them together on social media and shared a sweet message. The cricketer, however, deleted the tweet later. He chose to let the post stay on Instagram. The message read, 'Everyday is a valentine day if you want it to be. You make every day seem like one for me. @anushkasharma (sic)."

Amid speculations, Anushka and Virat tied the knot in an intimate ceremony at a private ceremony at Borgo Finocchieto in Tuscany, Italy, on December 11, 2017. Talking about the ceremony, Anushka said in an interview with Vogue India magazine, "We wanted to have a home-style wedding. There were only 42 people there, with all our friends and family present. I wanted it to be about Virat and me marrying each other, and not this big celebrity wedding. The energy at our wedding was blessed. We even used fake names while talking to the caterer; I think Virat's was Rahul."

In 2020, Anushka announced her pregnancy. Sharing an adorable picture, she wrote, "And then, we were three! Arriving Jan 2021." On January 11, 2021, the couple was blessed with a daughter named Vamika. They are yet to officially share her pictures on social media.

According to reports, Vamika, who turned 2 this year, will be graduating to the post of a big sister. As per a report in Hindustan Times, Anushka is expecting her second child with Virat. An official confirmation is awaited.