“I Was Like A Kept Boyfriend”: Lalit Modi Defends Sushmita Sen Against Gold Digger Tag
Lalit Modi broke his silence on the backlash over his relationship with Sushmita Sen, defending her against “gold digger” claims and sharing candid details about their romance.
When Lalit Modi and Sushmita Sen made their relationship official in July 2022, the internet went into a complete frenzy. While the sudden announcement took everyone by surprise, it also triggered a wave of unwarranted trolling, with many labelling the former Miss Universe a “gold digger”. Now, the businessman and IPL founder has finally addressed the backlash during a recent podcast interaction with Humans of Bombay, fiercely defending Sushmita Sen and revealing the actual dynamics of their brief romance.
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Addressing the “gold digger” narrative head-on, Lalit Modi shut down the trolls by declaring that money had absolutely nothing to do with their bond. In fact, he claimed that the financial dynamic was entirely the opposite.
“Please understand that Sushmita is a very beautiful and very well-to-do lady. She has more diamonds than anybody I know on the planet, and she has earned them herself. She has diamond stores,” Lalit stated. He emphasised that she is a remarkable, self-made woman who would never accept anything from anybody.
“There wasn't a single time that I went out with Sushmita that I had to pay for anything. She paid for everything. I was like a kept boyfriend,” he confessed, adding, “So when somebody says she was a gold digger, Lalit was a diamond digger. She was truly a diamond. She could have anybody on the planet she wanted. It was never about money.”
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Looking back at the viral 2022 Instagram post that sparked the social media storm, Lalit Modi revealed it wasn't a planned strategy, but rather a spontaneous moment of defiance during a flight to London.
“I did it right in front of her. She didn't think I would actually post it. We were arguing about something on the plane, and she said, 'You're not going to post this.' I laughed and pressed the button," he recalled. "By the time we landed, all hell had broken loose."
Despite the chaos, he noted that Sushmita never asked him to take the post down, and he never considered doing so. Lalit Modi maintains that he doesn't regret a single minute of it, noting that the unscripted post simply happened and they shared a beautiful story.
Though Lalit Modi had updated his Instagram bio with "my love" and hinted at a future together, the romance was short-lived. Opening up about the breakup, he clarified that the separation was purely logistical.
"The distances got too much," he explained, noting that her career was rooted in India while his life was based in London. Despite the split, he holds her in high regard, calling her an extremely important part of his life who helped him grow. "I have the fondest memories of her, and she's still a very dear friend," he said, also praising her remarkable journey as a single mother to her daughters, Renee and Alisah.
Lalit Modi also shared that he maintains a "great track record" with his past relationships. He mentioned keeping a collage of all the girls he has gone out with and noted that he can still pick up the phone and talk to any of his exes.
Lalit's recent defence echoed Sushmita's own dignified response to the controversy. Shortly after the trolls attacked her in 2022, she penned a lengthy Instagram note, writing, "I dig deeper than Gold...and I've always (famously) preferred Diamonds!! And yes, I still buy them myself!!!"
In subsequent 2023 interviews with Zoom TV and Barkha Dutt, the actress revealed she was "laughing her lungs out" at the situation. She stated that an insult is only an insult if you receive it, and she chose not to. Defining the gossip as "none of your business" (NYOB), Sushmita Sen called out the hypocrisy of those monetizing the "gold digger" tag through their stories, proving once again that she refuses to live on the transient approval of others.
