Riya Sen birthday: Before marrying Shivam Tewari, the actress dated John Abraham, Ashmit Patel, and other stars

As daughter of superstar Moon Moon Sen, and granddaughter of legendary actress Suchitra Sen, Riya has never had to look far for acting tips and guidance. With her first film Style, people declared her as ‘the next big thing’, ‘a star in the making’ and even ‘a force to be reckoned with’.

However, Riya didn't live up to the initial hype. Soon, she started to be known more for her controversies than actual work. There was a time where her personal life got more eyeballs than her roles. Very soon, she was labelled as ‘just a pretty face’. Her career seems to have take a backseat with her high-profile relationships hogging the spotlight. Here are some of her most famous alleged link-ups:

Before John Abraham met Bipasha Basu, Riya Sen and he were an alleged couple. Riya was yet to star in her debut film and John was a struggling model when they first met. It was reported that John was absolutely smitten with Riya that he immediately wanted to marry her. However, Riya’s first film came along, and the success made her decide not to get into a wedlock just at the starting of career. The duo tried to keep their relationship intact but with John’s struggle to make it as a top model and Riya’s budding acting career left little room for their relationship. It's believed that they drifted apart.

Riya and Ashmit reportedly started dating during the filming of 'Silsiilay'. In 2005, an intimate video of the couple was leaked, and the controversy soon led to the pair parting ways.

Following her break-up with Ashmit Patel, Riya Sen took a call to focus on her career and concentrate on movies and music videos that would help her bolster her career in entertainment. But when it came to alleged link-ups, Sen could never escape those salacious articles written about her. Sometime in 2008, news emerged that literary giant and Booker Prize winner Salman Rushdie was reportedly keen on winning over her adoration and attention. According to reports that did the round back then, Rushdie – who was much older than Riya – met her a nightclub and like two consenting adults exchanged phone numbers. Sen has always been cagey about revealing any details of their supposed union, but it’s believed that long-distance played spoilsport. Even their break-up wasn’t acknowledged.

Yuvraj Singh, the star player for the Indian cricket team at the time, had just ended his relationship with Deepika Padukone. Sen and Singh reportedly met at a party and hit it off right away. However, their contrasting temperaments meant that the couple couldn't find a middle ground. Even before the romance could blossom into something more, they allegedly called it quits.

There were also talks that she dated cricketer Sreesanth. She was also spotted enjoying his matches. But controversy surrounded Sreesanth around his game and the next thing we know they were not together anymore.

In 2017 all these link ups became history as she found true love in Shivam Tewari and tied the knot in a low profile ceremony.