New Delhi: Pakistan’s celebrity world is abuzz with actor Mahira Khan’s ‘secret’ wedding that nobody knew about—until her manager posted photos on social media late Sunday night. The actor, who has starred in hit productions like Raees and Manto, married her long-time partner and businessman Salim Karim in an intimate gathering at the picturesque hill station of Bhurban in Pakistan.
Photos and videos from social media show the groom, dressed in a dapper black sherwani, tearing up when the bride ascended the aisle. Khan is seen in a white heavily embroidered lehenga, which one media report described as having “all the trappings” of a Faraz Manan design.
Fans are delighted Khan has found love again after her first marriage to Ali Askari, with whom she has a son, ended in 2015. “This is your reminder to never stop believing in love; it will come back to you again and again. It will find you, even when you aren’t looking for it,” said one fan on X (formerly Twitter).
In August, Khan had spoken to her fans about how painful the divorce was. “I was so young at the time. I had a baby, I was scared. Professionally, I was very successful. I never knew I would become successful overnight with Humsafar. But personally, it was a tough time.”
A new chapter for Khan
Khan reportedly met Salim Karim in 2017, and the couple got engaged two years later. She is fiercely protective of her privacy and personal life but opened up about being in love in April 2020 on Rewind with Samina Peerzada.
The Raees actor revealed all but the name of her partner. When Peerzada asked her if she was in love with “someone special”, Khan said, “Yeah, I think I am in love”.
Later that year in an Instagram live video hosted by fashion designer Hassan Sheheryar Yasin (HSY), Khan once again discussed love. “There’s a line in Humsafar which I thought was beautiful, where Ashar says to Khirad, ‘Pata nahi tum mujhe kis naiki ke badle mein mili ho’ and I think the same about him. I must have done something good in my life that God sent him my way,” Khan had said.
Who is Salim Karim?
Karim is an entrepreneur and CEO of SimPaisa, a digital payments facilitator. The company reportedly facilitates payments across 15 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, China, United Arab Emirates, and Finland.
Karim is also a DJ. He reportedly first met Khan at the launch of a television application, Tapmad TV.