6 min readMumbaiJun 2, 2026 09:41 AM IST
In 2022, former IPL chairman and businessman Lalit Modi ‘broke the internet’ when he declared his relationship with Sushmita Sen on social media. Fans and followers of Sen and Modi had wildly different reactions to this declaration but trolls attacked Sushmita, and attached the tag of ‘gold digger’, and while she reacted to the backlash with a long note on Instagram, trolls did not back off. Now, when the two have parted ways, Lalit reacted to the reactions they got at the time, and defended Sushmita in a chat with Humans of Bombay.
Lalit spoke about his past relationships and said, “I have a collage of all the girls I went out with, and I must say I have a great track record. I am not ashamed of it. Each one of them is a friend; they have been very special. Not many can say that about their ex, but I can pick up the phone with all my exes and talk to them.”
‘Sushmita wasn’t a gold digger, I was the diamond digger’
Talking about Sushmita, Lalit called her a “beautiful, successful and self-made woman.” He added, “She has more diamonds than almost anyone I know, and she earned everything herself. She even has diamond stores. She is a wealthy woman. There wasn’t a time when we went out, and I had to pay for anything, she paid for everything. I was like a kept boyfriend. She would never accept anything from anybody. So when people called her a gold digger, that was completely wrong. If anything, Lalit was the diamond digger. She is truly a diamond. She could have anybody on the planet she wanted; it was never about money or anything else. She is extremely well to do.”
Why Sushmita Sen-Lalit Modi broke up
Further talking about their relationship, Lalit called Sushmita one of the most important people in his life. He said, “Sushmita was very special to me. She helped me grow into many of the things I am today and was an extremely important part of my life at that time. It was a very special relationship, but the distances got too much. Her career was in India, my life was in London. I have the fondest memories of her, and she’s still a very dear friend. I wish her nothing but the best. She’s an amazing woman, and what she has done as a single mother to her daughters, Renee and Alisah, is remarkable. I just wish her all the very best.”
‘Sushmita never asked me to take the post down’
Looking back at the viral post from 2022, Lalit said making the official announcement was not a planned strategy; it was rather spontaneous. “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. By the time we landed, all hell had broken loose. But there was nothing wrong with it. She never asked me to take it down, and I never considered doing that. It really did break the internet. For a few days, it seemed like that’s all anyone was talking about. But we had a beautiful story, and I don’t regret a single minute of it. Very special mother and a special lady. She has an amazing character,” Lalit Modi said.
He further added, “Things happen for a reason. That Instagram post wasn’t scripted; it just happened. I’m proud of everything I’ve done. If I made mistakes, I learned from them.”
What did Sushmita say about the ‘gold digger’ remark?
Back in 2022, soon after the photos went viral and the gold digger narrative took over, Sushmita Sen had posted a long note on Instagram where she wrote, “Perfectly centred in my being & my conscience…I love how nature merges all its creation to experience oneness…and just how divided we are, when we break that balance. It’s heartbreaking to see just how miserable & unhappy the world around us is becoming…The so-called intellectuals with their idiosyncrasies…the ignorant with their cheap & at times funny gossip. The friends I never had & the acquaintances I’ve never met… all sharing their grand opinions & deep knowledge of my life & character…monetising the ‘Gold Digger’ all the way!!! Ah, these geniuses!!! I dig deeper than Gold…and I’ve always (famously) preferred Diamonds!! And yes, I still buy them myself!!!”
“I love the all-heart support my well-wishers & loved ones continue to extend. Please know, your Sush is ABSOLUTELY fine… cause I’ve never lived on the transient borrowed light of approval & applause. I am the Sun….perfectly centred in my being & my conscience!! I love you guys!!!” the note further read.
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In 2023, talking to Zoom TV, Sushmita had said, “It’s good that those comments came to me and I could define ‘gold digger’. An insult is an insult when you receive it, which I don’t. But there are certain things that are nobody’s business.” The same year, talking to Barka Dutt, Sushmita Sen had said, “The only reason that I put out that post was to laugh at it. I wasn’t that pained. It was just amusing because you call a woman a gold digger, and you are monetising that gold digger by writing stories on her. What bothers me is that when good people keep quiet, the bad just thrives. I have seen that happen too many times. We think it’s not elegant to respond. Let elegance be damned. I just need people to know I am laughing my lungs out, and it just shows me that generations have changed, but people haven’t changed morally and ethically much.”
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