I stared at her open mouthed: Preity Zinta on Jinnah's daughter

Mumbai, Nov 3: Bollywood actor Preity Zinta paid her respects to the late Dina Wadia, and said she was fortunate enough to have met the ‘spirited’  grandmother of her former beau Ness Wadia.

Dina Wadia, the daughter of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, died at her home in New York on Thursday. She was 98.

Preity on Thursday tweeted, “Sorry to hear that the elegant and spirited Dina Wadia is no more. I was fortunate enough to have met her and really admired her. RIP.”

According to an article on Times of India, the Veer Zaara star was ‘blown away’ when she met the elegant woman.

“The first time I met her, I stared at her open mouthed. My goodness, she carries so much history within her! Since then we’ve met over dinner and at other social occasions several times. Each time I’m struck by her gentle demeanour, her classic elegance, and yes, her fragility,” Preity had stated.

While speaking about one of her favourite women, Preity’s voice lighted up. She continues, “I was also struck by her unmistakable facial resemblance to her illustrious father (Jinnah). I’ve never seen two people who resemble each other so closely.”

Quaid-i-Azam’s daughter Dina Wadia passes away at 98 in New York

Preity says she has met Dina Wadia both in Mumbai and abroad. “She lives in New York. But she visits Mumbai where she has close family. She carries an aura of unmistakable strength. Every time I meet her, there’s so much to imbibe from her. There are some people in this world who just carry an aura about them. She’s one of them.”

The last time when they met, Dina wanted to know about Preity’s IPL matches. “She takes a lot of interest in my life. The last time we met, she wanted to know all about the IPL matches. She’s so important to our times as a woman and a figure in history and yet conveys so much joie de vivre in her attitude. I just want to sit with her and listen to her.”

Dina had married Mumbai-based Parsi businessman Neville Wadia against her father’s wishes and stayed back in India after Partition.

She is survived by her daughter Diana N Wadia, son Nusli N Wadia, her grandsons Ness and Jeh Wadia and two great grandchildren Jah and Ella Wadia.