MUMBAI: The ever-turbulent waters of Govinda and Sunita Ahuja's 38-year marriage churned up again this week, with the Bollywood veteran issuing a public apology for his wife's biting comments about their family priest. In a video message that's already racking up views online, Govinda distanced himself from Sunita's podcast rant, calling her words "disparaging" and offering his "deepest apologies" to the man who's guided the family through decades of ups and downs.

It all kicked off a few days back on Paras Chhabra's podcast, Abra Ka Dabra Show. Sunita, never one to hold back, let loose on Govinda's inner circle – or what she sees as his parade of bad influences. She zeroed in on Pandit Mukesh Shukla, the couple's long-time astrologer and priest, accusing him of pushing "random pujas" just to line his pockets. "He keeps suggesting these rituals and taking money," she said, before taking broader swipes: "The people around him are fools who give terrible advice. They don't like me because I speak the truth." Ouch.

Govinda, looking earnest in a simple white kurta, wasted no time responding. "Pandit Mukesh ji and his family have stood by us in tough times," he said in the clip posted Monday. "His father was our priest too. I respect him immensely – he knows the Vedas inside out." It's a rare public split for the couple, who've weathered everything from divorce whispers to affair rumors without fully airing their laundry like this.

This isn't the first time Sunita's candor has lit a fuse. Just last weekend, she stirred the pot again in another interview, casually dropping that she's "heard" about Govinda's supposed fling with a 30-something Marathi actress. The chatter's been bubbling for months, tied to those pesky separation rumors that peaked over the summer. Back in August, outlets buzzed about a divorce filing from last December, citing cruelty and infidelity. Sunita laughed it off then, insisting she'd only buy the affair talk if she caught him "red-handed." And during Ganesh Chaturthi, the pair posed together, arm in arm, with Sunita declaring, "No one can separate us."

Friends close to the family aren't shocked. Producer Pahlaj Nihalani, who's known Govinda forever, shrugged it off in a chat with Bollywood insiders: "They've always lived semi-separately – he in one bungalow for late-night meetings, her with the kids. Even if he had 10 flings, Sunita's the rock. It's eternal love." Film historian Hanif Zaveri went further, calling the whole saga a "publicity stunt" to keep Govinda relevant post-politics and films. "There's no need for Sunita ji to talk so much," he added dryly.

Govinda himself has played peacemaker before. In October, on Kajol and Twinkle Khanna's chat show, he described Sunita as "the child of the family" – impulsive, outspoken, but the heart of their home. "She's made mistakes, sure," he admitted with a chuckle. "I've forgiven her many times. Our kids treat her like their little sister half the time." It's that mix of affection and exasperation that's defined them since their secret 1987 wedding, kept under wraps until daughter Tina arrived two years later. Son Yashvardhan rounds out the clan, both chasing creative gigs in Tina's footsteps.