Priyan and Akshay Kumar are now bound by a marriage. Go figure...

Akshay Kumar and Priyadarshan's partnership in profits and professions has remained strong since 2000's Hera Pheri all the way to 2010's Khatta Meetha.

That bond got further strengthened (on a personal level, this time) on Wednesday (August 25), when the director's assistant and associate Abhilash Nair tied the knot with Kumar's cousin Saneepa (she is his maternal uncle's daughter).

Some time ago, Akki invited his maama's family over to Mumbai to give his mom company. Since then he has looked after Saneepa as his own sister. The marital alliance between Priyan's associate and Akshay's cousin was the actor's idea.

Says the source, "Though Abhilash and Saneepa know one another, it's an arranged marriage. Kumar has known Nair for almost a decade and he felt this was a good match for his cousin."

Relative-ly speaking
While Akshay remained unavailable for comment, Priyan reluctantly confirms, "Abhilash is like my own brother. He's marrying Akshay's cousin. So yes, you can say we are related now."

It is actually a double wedding for Priyan in Mumbai this week. On Tuesday, Prakash Raj (who won a National award last year for his performance in Priyadarshan's Kanchivaram) wed choreographer Pony Varma. This was followed by the Abhilash-Saneepa wedding on Wednesday.