8 Bollywood Moms We Share A Love-Hate Relationship With

Bollywood moms: Over the years, Bollywood has introduced us to various shades of motherhood. There are Bollywood moms we have loved and those we haven't. Surprisingly, there are also mothers we loved and hated at the same time. We admired them for being caring and sympathetic but hated because they were flawed. However, these 'flaws' brought their characters to life. These imperfections made them seem 'real people' and not mere characters.

Here are 8 Bollywood moms we share a love-hate relationship with

1. Usha Rani (Saina)

Played by Meghna Malik, Usha Rani is a supportive mom who encourages her daughter Saina to chase her dream of becoming a Badminton player. A district level Badminton player herself, Rani wants her daughter to be successful in her career. From providing her with the initial training to framing her diet chart, she does everything to help Saina in her profession.

While we appreciate her for being a feminist mother, we can also see that there are more layers to her character. The moment Saina fails to fulfill her mother's expectations, she hits her and refuses to serve her dinner  She is one of those Bollywood moms who want nothing but the best from their children and don't hesitate in pressuring them or treating them brutally.

2. Aditi Choudhary (The Sky Is Pink)

Aditi (Priyanka Chopra) does everything in her means to get her daughter Aisha (Zaira Waseem) treated of severe combined immunodeficiency. She not only works at odd hours but also takes her to the best doctors within her reach for her treatment. Keeping aside all her difficulties, she fights for her daughter's health and mom goals to the viewers. From the very beginning, she is determined not to abort her child despite knowing that it runs the risk of the illness. She thus gives us plenty of reasons to love her.

We may not hate her but the overprotective mother she becomes because of her concern for Aisha makes us want to resent her to some extent. She cleans the apartment and other times to prevent her from infections. She even places restrictions on Aisha and refuses to let her have a pet initially. However, she later pioritises Aisha's emotional well-being and agrees to fulfill all her desires, including the tiniest ones.

3. Manju Chakravarty (Khoobsurat)

Among all Bollywood moms I have seen so far, Kirron Kher as Manju Chakravarty happens to be my favourite. She is by far the coolest mother ever portrayed in a mainstream Indian film. Don't we all want mothers we can speak our heart out to and share our secrets without any hesitation? That is how Manju is. Mili (Sonam Kapoor) referring to mother by her name in front of Vikram's (Fawad Khan) royal family is yet another example of her easy going relationship with her mother.

What I disliked about her was how she prayed for Mili to find a "suitable man to marry" when she was supposed to visit the royal family for work. But maybe she's just another brown parent concerned about her daughter's marriage. Also, Mili confided in her when she confessed to her about having kissed Vikram. But she decided to reveal it to Vikram's mother thinking that it would be the best thing to do. Wow!

4. Meeta (Hindi Medium)

All Meeta (Saba Qamar) wants is her daughter Piya (Dishita Sehgal) to get an admission in an English medium school. She is aware of the challenges one faces if one isn't a fluent English speaker. She gives up everything, starting from her home to social status just to ensure her daughter's admission. After repeated failures, she and her husband Raj (Irrfan Khan) go to the extent of using unfair means to get their daughter admitted in an English medium school. But the question here is if all of it was actually necessary?

Meeta is constantly fearful that Piya won't "fit in" a society that values English as a language. Funnily enough, she worries that her daughter would resort to taking drugs in future if something wrong goes in her life due to her inability to speak English. What follows is a series of improbable events unlikely to occur in reality. It is only towards the end of the movie that she realises education is way more important than the language in which one studies. She finally decides to send Piya to a Government school and wins the appreciation of the viewers.

5. Eela (Helicopter Eela)

Eela (Kajol) is an over protective mother who keeps on interfering in her son Vivaan's (Riddhi Sen) life allowing him no personal space. A helicoptering parent, she keeps meddling with his life. Realising that his mother is slowly losing her self identity, Vivaan advises her to complete her education. Being the possessive mother that she is, she decides to take admission in the same college as Vivaan.

The movie well brings out the impact such a parent can have on a child, at the same time highlighting how children can help their mothers find their own identity. In the course of the movie, we build a love-hate relationship with Eela. We certainly disapprove of her constant intervening in her son's life but we can't ignore all the sacrifices she made to give her son a life of comfort. Moreover, Eela comes under the category of independent Bollywood moms who chose to be single rather than be with the wrong person.

6. Sunita Kapoor (Kapoor and Sons)

Sunita Kapoor's (Ratna Pathak) character resonates with Shubhangini (Revathi) from Margarita With A Straw. Both of them are Bollywood moms who are loving, understanding and supportive of their children. The transparent relationship they share with children make them the mother figures one yearns for. But the moment their children out as queers their attitude towards them changes.

Sunita thought of her son Rahul (Fawad Khan) as a 'perfect son'. This image of him crumbles before her when she comes to know about his sexual orientation. She finds it difficult to believe that her son can have a preference different from what is 'normal'. In a poignant scene we find Rahul confessing to his mother that he can't ask for forgiveness for who he is. He just wants her to accept him and love him. Initially reluctant to accept her son's identity, Sunita finally comes to terms with it leaving us in  awe for her.

7. Neelam Mehra (Dil Dhadakne Do)

Shefali Shah portrays the role of Neelam Mehra in Dil Dhadakne Do. She is biased towards her son and discriminates between her son and daughter. She disregards her daughter Ayesha's choice to divorce her husband Manav because she thinks that would bring dishonour to the family. She refuses to support her despite knowing that she was in an unhappy marriage. It is only later that we learn how she herself was a victim of circumstances. The man she was committed to had over the years turned into a cheater, whom she couldn't leave because her family wouldn't accept her. As the movie nears its end, we see her reconciling with her husband and supporting her daughter.

Shefali Shah

8. Kavita Malhotra (2 States)

Krish (Arjun Kapoor) shares a warm relationship with his mother Kavita (Amrita Singh). On the contrary, there's tension between him and his alcoholic father who is also an abusive husband. He tries to fill the void in his mother's life which arises because of the family conflicts. Kavita's only complain with Krish is that Ananya (Alia Bhatt), the woman he loves comes from a different cultural background. She treats her and her family with hostility making derogatory remarks. Over the course of the movie, both Krish and Ananya's families resolve their differences and accept each other. Thus, Kavita is another Bollywood mom we have a love-hate relationship with.