"Once A Mom, You're Always A Mom. Forever," Shefali Shah On Motherhood

Shefali Shah motherhood: Neelam Mehra, a mother from the 2015 movie Dil Dhadakne Do gives us an insight into the lives and complications of Indian mothers stuck with an unfaithful husband.

Shefali Shah breathed life into the character of Neelam and made her sound like just any other Desi parent. The actor's powerful roles like Jyothi (Lakshmi), DCP Vartika Chaturvedi (Delhi Crime) and Natasha (Ajeeb Daastaans) keep us craving for more of her performances. The actor's directorial debut, a short film titled ">Happy Birthday Mummyji released today.

Ahead of it's premiere, she spoke with the Senior Editor of SheThePeople, Deepshikha Chakravarti about her experience as a working mother. Shah opened up how she took a break, worked sporadically and waited for quality work to come her way. Here's an excerpt from the interview.

Shefali Shah Motherhood: What does the actor feel about being a mother?

Talking about maintaining a work-life balance, The Happy Birthday Mummyji director said that when she had her babies, she was sure that she did not want to work, at least for a couple of years. She wanted to be at home. "I wanted to be there, feeding them, bathing them, changing their nappies and it was a choice I made," she said. As they grew older, she went back to work. This was not just because they were kids but also because she was not getting the kind of work she wanted to do.

Shah further added, "And I didn't find the need to just go on a set because I had to do a job. I wanted to be choosy and I am very choosy. So I said I'll wait." She was ready to wait for a year or two but do the kind of work that she wanted to. She signed off with the words, "But once a mom, you're always a mom. Forever. The umbilical cord never gets cut. And I think we have kids because we need them, not because they need us."

Picture Credit: Ridhika Mehra