Neena Gupta has spoken candidly about raising her daughter Masaba Gupta as a single mother and the choices that shaped their lives. In a recent conversation with Zoom, the actor reflected on Masaba growing up without her father, former West Indies cricketer Vivian Richards, being around in her everyday life. She also opened up about why she has apologised to Masaba over the years and how she navigated the difficult realities of bringing up a child largely on her own.
She also reflected on how people often make decisions when they are young without fully understanding what they may lead to. It is my fault, but she understands. We all make mistakes. When we are young, our parents tell us certain things and we don’t listen. She chose to have those conversations slowly, answering her daughter’s questions as and when they came up and allowing her to understand the situation with age. Their relationship continued for a few years, even though they were often living apart. Gupta has described it as an unconventional relationship that was largely long-distance. Neena Gupta was most recently seen in Netflix sitcom Chumbak alongside Deven Bhojani, Arjun Bijlani, Sumeet Raghavan and more. The comedy series followed the everyday chaos, quirks and relationships of five multigenerational families living in row houses in the fictional Chumbak Colony.
“I am so honest with her that many times I have said sorry to her that you didn’t have a father with you when you were young. That wisdom comes later,” she said. Neena Gupta said one thing she was particularly careful about was making sure Masaba heard the truth about her father from her, rather than from someone else. “It was long-distance and a very different kind of relationship,” she has said. The show is created by Aatish Kapadia and Jamnadas “JD” Majethia, the duo behind Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Khichdi.
