Society knows that no working mother has ever had it easy. There is always a compromise to be made between raising one’s child as one wishes between having a career and earning money. Choices are made based on priorities, as did Bollywood actress and star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The ex-Miss World who also wears the mantle of the ideal Bachchan bahu, decided to saty away from films for five years in order to raise her daughter Aaradhya. The actress recently made a comeback to films with Sanjay Gupta’s Jazbaa, though she admits that she is lucky to be able to bring her daughter with her to work.
In an exclusive interview with Subhash K Jha, Aishwarya revealed how she never hired outside help for Aaradhya, preferring to do it all herself.
On being asked if it was easy to be a working mother, Aishwarya said, “It’s not easy for any working mother. Every wife mother and professional has to do a lot of planning. The stuff I pack every day has to include activities for Aaradhya during the day, and her food. But I’d say I am fortunate I can bring my child to my workplace. A lot of mothers can’t. It may be a lot of planning, but I happily do it for my child. And I do it on my own.” She further added, “People assume I’ve a posse of workers helping me. Wrong! I’ve never had nurses and nannies for Aaradhya. This was partly due to ignorance. I didn’t know one could hire reliable help for one’s child. There was just one helper and she was my extended hand. Otherwise it’s just me and my daughter.”
