‘Enjoy every moment you can with your babies, don’t beat yourself up over small things’

There’s no guidebook in the world that can really prepare one for parenthood, says yesteryear mega star Zeenat Aman

By Ahmad Hamood (from New Delhi)

She was peerless in the true sense of the word – unequalled, unrivalled. She broke the mould for Bollywood actresses: sensuous but bold, modern, stylish, suave, Western, Tomboyish, unafraid of essaying on screen, for example, the Hippie life or smoking substance, in one of her early films to that famous tune – dum maro dum. She, clearly, was in a league of her own.

Quite an educated lady, especially from the standards back then for an actress, Zeenat stole the hearts of millions with aplomb – her can’t-care-less persona worked wonders mesmerizing fans of varied age groups.

Zeenat’s name was linked to some big names, but she finally tied the nuptial knot with actor Mazhar Khan in 1985. Their journey of togetherness, however, was not to last long as Mazhar died of kidney ailment in the year 1998. Ever since, Zeenat has shouldered the colossal task – and the obvious challenges that come tagged – as a single mother to their two sons.

Her boys, says Zeenat, are strapping adults in their thirties now. She has traversed a fairly long distance in her sojourn as a single parent. How daunting has it been? “There’s no guidebook in the world that can really prepare you for parenthood. It’s exhilarating, overwhelming, joyous, and yes, challenging,” noted Zeenat, in an Instagram post she shared recently.

“Once my children were born, they became my sole priority. And as a single mother to two boys, I felt doubly responsible for my babies. More than anything I wanted to protect them, and shape them to be kind and loving men,” she points out in the post.

Zeenat, however, is critical of the my-way-or the-highway kind of approach to parenting. She’s all for giving the children the freedoms to choose the life they want to choose. “My approach to motherhood has always rested on the bedrock of unconditional love. I believe this is what each one of us who chooses to become a parent, owes our children.

“When I hear of people rejecting their kids for reasons such as their sexual orientation, choice of partner or desired profession, it fills me with sadness and anger. We must accept our children for the individuals they are and support them to meet life as they choose to,” she makes clear.

Sharing “some optional pearls of wisdom for any new parents”, she further says: “Enjoy every moment that you can with your babies, and don’t beat yourself up over the small things. A broken plate here or a teacher’s note there, hardly signal the end of the world. We don’t owe our children perfection, we owe them love, support and guidance.”

Of late, Zeenat has been posting snippets of her life on Instagram and people seem to be as interested as they ever were. And, at 71, Zeenat looks as fabulous as she ever was.

(Main/Featured picture on top courtesy Wikipedia)

Ahmad Hamood is a management graduate and a freelance writer based in New Delhi.