There's something called post-Covid exhaustion and weakness which was not with my
husband hasn’t got it but I suddenly got it and it is quite it's quite unnerving.
A lot of my content that you see on my social media is edited and directed by me.
Where she’s just literally fly, she’s like now and full like she loves it you know but it's taken
me we just celebrated one year of Messy Mamma and Sassy Saasu.
So welcome Sameera to Pinkvilla.com it’s indeed a pleasure having you on board over here
So
Thank you so much for having me
Yes so firstly tell me how are you feeling like how are you now?
So today is the brightest I think I’ve looked because it's the last week everybody was telling
me that I’m looking exhausted there's something called post Covid exhaustion and
weakness which was not with my husband hasn't got it but I suddenly got it and it is quite
unnerving because through different parts of the day I just suddenly can’t do anything I have
to sit down and breathe but it is part of what happens and I would say I’m blessed at least I
got through it and my children got through it which for me is the most important thing and I
again say this that I was not prepared with the children I was so focused on my mother-in-law,
I was so focused on my parents I was so focused chalo our age group, I never for a minute thought that
my son and my daughter could get it I mean they’re so tiny but it happened and but at least it all worked out so thank God.
But you know Sameera making this conscious decision especially like I think you've made
quite a few very big switches like you were at the top of your career when you chose to get
married and you know in a few years have have kids and all and then you kind of focused on
focused on being like a hands-on mother and something that not a lot of actresses are
comfortable doing even today right so what and that this was quite I think 7-8 years ago
when you chose to kind of you know I have it the house way home way so tell me
what you know these big switches so what kind of confidence how do you gather that
confidence you know to kind of make those big switches in life and also one more question
adding to this that why Goa like you have so many other cities around as well so why what
made you, states as well so what made you choose Goa?
One thing is that I believed that somewhere I had to crack and I really had no confidence
after I left the business right because my confidence was very connected to how much
money I was making, how successful I was and how people perceived me so they thought
Sameera is saleable or worth something or whether I was being called for work that was
equal to how I felt which was crazy I mean until today can’t understand why I did that to
myself so what happened is when I left the business I took a break and then I put on a lot of
weight and then I kind of you know I had a baby and I thought I’ll get back to work there
were all these big plans in my head but the plans didn't work out and I took it quite badly but
what happens is sometimes I believe that you have to crack and put yourself back together
so you actually realize what you want and having a breakdown is not a bad thing right
sometimes having a breakdown is the best thing that can happen to you and I believe that
that's what I mean I take it in that positive way so definitely the confidence today of
where I am and actually having you know the capacity to make these decisions has only
come because I’ve decided what I don't want not what I want so so that's where today I can
make a conscious shift and say actually and this is not judging any working mother out there
I only have great respect for them I would say that I knew for a fact that I just couldn't get
back to that life I needed to first just do this and do this the way I can do it but that was not
necessarily what I thought I would do in fact I thought I’d be that Bollywood mother ki you know in a moth I will have a full body I’d be
like all sexy again I’d be back but it didn't happen and I actually listened to myself
instead of fighting it and instead of just getting really upset with it
Do you have plans of you know kind of breaking the sabbatical that you've taken and
move back to doing you know movies or you have a lot of reality shows also where actresses are
judging and all of that so do you have any plans as such or is it that if you get some offer on
board so you would probably think of making the switch back or how is it?
So I’ll tell you something very interesting which I think just fell in my lap over the last maybe
one year maybe because of being locked down and you know a lot of my content that you
see on my social media is edited and directed by me so what actually ends up happening
is a lot of my funny videos with my daughter or like my dance videos with my mother-in-law
everything is sort of here in my brain what I’m actually beginning to really enjoy is creating
funny moments which I feel people really need at a time like this right now so I would say I’m
not necessarily close to getting back especially into Netflix series and stuff but I would love
to get into a part where I actually can creatively use what my last maybe year or two of being
on social media has opened my mind to which is creating really fun content which
means something it has to have a meaning you know whether it's my imperfectly perfect
campaign where I talk about body positivity I talk about the stress the stresses that women
go through you know I talk about like you know how we have to maybe just take it in a lighter
spirit and sit and you know flog ourselves for our so-called failures there is a
conversation and more of a meaning to what I want to do and give through cinema or
through or a narrative or through storytelling which I feel that social media and people out
there have given me a chance to do I’d love to take that forward into something else and of
course be a part of you know Netflix and all these amazing web series out there movies I
don't know because that would be a lot of commitment and my children are just too small right now.
You know Sameera how would you see yourself as you know a person who was depressed
a few years ago and a person and the Sameera who is now so confident as being perceived
on social media so how do you think that individually when you sleep at night what do you
feel at one time, I was like this so depressed and now look at me so how has that journey
been I am sure it’s been difficult physically and emotionally I’m sure
The reason I have this crazy amount of energy to make content and and to just be there
and speak my mind and be confident is because my God I had hit the lowest of lows it I
cannot even begin to explain to you if there's any women or women out there listening who’s
feeling low ma'am trust me I was right there with you I just questioned myself that a girl who
has done such a successful films, who has made so much money, who has created such a
name felt so small and so crap and felt like a nobody I till today don't know how I just spent
so much time just feeling so so dejected and that only comes from the fact that you're not
dealing with really what's internally going on with yourself to get to this point it's come
because I have absolutely worked on it I have taken every fear of mine whether it's the fear
of somebody saying she's fat or she’s not successful or she's not an actress anymore you
know funny things people throw at you like somebody said oh my God you're such a beautiful
actress and one troll said but she's not an actress anymore it makes you question all those
amazing films that I did just because I am taking a break now does it mean I’m not an
actress but that's what I’m trying to say is that there are so many people who are judging you
and you're hitting you with those comments but if you yourself know where you stand today
what you're capable of, what your worth is and exactly what makes you happy what you don't
want is when your confidence just comes through and I work on it every day trust me there
are so many times in a day that I still go through emotions of trying to work on myself
confidence is working on yourself right you will always have things you know in your
mind questioning you think really do you really think that oh look at her, oh she got a
promotion, oh that mother's looking so hot, I got a wrinkle today, oh my God I’m aging, I’m so
fat these are things that are constantly going to come and you have to just work on it every
day to stay afloat and know that you're not perfect you’re not going to be over confident and
say I’m fantastic everything's great you're going to have to neutrally flow through it and let it just deal with it every day.
And you know your videos on social media with your mother-in-law are you know probably
the most important thing that people need now the kind of you know conversation that you
have and the camaraderie that you share is very, very positive and also with the kind of videos that
you make with Nyra and Hans they’re very, very out of the box right so
Yeah
You know what kind of how do you suddenly think of all these ideas and you know with the
kind of video that you make with your mother-in-law does she also ideate in it and how is how is it entirely
Yeah she does in fact like for someone who was so shy and wouldn't even let me take a
picture of her I have to say I have discovered this Meena Kumari in her where she's just
literally fly she’s like now and full like she loves it you know but it's taken me we just
celebrated one year of Messy Mamma and Sassy Saasu which came about in the lockdown
I think in the lockdown we've never spent so much time like we did now I have to admit at
some level we could have driven each other crazy which I’m sure we did at some level
because we’ve all stuck together right in the beginning of the lockdown and a month into the
lockdown I think we both just realized that we can have a little bit of fun because we both
know that this is a very crazy situation right and that's how it happened our videos even with
the children happened because of the lockdown.
And you know how difficult is parenting in today’s times especially because I remember
if you were like an 80s kid or 90s kid you know growing up when we were growing up we
didn’t have so much of exposure to a lot of things right
And I don't think our parents were conscious parents
Absolutely
My mother has fed me every meal in front of the TV we’ve done what we wanted today it’s
like oh my God how much sugar is there is it refined, is that jaggery I mean it is my mom and
my dad I’m sure have like in your parents they've done what they wanted our generation like
extra only like we are so conscious of everything it’s like over-conscious I think what's difficult
today as parenting is I would say because of the current situation and which will continue for
a bit every parent out there is struggling with trying to work and trying to just balance out
having the kids and your husband at home all the time it is very different even for your
own relationship with your partner we all are all thrown together and we are trying to do the
studying online so basically you're the teacher, you’re everything and where do you get time
for yourself or even time with your husband it is very, very crazy the situation today but
parenting overall is very different it's a lot of hard work, it's a lot of pressure, it’s a lot of
judgment from outside and a lot of expectation.
Absolutely, absolutely and as you said that you know spoken a lot about how Akshai has been
you’re your strength pillar of strength throughout when are dating that phase is different
between you know in a couple when you are married that’s a different state stage and also
when you turn parents when the dating couple evolves into parents right the I mean the
relationship of a couple goes through a lot of stages and which is why there are a lot of ups
and downs as well so tell me how is Akshai being with you and how has your
your relationship evolved through the years?
So I would say that again most I guess people on social media and stuff nobody really
talks about what really goes on because they feel that talking about a relationship and issues
can be meaning that you know it's too much information out there but I do believe that in fact
if more of us say that marriage is far from perfect and there are different phases because as
a person imagine and I always me and Akshai discuss this you’ve evolved anyway so much
since your teens or since you were a child you’re constantly evolving as a person so the
person that you married or fell, fallen in love with necessarily doesn't have to stay in that
box so that you feel safe and you feel you know this is the person I married so one thing that
me and Akshai believe in is that we actually have a couple of months we have sit
downs and we talk about what’s changed you know so it's a one day if I’ve said it this is not
what I want to do but I want to change it I can’t be scared of changing it thinking I’m going to
upset you so evolving is a very, very big thing and evolving of each partner and then meeting
somewhere halfway is important so we have a lot of communication, we have a lot of
discussions if I feel somewhere I’m you know getting a little lost I will talk about it if he feels
you know if I feel that he's getting a little lost he'll talk about it but this communication needs
to happen again I don't want to do that you know and it's okay you’re not going to have a
perfect marriage but Akshai and me the one thing we do have is we're very, very clear with our communication.
Yeah so on this note we end our interview here thank you so much Sameera.
Thank you so much no we were supposed to do this interview right before I got Covid just
imagine and one month later now I’m still recovering but I’m just you know I’m you're the you
know I’m just happy to speak to you Rasika.
Yeah even I’m so happy to talk to you because I really felt that it was very heart to heart
conversation without any hesitations right so I really like people
No, I never hesitate. I have nothing to hide, yeah.
Thank you so much and wish you all the viewers a lot of love and happiness.
Yes thank you from their end and also you take care.