‘My Boys Have Never Given Me Any Trouble’

‘Both
Shahid
and
Ishaan
are
over-thinkers
and
I’m
constantly
telling
them
to
lighten
up,
chill.’

Neelima
Azeem
is
a
well-known
Kathak
dancer
who
trained
with
Pandit
Birju
Maharaj
and
his
nephew
Munna
Shukla.
She
also
made
a
name
for
herself
as
an
actress
on
television
and
in
films.

Her
star
sons
Shahid
Kapoor
and
Ishaan
Khatter
are
going
from
strength
to
strength.
While
Shahid
was
recently
seen
in
the
supercop
actioner

Deva,
Ishaan
will
be
seen
in
the
Netflix
series

The
Royals.

Celebrating
Mother’s
Day,
Neelima
shares
some
interesting
insights
about
her
sons
and
tells

Rediff
Senior
Contributor

Roshmila
Bhattacharya,
“Vacations
with
Shahid
are
extremely
luxurious
and
since
his
wife
Mira
enjoys
doing
things
in
style,
there
are
always
lavish
spreads
and
you
feel
very
pampered.
He’s
always
packed
and
ready
on
time
while
Ishaan
starts
packing
at
the
last
minute,
with
all
of
us
offering
to
help.”

‘Shahid
was
the
knowledgeable
one
while
Ishaan
is
the
intellectual’

We
come
from
a
family
of
poets,
academicians,
journalists
and
film-makers.

My
father
(Anwar
Azeem)
was
a
prominent
journalist
and
Urdu
author.

My
mother
(Khaidja
Azeem)
came
from
a
family
of
famous
poets
and
writers.

My

nana
Khwaja
Ahmad
Abbas
(director,
screenwriter,
novelist
and
journalist
who
wrote
Neecha
Nagar,
Awaara,
Jagte
Raho,
Shri
420,
Mera
Naam
Joker
and
wrote,
produced
and
directed
Amitabh
Bachchan’s
debut
film
Saat
Hindustani),
was
one
of
the
most
intelligent
people
in
the
Hindi
film
industry.

My
sons
are
very
intelligent
and
cultured,
with
a
great
command
over
the
language,
not
just
English,
but
Hindi
and
Urdu
as
well.

Zabaan
unki
bahut
zabardast
hai.

Shahid
was
the
knowledgeable
one
while
Ishaan
is
the
intellectual,
who
—
before
he
got
busy
building
a
career
as
an
actor
—
used
to
be
a
voracious
reader.

Both
boys
are
over-thinkers
and
I’m
constantly
telling
them
to
lighten
up,
chill.

Being
the
first
born,
Shahid
was
always
serious
and
responsible,
wanting
to
take
care
of
me
after
Pankaj
(Kapur)
and
I
divorced.

That
protective
and
responsible
trait
has
now
extended
to
his
family.

He
is
a
caring
husband
to
Mira
and
a
great
dad
to
Misha
and
Zain.

He
used
to
be
a
bit
of
a
loner
earlier
but
in
the
last
five
years,
hanging
out
with
his
gregarious
mother
and
wife,
his
fun-loving
kids
and
younger
brother,
he
has
opened
up
a
lot.

Both
Ishaan
and
he
have
a
delicious
sense
of
humour.

Shahid
is
a
great
mimic
and
can
be
extremely
funny.

‘Usually
quiet
and
shy,
he
had
happy
feet
that
were
always
ready
to
tap
to
a
tune’

I
am
a
trained
Kathak
dancer
and
one
day,
when
Shahid
was
around
four
or
five,
I
was
teaching
my
niece
a
small
but
not-so-simple
dance
piece.

She
was
taking
her
time,
and
wanting
to
play
with
his
cousin,
he
ran
inside
to
hurry
her
along.

Looking
at
her
struggling,
he
said,
‘Oh
no,
you
are
not
getting
it
right.
Look,
do
it
this
way.’

Watching
my
little
boy
demonstrate
the
steps
so
easily,
I
realised
dancing
was
in
his
genes.

Usually
quiet
and
shy,
he
had
happy
feet
that
were
always
ready
to
tap
to
a
tune.

Shahid’s
favourite
television
show
then
was

Chitrahaar
on
Doordarshan,
and
as
the
actors
and
actresses
danced
on
screen
to
the
tunes
of
popular
Hindi
film
songs,
he
would
react
with
his
own
expressions
and
moves.

Looking
at
my
six-year-old
moppet,
lost
in
the
moment,
emoting
so
spontaneously,
I
would
smile,
entranced.

‘Shahid
turned
out
to
be
the
best
dancer
among
1,300
students’

Shahid
passed
high
school
with
high
marks.

This
came
as
a
surprise
as
he
hadn’t
fared
too
well
in
the
prelims.

But
knowing
how
disappointed
and
anxious
we
were,
he
studied
really
hard
for
a
month,
and
being
an
intelligent
boy,
his
grades
jumped
up
by
30
per
cent.

Delighted
with
his
board
results,
I
told
him
he
could
ask
me
for
anything,
if
it
was
within
my
reach,
I
would
get
it
for
him.

He
surprised
me
by
saying
that
he
wanted
to
join
Shiamak
Davar’s
summer
fun
batch
before
he
went
to
college.

He
turned
out
to
be
the
best
dancer
among
1,300
students,
and
got
to
do
a
solo
dance
piece
at
a
show.

Watching
him
dance
so
beautifully
on
stage,
I
realised
anew
that
he
had
inherited
my
passion.

Shahid
also
learnt
the
tabla
and
sitar
when
he
was
young
and
plays
the
sitar
really
well.

Ishaan
too
loves
to
dance
and
has
trained
at
Shiamak
Davar’s
academy.
He
also
sings
very
well.

‘Shahid
has
always
been
more
serious’

Both
boys
are
heavily
into
fitness
and
physical
sport.

Shahid
is
a
cricketer
while
Ishaan
plays
football,
enjoys
water
sports
and
rock
climbing.

Going
with
his
brother’s
biker
gang
on
excursions,
he
has
become
a
biker
by
default.

Both
enjoy
travelling.
Being
a
star,
Shahid
has
to
keep
his
safety
and
that
of
his
family
in
mind.

Vacations
with
him
are
extremely
luxurious
and
since
his
wife
Mira
enjoys
doing
things
in
style,
there
are
always
lavish
spreads
and
you
feel
very
pampered.

Being
organised,
he
will
ensure
tickets
are
booked
well
in
advance.
He’s
always
packed
and
ready
on
time
while
Ishaan
starts
packing
at
the
last
minute,
with
all
of
us
offering
to
help.

He
enjoys
long
hikes
and
travelling
rough.

Once
he
stayed
in
the
US
for
four
months
and
did
all
the
housework
himself.

Whenever
we
got
him
on
a
video
call,
he
was
doing
his
laundry
or
cooking.

The
boys
are
at
different
stages
in
their
lives,
with
an
age
difference
too,
which
is
evident
in
the
way
they
think
and
express
themselves.

Shahid
has
always
been
more
serious
and
internalised,
even
spiritual,
while
Ishaan
is
playful
and
adventurous.
But
while
he
may
appear
more
carefree,
deep
down
he
is
a
serious
young
man.

‘I
was
very
young
when
Shahid
was
born’

Ishaan
has
been
watching
his
brother
grow
as
an
actor,
move
from
strength
to
strength,
but
I
have
never
seen
him
intimidated
by
him.

He
has
gone
for
film
festivals
and
auditions
alone.

I
have
a
long
and
deep
connection
with
both
and
feel
a
great
emotion
in
my
heart
which
is
hard
to
express
despite
my
ease
with
words.

I
was
very
young
when
Shahid
was
born.

Many
of
my
friends,
who
became
parents
much
later,
have
been
worried
for
the
children,
some
of
whom
got
into
drinks
and
depression,
and
some
into
drugs
too.

My
boys
have
never
given
me
any
trouble,
always
very
focused
and
passionate
about
their
work.

As
a
famous
Kathak
dancer
who
was
giving
performances
from
the
age
of
15,
I
had
a
very
different
childhood.

Knowing
how
difficult
it
is
to
balance
something
as
demanding
as
dance
with
academics,
I
did
something
unconventional
for
a
parent,
more
so
someone
who
was
largely
a
single
parent,
particularly
to
Ishaan.

Rather
than
pushing
my
sons
academically,
I
supported
their
love
for
the
arts,
and
they
have
grown
up
focused
and
dedicated
to
their
craft.

I’m
lucky
to
get
so
much
love,
care
and
respect
from
both.