Bollywood actor Aamir Khan is known to be close to his mother, Zeenat Hussain and on Mother’s Day he spoke about his childhood memories and the special bond he shares with his mother, reported Hindustan Times.
What significance does Mother’s Day hold for you?
Honestly, I am not quite sure about the significance of Mother’s Day. It’s a very alien concept to me. However, my mother has been very important in my life, and not just on one particular day. She has been the biggest influence on me. She is extremely dear to me, irrespective of which ‘day’ it is.
Since your father was a busy film-maker, what role did your mother play in shaping you as a person?
My father was always very busy and I think in that generation, fathers were a little detached from their children. Once in a while, he would get extremely emotional, but he wasn’t around much, so my mother was the one who had a big influence on all of us.
What was your mother’s parenting style?
I won’t say that she was a very strict mother but neither would I describe her as chilled out. She had her own way of communicating her displeasure.
You took your mother for the Hajj some time back. Is there anything else you feel you have to do for her?
One of the most important things my mom wanted to do was the Hajj. I was very happy that I was able to fulfill that for her. Other than that, she has never had any big desires. She just wants to see her children happy.
What are your fondest memories of your mom?
One of the memories that I have, and which will always stay with me, is about competitive tennis I’d play as a kid. When I would come back after a match, she would be waiting for me and ask, ‘How did it go? Did you win?’ And since I was fairly good and was a top seed in Maharashtra at one point, I would usually win. So I’d tell her that I won and she would be very happy and give me a hug. Ten minutes later, she would come to me and say, ‘You know, the boy who lost to you must also have reached home by now and his mother too must have asked him the same question. And he must’ve told his mother that he lost. She must be feeling really bad right now.’ The first time she said that it knocked the wind out of me because suddenly I was thinking of the mother whose son I had beaten. Her ability to think about not just the boy I had beaten but his mother too was a big life lesson for me. It taught me to care about others and think instinctively for them.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 13th, 2014.
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