Book: Raising Stars - The Challenges and Joys of Being a Bollywood Parent
Author: Rashmi Uchil
Genre: Parenting / Bollywood / Celebrity
Publisher: Fingerprint! (Prakash Books)
Published in: 2023
Pages: 291
Price: Rs 179
In this world of social media, we are flooded with images of celebrities and their kids: sometimes jumpy, at other times, grouchy, either dodging the paparazzi with their nannies or staring straight into the camera with a pout, smile or pose. And then we judge them: What are they wearing? Aren't the kids supposed to be in school instead of at Cannes? What kind of a mother is she if the nanny is the one keeping the child? They go to 'that' school because all celebrities send their kids there?
As much as we want to relate to them as just a child and his/her mother, we're always fascinated by how well put-together they all seem to be. Rashmi Uchil, in her book, Raising Stars, gives us a glimpse of how mundane, ordinary, satisfying, frustrating, hair-raising, spiritual, anxiety-ridden, introspective and nurturing parenting is when out go the lights and the stars come home.
"The thing with kids is that you can never fool them. They see through things," says actor Jackie Shroff. "Easy money does not last. If the father is an artist and is sweating it out in the studios, the child is witness to it." Shroff is one of the 26 celebrities to feature in the book alongside Javed Akhtar, Boman Irani, Nandita Das, Diana Hayden, Dr Aditi Govitrikar, Sunil Shetty, Chunky Panday, Amrita Raichand, Archana Puran Singh, Maria Goretti, Madhoo Shah, Soni Bhatt, Mahima Chowdhary, Nadira Babbar and others who share their experiences about instilling confidence in children, picky eaters, being judged, kindness, discipline, mindfulness, anger management, the quest for excellence, giving back to community and nature and inculcating respect for all peoples irrespective of caste, creed, religion, class, sex or gender.
The theme that runs through the book is how these celebrity parents strive to bring their kids up in a way that they still remain down-to-earth. As Soni Bhatt illustrates, "I remind Alia, 'We are actors. We are not saving lives. All we are doing is entertaining people. That's about it. Let's not have any fake notions about ourselves'."
There are jewels of wisdom: "Always remember, what they say is a reflection of what they are and not what you are," (Dr Govitrikar), "Life is 20% of what you make it and 80% of how you take it," (Panday), "Be a parent, not a friend to your child. Your children can have 500 friends but they have only one set of parents. Never be confused about your role in your child's life," (Dr Madhu Chopra) and "Give your children, especially daughters; the best education money can buy and teach your children, especially boys, how to behave." (Shetty).
The author has done well to balance the voices of both dads and moms in the book, unlike many books on or about parenting which focus on the roles of the mothers. She has also brought in a wide range of celebrities instead of just actors, adding layers to this conversation about parenting.
There are flaws in the editing though, like the glaring mistake of Kapil Dev winning the World Cup in 1984 instead of 1983 (There's a film about it with that title!) At times, the paragraphs read like answers to five questions about parenting the author might have asked during the course of her interview instead of a cohesive piece. Often, the author's own insights are much more worthy of attention than some of the histories of the celebs. It would also have been worthwhile to have photographs of Mrs Nakshatra Reddy, Salome Roy Kapur, Anuradha Patel - people you don't usually read about.
If you love Bollywood or reading lifestyle articles, you will like this one. You may find yourself reading this bit by bit over many sittings or between books, like this reviewer (a busy mother) did, instead of reading it from cover to cover in one sitting.
Rating: 3/5
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