Actress and mother of two, Shefali Shah gets candid with reader Varsha Aswani on what it takes to raise 'terrorists', keep a marriage together and look like a million bucks Makeovers are as commonplace in Bollywood as stilettos are in a five-star lobby. It was only once we got to Vipul Shah's office to meet the stunning new version of his wife that we grasped the gravity of this change.
Mirror reader Varsha Aswani was keen to discover how the busy actress managed the dramatic shift.
The sprawling office with cooling lights and white smooth walls was a relief from the scorching sun, as were the four air conditioners operating on full blast.
As we all settled in on fluffy sofas, movie buff, mother of three and grandmother of two, 52-year-old Varsha shifted around nervously. "I'm not sure about what I will say, I'm a little nervous," she said before the actress came in.
Shefali Shah stormed into the room with a resounding 'Hi' and plonked herself onto an adjacent couch. She was beaming and looked like she had managed to drop half her body weight on a whim while vacationing in Santorini. Her cheerful introduction seemed to have a calming effect on the group.
"The job of a homemaker is one of the toughest in the world," exclaimed Shah while Varsha introduced herself as one. "I have two terrorists at home. My sons are aged eight and nine and it's a nightmare.
They not only hate each other but go a step ahead and encourage me to kill their sibling. Once I called home to check up on them and was horrified to hear my younger son insist that our maid jump off from our seventh floor house!"
Varsha empathised and was interested to know how this 37-year-old mother managed to look as good as she did. "It wasn't easy at all," she said. "I have literally starved myself. It's been one endless diet. It started out with Ketosis, which is an intense offshoot of the Atkins diet. It takes a toll on the body but I did lose about 10 kgs in a month. Then I moved on to a food and exercise-oriented lifestyle to maintain it," she said.
"After years in the industry, which is your favourite medium television, films or theatre?" asked Varsha.
"I started with television but back then serials were a lot more meaningful. We had beautiful stories to tell. Now everything seems mass produced.
Theatre is definitely the toughest because I wasn't used to the loud tone and expressions. It took a little doing but I enjoy it. With films, your slightest flicker can be an emotion on the big screen. They are all so challenging and enjoyable. But these days, one needn't be a great actor to be a big star. The criteria have changed," she laments.
Ten years of marriage, two children and a hectic professional life, how does she make time for her relationship, asked Varsha.
A question closely associated with the subject of her latest film Kucch Love Jaisaa, where she plays the role of a woman so engrossed with her family that they take her for granted until she snaps and goes on a spending spree. "It's a lot like the movie. We get lost in our given roles of mother, wife etc, and almost never make time for ourselves.
Our new house is being readied, young boys, a movie up for release, we have little time for eachother," she confessed. "But even though the conversation doesn't veer far from home and work, Vipul and I try and take some time out exclusively for each other.
Over time, couples tend to take their partner for granted. Our relationship has evolved. I don't get as easily rattled as I did earlier, I am a lot more relaxed, we understand each other better," she says.
As if on cue, Vipul Shah flitted into the room and was greeted by a 'Hi baby' from his wife. They smiled at each other and carried on. After a decade, that's still a lot more than many other couples can boast of.
