Sharmila Tagore Says She Was An 'Absent Mother' To Saif Ali Khan: Made A Few Mistakes

Sharmila Tagore recently spoke at a Mother’s Day event for YFLO. The 70-year-old actress spoke about not being present for her oldestborn - Saif Ali Khan, during the first six years of his birth. The former actress, who was married to cricketer Tiger Pataudi, recalled working two or three shifts a day till the time Saif was a toddler. 

Sharmila Tagore admits making mistakes as a mother 

Speaking at the event, the veteran actress recalled not being a hands-on mom to her son Saif Ali Khan. The actress also has two daughters- Saba and Soha, for whom, she said she was much more available. Talking about working woman’s guilt she said, “When I had Saif, I was very busy. I was working two shifts a day and for the first six years of his life, I was really absent. I did whatever I had to do/I went to the parent-teacher's meeting, and attended his plays but I don’t think I was a full-time mom. My husband was there, but I wasn’t. Then when I became a mother, I became an overzealous mother. I wanted to feed him, bathe him, and everything. That was the other side of the pendulum. I made a few mistakes, honestly.” 

She admitted that Saif has grown up ‘okay’ and highlighted that he was looked after by his father, extended relatives ,and teachers. She said, “My husband was there, and we had the support of the extended family and my friends. One of his schoolteachers would live across the apartment in Mumbai. She and her husband really looked after Saif as well. For the girls, I was there.” 

When Soha Ali Khan admitted not getting to know the ‘filmy’ side of her mother

When Saif Ali Khan was born, Sharmila was already working as a full-time actress. During an old appearance at the show Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai, the veteran actress recalled not being able to see Saif for three days in a row. She added, “But by the time my daughters were born, I wasn’t working that much, so there wasn’t any filmy atmosphere at home.” 

Soha agreed with her mother and added that she and her sister had never seen their mother going for a film shoot. She recalled, “We were taken aback to see her cry profusely (in a film). She told us that was glycerin! That’s when we realised that there is something like fake crying as well! That she was ok, there was nothing wrong with Amma.” Soha Ali Khan is also an actress and was last seen in the 2013 film Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 2.