MUMBAI MIRROR (February 1, 2019)

TV czarina and filmmaker Ekta Kapoor welcomed a baby boy on Sunday, January 27, via surrogacy and relayed the happy news on social media on Thursday. “By God’s grace, I have seen many successes in my life, but nothing beats the feeling of this beautiful soul being added in my world. I cannot even begin to express how happy my baby’s birth has made me,” she shared on Instagram.

Admitting that she had been trying for a baby for the last seven years, Ekta added, “It is an emotional moment for me and my family and I can’t wait to begin this new journey of being a mother to my little bundle of joy, Ravie Kapoor.” The youngest member of the Kapoor family has been named after Ekta’s father Jeetendra’s real name.

Dr Nandita Palshetkar, who guided Ekta through the process, said, “Ekta came to me a few years ago and we tried to help her get pregnant with multiple cycles of IUI and IVF. But they were unsuccessful. After that, we sought help of the surrogacy technique which we performed at our IVF centre. Nine months later, she has achieved success with the birth of a child.”

A source close to the family revealed that the baby weighed three kg at birth and that Ekta had been keenly involved in the process, taking constant updates on the surrogate and the baby’s health at every stage from the doctor. “It was her pure determination to become a mother that made this happen,” the source added.

Ekta’s brother, actor Tusshar Kapoor, had also opted for surrogacy in 2016 to welcome son Laksshya. “Ekta is a family-oriented person and has been like a mother to my son. This marks the beginning of a new phase in her life, an exciting time of completeness and fulfilment,” Tusshar was quoted as saying.