Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal don’t have a pretentious bone in their body. There’s an inherent social awareness and empathy in them as people, which makes conversation with the two refreshingly real. As the two are all set to embrace parenthood, in their first interview together, they talk about embarking on a new journey as parents, partners and producers. They also reflect upon lessons learnt in life, their relationship and what the future holds.

Richa: I am excited. Everything about Ali and my relationship has been organic and normal, so parenthood is in the same vein. We are just going with the flow and see where we land. I think it’s going to be a beautiful sail and proper adulting hereon. We were friends first and now living together as husband and wife, in terms of my relationship with Ali, nothing seems to have changed since the day we met. It’s just that having a child is extreme levels of seriousness (smiles).

Ali: We are very excited and nervous for both our babies, the production house, and the baby. When we started our production house, the motto was to help nurture amazing stories. As would-be parents too, we are hoping for the best. Baaki sab upar wale ke haath mein hai. All of it is a blessing. I am truly grateful. I will try to be the better version of myself as a father. I have a lot of empathy, I listen, that has helped me a lot with my wife (laughs). We are also artists, so we must have that compassion to be able to take in what the world gives you. The world is going through all kinds of things, sometimes you need to allow the good things to affect us, but the bad things also affect us. We are highly emotional people so when our family extends, it is going to be very special. This is difficult for me to describe in words.

My mother was a working mother. I was quite young, so I don’t remember much but when she was pregnant with my younger brother, I remember she going to the hospital for her delivery and returning to work in 40-45 days. She taught in a college. That’s all I have known in my life… Women who treat childbirth as a natural extension of their life. It’s not unusual for me to see that. I want to keep things natural. Hum log kaafi hauua bana dete hai inn cheezon ka.

Richa: Disagreements are also healthy, and they keep things interesting. No fight is final. It’s natural to fight when you care. The opposite of love is not hate; it’s indifference or apathy. You don’t have to be clones of each other. One of the best things is to collaborate with people you are friendly with. You don’t have to befriend everyone you work with but it’s nice to have an understanding with someone you wish to produce films with. Ali can like love stories, I can like action films. That is not the point. Are we able to argue our differences and come to a point where things are amicable and move forward? We need to agree on the fact that we need to make a good film or a good show. The intent must be in alignment, the rest are just details. I am lucky to have him in my life.

Ali: There are always creative differences and there should always be. I really admire that both of us are strong headed and adamant in our creative endeavors. I won’t have it any other way. Life with sycophants around you is like a place of illusions, it doesn’t work. I have seen so many systems crumble because they have ‘yes men’ around them. I know there is one person on my side who is not going to nod in agreement with me for everything and anything. I enjoy that. Also, we don’t look at it as business. This is our craft. This is what we love doing. We get to tell so many stories in one lifetime. I am delighted to have Richa as my partner. Of course, we are not doing things for free as money is necessary for survival but that’s not the sole motive.

Richa: We both alternate between being headstrong and soft. I have a soft spot for my cats and animals. Ali is the first person to cry when we see movies in a cinema hall. I value vulnerability and compassion in a person. I think that’s a finer strength. I am not into toxic men. Mujhe accha lagta hai that Ali has his heart in the right place. He’s always trying to be a better person. Since the time I have known him, he’s evolving into a great partner.

Ali: I have seen things that I don’t wish upon anyone. I have also seen some things that I feel have gone missing in the new generation and need to be reinstated. Our etiquette and value system need to be carried forward. I don’t want to have a textbook answer for this. There’s a new fingerprint that’s coming. That’s how the world moves, everyone is different. We can’t decide things for others. I want my child to have some level of compassion. I want a future where we have trees and clean air.

Richa: I am going to say something dark and disturbing. I don’t think any of our kids will have a better life than we did. The rate at which we are destroying the environment, it’s not going to be fun for anyone. However, I have a lot of faith in Gen Z, Alpha, and their ability to dissect things like gender and climate activism. They inspire me. We are living through an event of mass extinction, deforestation, heat wave warning, all over the world the tide is tilting towards authoritarianism. There’s war and violence. I am hopeful for a better future but it’s stupid to think that we don’t have work to do.