Actor Kriti Sanon has revealed for the first time that she froze her eggs in 2021, sharing that she never wanted to feel tied down by a “need to get married now or have kids, keeping a timeline in mind”.

Speaking on the Humans of Bombay podcast, the 35-year-old shared that she chose to undergo the process while preparing for her film Mimi (2025). Since she had to gain weight to play a surrogate in the film, she felt it was the ideal time, as the process naturally causes “intense bloating”.

Kriti recalled that she felt “hormonally disruptive” after undergoing the procedure: “[I felt] almost like a pregnant woman, because your mood swings are going off the chart.”

She admitted that the procedure was “not an easy process but worth it”.

Explaining what influenced her decision, Kriti said, “After a certain age, it is tougher to get pregnant in a healthy way, and even for the baby to be healthy. So I took that call instinctively. Also, I could afford it.”

It is a process where mature eggs are retrieved from the ovaries, frozen, and stored for future use.

The process involves daily hormone injections to stimulate your ovaries, a minor procedure to retrieve mature eggs, and freezing to preserve them. It can take about two weeks. When you’re ready to conceive, they are thawed, fertilized and implanted.

The best age to freeze your eggs is between your late 20s to before 35, since egg quality and ovarian reserve are optimal at that age.

Costs vary depending on various factors. After an initial egg freezing cost between Rs. 1.2 lakh and Rs. 3.5 lakh, clinics may charge an annual cryostorage fee ranging from around Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 1 lakh per year.

Human eggs can be frozen indefinitely from a biological standpoint. But, in India, under the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021, eggs can typically be stored for up to 10 years.

Doctors are increasingly seeing healthy women in their late 20s and 30s opting for it to preserve their fertility while pursuing higher education, career goals, or waiting for the right partner.

No. It is a scientific option to preserve fertility, and the decision should always be taken after consultation with a fertility specialist.

Inputs from IVF specialists Dr Sutapa Sen, She Delhi; Dr Vaishali Sharma