Actor Nikhat Khan, who was last seen in the film Pathaan (2023), says her family follows Raksha Bandhan “with shiddat”. In the run-up to the festival, the actor tells us it’s one of the family’s cherished occasions, and which they look forward to celebrating at younger brother, actor-producer Aamir Khan’s house.

“Raksha Bandhan is something we always celebrate with a lot of joy. This time, too, we will be celebrating, but my sister Farhat (the youngest of the four Khan siblings) is abroad, so we will miss her and I will do the rituals on her behalf. Last year, I was travelling, so she did it for me. Usually, we go to Aamir’s house and we do the little ritual of tika, with diya and mithai. Us din sweets ka bhi koi parhez nahin rehta, khila hi dete hain!” beams Nikhat.

Like every family, the Khan clan, too, has their unique twist to the festival. “Aamir ties us Rakhi too — ki aisa nahin hai ki only he has to protect us; we, too, have to protect him. So, hum unko aur woh humko Rakhi bandhtey hain, which is very sweet,” Nikhat says.

What does she feel is the best part of celebrating Raksha Bandhan? “That we remind each other, ki hum hain! It’s a nice feeling. Special ho jata hai. Shiddat ke saath karte hain and when kids also see all this, they also understand our social fabric,” she tells us.

Khan says the bond between the siblings has deepened over the years. “Thankfully, we get the opportunity to meet each other frequently as we stay in the same building, all of us — me, Aamir and Faisal. Only my sister is not here as she has moved to London. Our ammi (Zeenat Hussain) is also here, and mashallah, she is 90 now. Her not keeping well in the past two years has brought us even closer together,” she wraps up.

Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; September 5, 2019)

The poster of Aamir Khan’s daughter Ira’s debut directorial play, Medea, is a painting. And what’s special about it is that it has been painted by her bua Farhat Datta, who is a graphic designer. The poster shows a woman in a black outfit holding a dagger, with a red background making the image fiery. Says Farhat, “Ira told me about this really interesting Greek mythological story on which she was directing a play. I was intrigued. She said she wanted me to make a painting that would be used as the face of the play in the poster and all the publicity material. She had a clear idea about what the artwork should portray. All the discussions and idea exchanges helped me to give form to her vision.”

When asked about the concept, Farhat shares that it portrays Medea, whose husband Jason deserts her for another woman. “Medea is filled with anger and humiliation, which is all-consuming. To take revenge, she resorts to murder. So, the visual had to portray emotion of passion, anger and revenge. The fiery red on one side depicts the anger and heightened emotions, while the other darkened side portrays her mental state, which culminates into murder. The figure also had to project a confident personality,” she explains.

Proud of her niece, Aamir’s sister says that Ira is grounded, hard-working and dedicated. “She was an adorable baby and has grown into a lovely young woman. Her enthusiasm, spirit and ‘nothing is impossible’ attitude is infectious. It inspires me. I lived in the US during a large part of her childhood, but she used to come and spend summer vacations there, where we have celebrated so many of her birthdays. Also, we love similar things like art, playing cards with my mom and also the 70’s TV show, Golden Girls. I wish her all the best on this new venture of hers,” she concludes.