Manish Mishra (DNA; October 14, 2014)


How has fatherhood changed you?
I’ve spent the past three months doing no work. If there’s any way I could say no, I would say no. Honestly, I am glad about that. The first two-three months are the toughest. It’s the most tumultuous period, when you are literally dropped into the middle of this — you have a baby and you have not even the slightest clue what you are doing. You are always nervous, am I doing the right thing? Am I doing the wrong thing? Am I feeding her enough? Am I feeding her too much? At this point, it’s very important for a couple to be together. I do know if I wasn’t home at that point, Avantika would have felt very abandoned and alone.

You’re quite close to your father. Because of that, do you take your role as a father even more seriously?
I was very fortunate. I had a very good equation with my father and my stepfather. For that, I have to credit both of them and my mother. When my parents separated, I was very young, I was three years old. The objective was that I shouldn’t feel that I have less. I should never see them fighting, speaking ill about each other. In that sense, I have been very fortunate, they were sensitive and mature enough. When they separated they were younger than I am today — they were 24-25 and I am 31 now. Even then, they were mature enough to put my needs above their own. My biological dad makes it a point to meet us once a year and stay with us. Generally, he makes a point to come down when I have a film releasing. This time, he came to meet the baby.

You had said that you’d get a new tattoo after the baby was born. Decided anything yet?
My current tattoo is a samurai. I haven’t decided yet on the second one. I’ll probably ask my artist to design something. You should allow the artist to draw. That’s where the artform comes from. You have to trust your artist. You give a thought or emotion — that kind of a thing. I am a big believer in allowing the artist to create. Otherwise, I can download a picture from the net and say, yeh duplicate karo. That’s not art.

Meena Iyer (BOMBAY TIMES; June 16, 2014)

Imran Khan's bundle of joy is six-days old. And the actor's already obsessing about his little girl. Avantika and he have named the child Imara Malik Khan. “It is Swahili and it means strong and resolute,“ explains the light-eyed actor, adding, “It's a dumdaar name.“

Recalling the moment he first set eyes on his baby , he says, “Friends and family tell you that when you become a parent your world changes. It is one of those things that people keep telling you about, but until you hold the baby in your arms, you are never really prepared for it." He adds, “The last phase of Avantika's pregnancy was very hard for her. She is petite. With the baby growing inside her, she would get breathless sometimes; there were acidity and other issues as well. Physically, she was quite uncomfortable in the last couple of months. This phase was a little tricky, a little hard. However our world changed on June 9. The baby was born at 9.14 am on a Monday morning and when they handed her over to me at 9.15, a switch went off in my head. It is clichéd, but my world has changed."

He tells us how his family made the hospital a Mad Hatter's zone on that day. Imran says, “Mansoor mamu is not here, but Aamir mamu and Kiran came to the hospital. My family is nuts. We had booked an extra room for the family, right next to Avantika and the baby, but we fell short of space because 10 members arrived together. Before long we had to request the hospital for one more room to accommodate our relatives. And there was a nice family outing happening with everyone ordering French fries, cheese toast and nimbu-paani.
Hospital rules allow only two persons to visit the patient at a time. So people took turns to see the baby and meet my wife. They would then go back to the next room and stay put. It was a nice family outing."

The actor is also an expert at changing diapers. No, he hadn't enrolled in any classes, but he has hands-on experience of changing nappies and bottle-feeding Mansoor and Aamir's kids while he was growing up. “All this is coming in handy," he laughs. Of course, in the case of Imara, everything he does is magnified because he is obsessed with his new-born. The baby room is manned by a camera, which is accessible from anywhere in the world.

“Wherever I am, whatever I am doing, I can access her room on my phone,'' says he, showing us the cot where she sleeps. He even points out a slight resemblance that she bears to Aamir's son Azad and to himself. “If I had had a boy I would have some semblance of dignity. But since it's a girl, I will be on my knees for the rest of my life. My daughter can twist me around her little finger," he adds.

When we point out the skin that has peeled on his hands, Imran says, “I have bought a 24-pack of hand sanitizers. I have sanitized my hands 30 times in a record of 24 hours. Each time I go up to my baby, I want to ensure my hands are clean. That's how my skin has started to peel. My mother has now warned me to go easy on that stuff, so today I have only used the sanitizer twice.'' A huge pink cake arrives from Sonam Kapoor with whom Imara shares her birthday. And when he picks up the phone to thank his I Hate Luv Storys co-actor for the indulgence, one cannot help but smile.

Father's Day truly has a new significance for Imran this year. 

Hiren Kotwani (BOMBAY TIMES; June 10, 2014)

Meena Iyer (BOMBAY TIMES; February 14, 2014)

Imran Khan and his wife Avantika Malik-Khan have just returned from their babymoon to the UK and Europe. This celebrity couple is expecting their firstborn around mid-June. The actor is currently reading film scripts and his diary is chock-a-block with shooting commercials. Other than this, Imran is not keen to leave his beautiful home at Pali Hill, Mumbai, and his pregnant wife Avantika, who he confesses he loves a lot. Excerpts from our conversation with the father-to-be...
 
Last year, you complained that you got only three days off. In 2014, you’ve only been holidaying...
It is true that last year I was shooting back to back for Once Upon A Time In Mumbai Dobaara and Gori Tere Pyaar Mein. So I could only manage to get three days off in a row. That is like an extended weekend. It was just enough time to go to Karjat or Alibaug. However, from Christmas until now, Avantika and I have been on an extended vacation. We went to Phuket over Christmas and New Year. I came back a couple of days before my birthday, January 13. And I told Avantika, I’m not satisfied, I need more time off. So, we took off to London. We were planning to stay in London for around 10 days because Avantika’s best friend is there. However, when we reached there, we started talking and she suggested that we should go to Munich. She made the arrangements for us and before you knew it we were in Munich, then Netherlands, then Brussels. We kept extending the holiday. I would keep calling my mother and say, ‘I’m extending my holiday by three days, five days', so on and so forth.

So this was your babymoon?
Yes it was. It was snowing in Europe. Avantika saw snow for the first time in her life. We were in a place where Hitler held the 1936 Olympics and it is one of the best skiing destinations in Germany. On this vacation, there was no question of doing anything as adventurous as skiing because Avantika is in the family way. Our baby is due between June 8 and 17. This is the period the doctors have indicated.
 
There are still three months to go. Is there a possibility of another babymoon?
Yes, there is a possibility of us going on another babymoon. I’m a very determined person. Avantika hates flying. She has a phobia. Her entire time on flight is spent clutching my hand.
 
If you had to choose between setting up another home either in Europe, UK or USA, where would it be?
I love London. And though I have a US passport, I’m partial to London.
 
What’s been happening on the workfront?
I was shooting for my commercials between my New Year vacation and my current one. I’m also reading scripts. However, I plan to take a break from mid-May until the baby’s birth. I have communicated this to the producers who have approached me.
 
Aren’t you about to start a film with Nikhil Advani?
Yes, I’m committed to a film with Nikhil, perhaps around July. Nikhil is currently busy with the Sooraj Pancholi-Athiya Shetty film that he is directing.
 
So you are not in a rush to sign more films?
Frankly, I hate working in a rush. I do have filmmakers telling me that they would like to start a film and finish it by the year-end. But I’m someone who prefers to shoot at a more relaxed pace. I like to do readings with my directors before we go on set. Of course, after the film rolls, I’m game for a hectic pace. But I do not like to get into a film until I have done my homework. Aamir Khan, Vishal Bhardwaj and many other filmmakers prefer to do readings and workshops before principal photography begins. I like their way of working.

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; December 6, 2013)

It was just a few weeks back when Imran and Avantika were fearing her being detected of dengue. Little did they know while going for the test that while the dengue test was going to be detected positive, another test would simultaneously be detected positive, that of Avantika being pregnant. They were both thrilled, but also worried about dengue impacting the baby. We can now happily tell you that not only has Avantika recovered from dengue, but she has also cleared the first three months of her pregnancy with an ‘all normal report’ from her gynaecologist. Big congratulations to Imran and Avantika. We eagerly await the new lady or master Khan on the block.