Actor Neena Gupta says that although she chose to raise her daughter, fashion designer Masaba Gupta, as a single parent, she feels “it is not fair on the child”. The 67-year-old has also apologised to Masaba for growing up without her father, former West Indies cricketer Vivian Richards, being around.

“I am so honest with her that many times I have said sorry to her that you didn’t have a father with you when you were young. It is my fault, but she understands. We all make mistakes. When we are young, our parents tell us certain things and we don't listen. That wisdom comes later,” she told Zoom.

Gupta, who is currently enjoying the success of her web series Chumbak, said she gradually told Masaba the truth as she grew up, answering her questions so she would not develop resentment towards either parent.

“I made her like her father. I told her why and what had happened as she grew up. So, there was no malice or anger towards me because I told her the truth. It is very important because, rather than her hearing something from outside, I thought it was better that I told her myself. I think that was a very sensible thing that I did.” she added.

Gupta had Masaba in 1989 with Richards, who was married to Miriam Richards at the time. The couple have two children, including former cricketer Mali Richards. Gupta raised Masaba as a single mother and later married chartered accountant Vivek Mehra in 2008.

Richards has remained a part of Masaba’s life as an adult. She attended his 70th birthday celebrations in Antigua in 2022, while he attended her second wedding to Satyadeep Misra in 2023.

For someone whose name is practically a mood board with bold prints, unapologetic femininity, a label that has become a lifestyle, Masaba Gupta has a surprisingly quiet reason for acting: peace.

"Acting, be it an ad, or a series or anything that I am working on, is therapeutic only because it takes me away from the everyday operations of how to run a business," she says.

"I come back refreshed, I come back recharged, even when I do a short stint. So it definitely makes me feel a lot more at peace with the other version which is that being a founder, being somebody who's an operator for my business. I think that acting is interesting to me only because I can go on to a set and be either myself or a character and come away and not worry about everything else that goes on, on a set.”

At a time when celebrities routinely blur the line between creative work and personal branding, Masaba is deliberate about keeping the two separate. The designer-actor, who first played a heightened version of herself in the series Masaba Masaba, is clear-eyed about what the craft offers her, and what it doesn't need to do.

"Acting can never be an extension of the brand Masaba," she says. "Unless I'm shooting for a show like the one I did, or playing myself, it's never going to be that. It's always going to be a departure from it." She pauses, then adds: "And I think that departure is welcome."

The dual life of founder by day, and actor by choice, isn't a contradiction she's trying to resolve. It's a balance she has consciously built. On a set, she explains, she can "be either myself or a character and come away not worrying about everything else that goes on."

That freedom, she suggests, is the whole point. "That's why it feels exciting," she says. "It makes me feel at peace with the other version of myself - the founder, the operator."

Actor-politician Kangana Ranaut has once again sparked controversy. Kangana (39) shared a personal incident involving fashion designer Masaba Gupta (36), claiming she was denied a saree to wear for a visit to the Ram Janmbhoomi temple in 2024, an experience that left her “humiliated”.

In a series of Instagram stories, Kangana recounted that she had planned to wear a Masaba saree, a close friend who had once requested her to launch her clothing and jewellery line, who later told the actor’s stylist she couldn’t wear the label to Ayodhya”. Kangana added she was enroute from Lucknow, unable to change, and “quietly cried” in her car.

Hopping onto the 2016 trend, Kangana shared a “painful throwback” pic, writing: “I had never performed at my own sister’s wedding, but 2016 was also the year I performed at Masaba Gupta’s wedding.”

Masaba did not respond to requests for comment or clarification till the time of going to press.

Masaba Gupta has always been candid about the influence her mother, Neena Gupta, has had on her life and career. In a freewheeling chat, the designer-turned-actor opens up about Neena’s unapologetic approach to life, her inspiring career graph and her mom’s fashion choices that often face scrutiny on social media.

Talking about why trolls don’t bother her mom, whether it’s about her career, personal life or fashion choices, Masaba says, “There are people who don’t give a damn because it’s cool not to give a damn, and then there are people who actually don’t give a damn - my mom is the latter. She actually doesn’t give a damn because she’s only buying shorts online, wearing them and venturing out (laughs). She comes from a different time, and today, you can be unabashed and be yourself. She only believes in being happy internally and externally.”

Masaba, who in recent times has ventured into acting with shows like Masaba Masaba and Modern Love: Mumbai, says she deeply admires her mother’s continued success as an actor.

“It’s amazing that she’s having her second or third or fourth or fifth innings (laughs). She’s coming here to take all our jobs. It’s amazing because this is what she worked for her whole life. Her honesty and hard work have led her to this point. I’m so happy for her because I think at this age, very few people can achieve that,” she shares.

Sharing what advice her mom gave her about a career in acting, Masaba says, “I was lucky that I was extremely self-critical. I also took my mom’s advice that I would not be able to be a commercial film actress because Indian heroines have looked a certain way, and they will continue to look a certain way. That’s a seismic shift, which will not happen overnight. I was lucky enough to understand from her that if I wanted commercial success, I wouldn’t find it in this space. I was saved because I always had a Plan B and Plan C.”

Now that she has made a foray into acting through OTT platforms, does she hope to appear on the big screen? “Absolutely, I do, but the industry itself is going through a bit of an overhaul right now. Also, it’s not my priority at this moment because my other work takes up 99 per cent of my time. I think I will only take up something if it’s actually meaningful and it does justice to who I am.”

A week before her January 2023 wedding, fashion designer and actor Masaba Gupta got a call. It wasn’t the expected congratulatory call; instead, it was casting director Panchami Ghavri requesting her to front a dance number in Kesari Chapter 2. “I thought it was a bizarre request to come my way,” recalls Gupta, whose cabaret song, Khumaari, is a surprise element in the Akshay Kumar-led period drama.

Not many know that in her teenage years, Gupta trained at Shiamak Davar’s institute, and has always been enthusiastic about dancing. Tell her it shows in the song, and she attributes it to director Karan Singh Tyagi’s vision.

“He had this thought [of casting me]. It was earlier meant to be a burlesque number, and then, it became a cabaret song. The fact that I knew I could do justice to it made me say yes. I’ve been a dancer all my life, and always wanted to do something like this. My gut feeling was that I should do it because it was a Dharma film, set in the right backdrop, and it could be something that I could lend myself to,” she says.

Before the shoot, Gupta rehearsed for two-three days with choreographer Vijay Ganguly. She even had a reference in her head. “I was referencing Catherine Zeta-Jones from her performance in [Chicago]. In my head, it was a toned-down performance of Zeta-Jones’ in All That Jazz,” she smiles, adding that while the dance was a breeze, she faced an unexpected hurdle.

“I had bad cramps because of the tight corset, and was curled up in the vanity van between takes. But it sorted itself out thankfully, and everyone was patient with me.”

Fashion designer Masaba Gupta and actor Satyadeep Misra are now parents to a baby girl. The couple announced the happy news with a joint Instagram post. Gupta and Misra revealed that their first baby was born on October 11. They also posted a monochrome picture of the baby’s tiny feet. With a picture of a white lotus and a moon set against a blue backdrop, their announcement post read: “Our very special little girl arrived on a very special day. 11.10.2024.”

Misra further shared on his Instagram stories that The Beatles’ Here Comes The Sun was playing in the delivery room.

Within minutes of the post, the new parents’comments section was flooded with congratulatory messages from fans and celebrities. Masaba’s close friend Sonam A Kapoor wrote, “I’m so excited and happy.” 

Actor Dia Mirza commented, “Welcome to our world baby girl.” “God bless, congratulations!” wrote actor-politician Smriti Irani, while actor Shilpa Shetty posted: “Congratulations, my darling.”

Masaba and Satyadeep got married in January 2023. In April this year, the couple announced that they were expecting their first baby.

Masaba Gupta is about to take on her most stylish role yet – motherhood. As she awaits the arrival of her mini-me, the actress-designer dishes out on her pregnancy journey, her recent baby shower, and embracing the unknown. “I am equally excited and nervous. I am heading into something that's a little bit unpredictable and at the same time very exciting. But I am prepared for the unpredictable,” she tells us. Excerpts as followed...

Talking about her current headspace, Masaba shares, “I have absorbed the massive change that's going to come in my daily life. It took me about two-three months to absorb that. I've never felt more organized.”

The baby is expected next month in October. The 34-year-old admits her routine is “pretty similar to what it was before” she got pregnant. She starts her day with a prayer or a meditation, followed by workout or a yoga class.

“I am spending a lot more time with my mother (Neena Gupta, actress) and my husband (Satyadeep Misra). I'm spending a lot more time on my own, which is amazing. I'm suddenly in this mode of managing the cupboards and the furniture. I'm just preparing the space physically for what's to come," Masaba shares, adding, “I always wanted to be active during my pregnancy and so, asked my doctors to tell me what I can and cannot do."

Ask Masaba if she feels the pressure to be a perfect parent in the future and she replies, “Not at all. I don’t know what kind of parent I will be, but the one thing that I’m clear about is that I will not take advice from 20 people. I ask people to back off when they give me unsolicited advice because I don’t need it. Of course, there will be a support group of people from different walks of life who I look up to. I’m a big fan of how kids were raised in the past.”

She adds, “I intend to be a hands-on parent like my mother because she did a lot by herself. I will be perfect in some areas; I will be imperfect in some and I will be learning every day. Babies are super resilient. I don’t want to put any pressure even on my mother and ask her to be around the baby because she has her own life.”

Talking about her husband Satyadeep’s take on life, she says, “Sattu comes from another planet (laughs). He has a very different take on life. He was also raised differently because his parents are civil servants, and they travelled a lot. What we have in common is that we both believe that we have to learn how to wing it in the best and worst of circumstances.”

Masaba’s mother Neena Gupta is often seen as the quintessential modern mother. Ask her about the tips that she’s got from her mum and she replies, “We were just talking about it the other day that there is no photograph or documentation of her pregnancy at all on the internet. She had to hide her pregnancy. She was telling me how she (even) did a dance number in her eighth or ninth month. I asked her if she was nervous, as she had to hide the whole pregnancy. She said, ‘I didn’t have the money to give you protein. I didn't have the money to be on any diet or nutrition plan. But I was very happy to have a child.’ The only thing that she told me is that, ‘A child can be born and be raised very well and become anything that you imagine or aspire the child to be from a footpath and from a mansion’. So that’s my manual. She always reminds me that children are born on the footpath in this country and they turn out okay, so I should make the most of the resources I have got and not have this expectation that my child would turn out to be greater."

Masaba’s decision – unlike her mum’s - to be out in the public eye, rocking the bump, was not preplanned. “I don't think I planned too much. I was just so happy to be pregnant and so happy to be a healthy pregnant person. For the first time I was not at war with my body. I am somebody who cares deeply about how I look and how my fitness levels are. I was so happy to be putting on that weight, to be growing a healthy bump and to be looking fuller. I just wanted to be able to have every experience the way I have been having when I was not pregnant. I didn’t want to hide it from anybody. Women look good when they're pregnant. They look so wholesome. There is an inherent joy, and you have to celebrate that with the world,” she elaborates.

Masaba adds, "I was greatly inspired by Kareena (Kapoor Khan, actress) because she was just out and about. She was working, having dinner, having lunch and living like a normal pregnant woman would live. Even Alia (Bhatt, actress). She had to promote a film; she promoted a film. It was not a big deal. We make too much of a deal out of it. You should just celebrate pregnancy."

Masaba Gupta, Katrina Kaif, Tamannaah Bhatia, Deepika Padukone, Shraddha Kapoor and Anusha Dandekar

VJ and television host Anusha Dandekar has, for a very long time, grappled with the word “brown skin”. When she started her showbiz career, she remembers witnessing a lot of colourism. “All of this would sit in my head, and make me wonder, ‘Why is this still happening? And why is nobody speaking about it?’” The lockdown, she says, came as a blessing, because it gave her ample time to think about these thoughts playing in her subconscious, and do something about it. 

Her beauty brand, BrownSkin Beauty, launched in November 2020, was a direct response to this discrimination, she tells us over a call. “In our country, and unfortunately I don’t know why, the two words ‘brown and beautiful’ are never used in the same sentence, considering the fact that every one of us has a brown skin tone... the fair and lovely narrative has been pushed into our brains far too long,” she says, adding, “[Through my brand] I was hoping to change that narrative.”

Custom-made for the Indian skin, BrownSkin Beauty offers a slate of products, from sunscreens to cleansers, moisturisers, scrubs and masks, that Dandekar says, are made keeping “our skin type and weather in mind”.

Masaba Gupta’s LoveChild, which launched in August last year, emerged out of a similar, if not the same, concern. “LoveChild as a term has been woven into my destiny ever since I was born,” says Gupta, daughter of actress Neena Gupta and West Indies cricketer Vivian Richards. “...and it was time to weave that destiny into a brand.”

“Being a woman of colour and belonging to two different ethnicities, it was difficult for me to find cosmetics that would suit my skin colour and type. Also, dealing with acne and sensitive skin for over 15 years, I grew up loving all my mum’s makeup but disliking what it did to my skin,” says Gupta, in an email interview. This is where LoveChild, her brand, which offers a range of makeup for all skin types and tones, fits in.

Gupta and Dandekar are just two among the growing number of celebrity faces investing in beauty and skincare businesses. Internationally, it’s already been a successful trend—pop star Rihanna has Fenty Beauty, Selena Gomez is the force behind Rare Beauty, and Kylie Jenner is ruling the roost with Kylie Cosmetics. Closer home, the trend has been picking up in the last five years.

In 2019, Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif set the ball rolling, when she turned her love for make-up into a business enterprise with her label, Kay Beauty. Since then, every year has thrown up a new direct-to-consumer (D2C) beauty brand with a familiar name. More recently, Deepika Padukone and Jigar K Shah founded 82°E, with a slim but exciting skincare range. The brand had raised $7.5 million in seed funding in December last year.

For Gupta, her eponymous fashion label and acting skills have already made her path-breaker of sorts. Her decision to enter the beauty market, was solely because of how passionately she felt about the category and the offerings that have been available in India. “It’s much more about making a difference in every Indian girl’s life even if at a small extent, and build a safe space, a community that pledges to drive and embrace inclusivity and empathy, and encourage them to achieve whatever they set out to get,” she says.

Neither Gupta nor Dandekar are content with being mere faces of their brands. “I enjoy the process of being involved right from scratch,” says Dandekar, “Be it researching the latest beauty trends and innovations to shortlisting shades and formulations; and even sitting with the teams and conceptualizing the launch, marketing and distribution strategies. I find the entire process therapeutic.”

Dandekar even visits the manufacturing team in Delhi. “Sometimes I suggest a certain texture, or a particular ingredient and fragrance. And then, the team tries and incorporates these recommendations; the tests and trials can last months. There’s a lot of back and forth and I remember it seemed almost endless, when we were formulating a sunscreen,” says Dandekar, adding, “What you need is a lot of patience.”

In 2021, Bollywood actress Shraddha Kapoor was roped in as brand ambassador of MyGlamm, a leading D2C makeup brand. Around the same time, she also invested in it. Her involvement in the business, however, goes beyond her role as an investor, says Sukhleen Aneja, CEO, Good Brands Co, Good Glamm Group.

“She has had a significant impact in the realm of conscious purchases and raising awareness about the environmental implications of our choices. By actively participating in these processes, Shraddha Kapoor ensures that the company’s offerings are in line with her vision and values,” says Aneja. Kapoor’s makeup curation—her top beauty picks, party faves, and products she swears by—which are available on the brand’s website, has also given them an edge, feels Aneja.

“Shraddha’s awareness of current trends, coupled with her impeccable taste and deep understanding of the beauty industry and our consumers, has made her curation a highly anticipated and valued aspect of our brand,” says Aneja, adding, “Our target audience is always eager to see which products Shraddha swears by, as they trust her insights and recommendations.”

Digital creator and beauty influencer Muskan Chanchlani, who goes by the handle @missmcblush on Instagram, feels that the current set of celebrity-backed beauty brands are definitely “competitive”. “Some of them have been in the industry for very long, and understand the needs of the Indian skin.” 

Chanchlani says these celebrities also have the resources to invest in creating a beauty and skincare range that’s aspirational yet affordable. “I think Deepika Padukone is the only one who seems to be doing things differently and that’s perhaps because her target audience is also very different. Her products at 82°E are very highly-priced, and are meant to be luxury, for a very mature audience.” 

Masaba’s LoveChild, on the other hand, is playful with a pop of brightness, while Kay by Katrina, she feels, is inclusive and caters to a diverse range of skin tones. “The quality of her range is top-notch.”

Their celebrityhood definitely gives credibility to what they are selling, adds Chanchlani. “Having a huge fan base helps, as the engagement is very different. When Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty launched in India [on June 15], the traffic was so heavy, the website crashed. A celebrity gives the much-needed kick-start to a brand.”

Dandekar, however, says that it’s not all roses. “Of course, being a face that people recognize helps... you have an audience that really trusts you,” she says, “And if they trust you that much, you never really want to break.”

But, in India, she says the audience is also very discerning. “They trust you, but not blindly. And I think that’s got to do with the fact that we don’t have a crazy pop culture influence here. They will look at a product from all angles—the price-point, what it offers, the reviews, and whether it’s really good for them. So, you need to offer them something that’s quality.”

According to Gupta, more than a celebrity face, what people really need is a “relatable face or an individual with whom they relate to, based on their personal experiences and journeys”.

It also makes for astute business sense to have a stake in the beauty industry. According to McKinsey’s report titled The beauty market in 2023: A special State of Fashion, the international beauty market is supposed to touch $580 billion by 2027.

Another report, India Beauty and Personal Care Market: Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2023-2028, by the International Market Analysis Research and Consulting (IMARC) Group stated that “the India beauty and personal care market size reached $26.3 billion in 2022”.

IMARC Group expects the market to reach $38 billion by 2028, exhibiting a growth rate of 6.45 per cent during 2023-2028. Last month, Inc42, one of the largest tech media platforms in the country, listed Padukone’s 82°E and Sugar Cosmetics, where actress Tamannaah Bhatia is an investor, as one of the top 75 D2C brands disrupting India’s consumer market.

Brands, meanwhile, are increasing their visibility across platforms. Kay Beauty is now being sold at 100-plus retail stores in the country, apart from online marketplaces. LoveChild is currently available on the brand’s website lovechild.in, and leading beauty platforms like Nykaa, and marketplaces like Amazon and Myntra.

“We are also present on Tira. In addition to this, we are available offline at the existing House of Masaba stores pan India. We are also expanding our physical footprint with the mother brand, having launched new stores at Bandra and Kala Ghoda in Mumbai, Khan Market in Delhi and very recently in Ahmedabad,” shares Masaba.

Ad veteran and independent brand coach Ambi Parameswaran says that India is only mirroring what’s been happening in the West for a long time. “Often the celebrity just lends the name and a big company does the rest. But in the recent past, celebrities are media voices themselves with fan following numbering millions. So they are leveraging this to create products [beauty/skincare]. You may call this a kind of a brand extension,” he says.

But the big issue, he says, of having pure-play celebrity brands that are owned—sometimes partly—by celebrities, is that it could create some confusion in consumers.

“For instance, who is the real Deepika? I suppose over time celebrities will figure out which works for them better: the whole enchilada or just take the money and endorse a brand,” he says, adding, “There is, however, a difference between what Deepika/Katrina [or anyone else] are doing and what say, Masaba is doing. Masaba has positioned herself [personal branding] as a designer and so it is a logical fit for her to launch cosmetics to supplement her clothes. Deepika and Katrina are actors. They may have great sense of skincare; but for them, this is a side hustle.”

According to Sujata Assomull, a renowned fashion journalist and author, the beauty and skincare market is currently saturated. “We have a new beauty product launching almost every day; in such a scenario, the offering has to stand-out,” says Assomull. From her own experience, she admits, it’s been difficult to stay loyal to any of the new products the Indian market is being inundated with. “It’s nice to try them and have fun with them, but when I have a major skincare issue, I am not sure if I can trust them yet. I generally go back to Sisley Paris or even Ayurvedic brands like Kama, Almora or the Indian clean beauty brand BiE, which is formulated by Dr Dinyar Workingboxwalla.”

She feels that internationally, Victoria Beckham really aced this with her luxury beauty and skincare brand by working with power skincare brand Augustinus Bader—“she knows what a woman wants, she is cool, she is out there, and has teamed up with a great beauty expert.” Having said that, Assomull says the “jury is still out on this one”. “I don’t think we are seeing an end of the trend yet. To see who actually makes it to the endgame, we will need to talk five or 10 years from now. It’s too soon to predict whether anyone of them is going to be the next Estee Lauder or Helena Rubinstein.”

Bollywood actress-entrepreneur Katrina Kaif’s range Kay Beauty is known for adopting an inclusive approach and catering to a diverse range of skin tones

Bollywood actress Shraddha Kapoor is an investor in MyGlamm, and as brand ambassador is also the face of its beauty range; (right) Anusha Dandekar who founded BrownSkin Beauty with Gaurav Kumar in 2020, says she is very involved in the creation of the skincare range

In highlighting the unique life that Masaba Gupta has led as a fashion designer, the Netflix offering Masaba Masaba also showcased the youngster’s fine acting prowess. Ahead of the release of the second season of the show, mother Neena Gupta, who also features in the series, admits that she was wrong to curb her daughter’s acting ambitions early on.

“When I saw the first season, I was surprised. I am Masaba’s biggest critic. She gets upset because I always criticise her, but that’s the role of a mother. But, I was so impressed with her work that I said sorry to her for not letting her act. She has a lot of potential as an actor.”

Never one to shy away from asking for work when she needs it, Gupta reveals that for her, finding relevance implies showcasing honesty towards her work. “The things that I did in the past had to be done due to the circumstances. The things I do now are also because of the circumstances prevalent today. I have to be happy with whatever I do. I believe that when I am happy, I am being relevant to myself. If I am relevant to myself, I am relevant to people.”

This edition of the show will also focus on mental health, and other essential subjects. Gupta calls it a progressive show that isn’t “shy to showcase the reality”. “We are not crude to talk about it in a particular way. We addressed it sensitively. Every parent is a kid’s support system. The important point that [we’re highlighting] is that you can talk to your parents, and friends about your issues. Back in the day, I could not talk to my mother like Masaba talks to me today. The whole dynamics has changed. In nuclear families, we don’t know whom to talk to. We keep things [bottled up] and they come out in horrible ways. Watching how a mum and daughter talk may help people [do the same].”

The first season of the series showcased Masaba’s rise to the top spot in the world of fashion. Season two releases today.

The couturier in Masaba Gupta believes in having fun with her designs and enjoying her craft. The actor in her, too, seems to follow the same philosophy. With 'Masaba Masaba' and her segment in 'Modern Love Mumbai', it’s easy to see that Gupta is enjoying expressing her creative side in front of the camera. She admits that the response to the opening season of Masaba Masaba made her feel validated as an actor.

“Modern Love got good reviews as well. That was even more comforting. I have grown up seeing a certain style of acting in Hindi cinema, which is typically an exaggerated form. So, I didn’t know that there is an audience for the subtle [performance] that I do. With OTT, a new style of acting is being appreciated. So, I feel validated. But I want to play a lot more with dialect and characters,” she shares.

For now though, it’s time for Gupta to become the character she has known all her life — herself — as she presents the second season of the Netflix comedy. While the Sonam Nair-directed series will see some familiar faces from the opening season in Neena Gupta and Neil Bhoopalam, actors Ram Kapoor, Kusha Kapila, and Barkha Singh have also joined the cast. Gupta notes that the upcoming edition touches on the subject of mental health.

“Mental health is a conversation that you cannot ignore in today’s day and age, but it has to be addressed [responsibly]. We have done it in a way that people will at least take the first step to tackle their mental health issues.”

A successful fashion house, an eponymous series, and a successful anthology. Is Bollywood the next stop for the designer-turned-actor? “I have a full life being an entrepreneur. Until it absolutely fulfils me as an actor, I won’t do [a film]. To be honest, Bollywood will do what it does — they will still cast the 10 people that they always have been casting. So, I hope to do a lot more work on OTT.”

At 63, actor Neena Gupta took her first solo trip across Europe recently. “I was very nervous because it was the first time that I was going all alone. My friend was supposed to come with me, but she backed out at the last minute,” Gupta tells us.

The Panchayat actor explored the picturesque locales of Europe, including Greece, Italy and Santorini, which she calls her “dream come true moment”. She adds, “Everything was good, but shaam ko thoda akela lagta tha. The whole day I used to explore the places, but in the evening I would feel, ‘Koi saath mein hota toh achha hota’.”

Gupta kept her fans updated through her social media posts. “It was a great trip, but going on a solo holiday is not easy,” says the actor. But she accepts that travelling alone did instil a sense of independence in her and the trip helped her find a few things about herself. “I realised that I am a loner. I never went out in the evening to have dinner. I had my food and slept in my room,” says the Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (2020) actor.

Her daughter, designer and actor Masaba Gupta, was paranoid about her travelling alone. “She kept saying, ‘Why are you going alone?’ She felt guilty that she couldn’t accompany me,” she says, admitting that she “would like to go on such a trip again”.

Fashion designer Masaba Gupta, who made her acting debut in 2020 with the series Masaba Masaba, wants her acting career to be a real deal instead of being a vanity affair. That’s because she is not trying to fit into any box.

“I have seen that when people are on set, they keep looking for ways to validate their presence as an actor. But I am just being myself,” asserts the daughter of veteran actor Neena Gupta. She adds, “I am not taking any extra measures to make my skin look anything different from what it is. I am not taking any extra steps to make my body look smaller than it is. I’m not trying to fit into any box. I am not trying to fit into people’s ideas of what I should be like if I’m an actor. I am trying to do justice to the roles I get.”

The 33- year-old adds, “I run a business [too], so I don’t have the time to think about all the things and the vanity that come with the industry. I go back to my work quickly.”

Talking about her acting journey so far, she says, “It has been overwhelming because it has happened in a very unnatural way. When a lot of people make their debut, there’s a lot of fanfare around. They spend a lot of time taking care of their bodies, learning dance or training... [I would say] it’s such an interesting time because people who are not considered typical actors are getting a lot of work.”

Masaba’s debut project was inspired by her own life, and she followed it up with another web project, Modern Love: Mumbai. She confesses that she thought the role in her recent outing would go to “some well-known actor”. “To get work because of the fact that people think you can act and fit the role is a rare case in the industry. So it’s a great thing for me,” concludes Masaba, who feels she entered the industry at the right time.

Anushka Ranjan and Aditya Seal had a fairytale wedding last month, and the actor says she has been in complete bliss since then. “Married life has been good to me,” says Ranjan, who dated Seal, the Student Of The Year 2 (2019) actor, for four years before marrying on November 21.

When asked how she is coping with the changes that come with being a married woman and she says that nothing has changed for her: “We bought a home in a different wing of the same building where I had lived for 17 years prior to marriage. I’m at home; it’s just that my home has expanded.”

Ranjan, who is the daughter of actor and director Shashi Ranjan and the sister of Akansha Ranjan, reveals that she meets her family all the time. “We hang out together. My dog also goes back and forth. There couldn’t have been a more ideal situation,” she shares.

The actor had all her friends attend her wedding festivities, including Alia Bhatt, Athiya Shetty, Masaba Gupta, Vaani Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar, and the happy, vibrant pictures said it all. “I’ve this lovely group of friends, and those three days of the wedding were phenomenal. More than me, they are having withdrawal symptoms from the wedding. I recently hosted a dinner for them too,” she says.

Ranjan goes on to reveal that she is yet to go on her honeymoon. “Aditya and I have not had the time. We have been building this house since March last year. We decided that before we travel, we will make sure that we get the house in order. And once everything is fixed, we will decide where we want to go,” she ends.

Actor Anil Kapoor’s daughter and producer Rhea Kapoor got married to her boyfriend, Karan Boolani, in a low-key ceremony on Saturday at her father’s bungalow in Juhu, Mumbai.

Ditching big fat wedding revelries, the couple opted for a private affair, celebrating the moment with just their family members, including sister Sonam K Ahuja and Anand Ahuja, and close friends.

After the ceremony, the father of the bride stepped out to distribute sweets to the paparazzi standing outside the house, urging them to bless the newly wed couple. In a video that has emerged online, he is seen saying, “Dil se de rahe hai, blessing do... Jaise Sonam ko aapne wish kiya, aaj Rhea ko wish kijiye, please.”

While the newly married couple didn’t pose for the media after the ceremony, they were clicked making an exit from the house. Rhea was seen in a red outfit with sindoor and a sparkling ring on her finger. Her husband Boolani looked stunning in a sherwani.

As someone who has made a career of designing attires that flatter women’s bodies, Masaba Gupta has had a largely public tussle with her own. Discussion around the weight of the designer — who has been vocal about battling polycystic ovarian syndrome — was renewed when, only weeks ago, she flaunted her chiselled midriff, a result of a weight-loss routine that enabled her to be her “lightest in 10 years”. 

The feat becomes pronounced in the knowledge of the challenges that a condition like PCOS can pose. Shrugged off with terms like ‘common’ and ‘seamlessly manageable’, it could have masses disillusioned that the condition is, in fact, seamlessly manageable. “It is tough and requires discipline, but is not impossible,” admits Gupta, urging people to put their faith in a weight-loss routine when addressing the issue. 

“The biggest challenge in tackling PCOS is not related to the weight, but to the opinions. All the promoted recommendations talk of consuming medication, or adding chemicals to the body. Weight-loss has been my tried-and-tested method, and many people get irritated when I say that. It may not be the [sole] solution to PCOS, but it is a start. You need to have a streamlined [approach], and there is no room for short cuts,” says the fashion designer. 

Apart from the fact that she has learnt to avoid foods like chocolate and milk, which cause skin inflammation within a matter of a few hours, Gupta is an advocate of intermittent fasting. “I was introduced to it at an Australian spa. I was struggling with PCOS then and they had discussed the pattern which involved consuming healthy meals, only in a limited [time] window. The results were evident — I lost weight, had more energy, and was able to keep my condition in check. My skin improved, and I had mental clarity. It also adds a sense of discipline to your routine.”

For the most part, Gupta follows a familiar diet. She kicks off her day with fruits, and consumes her share of carbs with rice, rotis and sabzis for lunch. A special “roti pizza” — sans cheese — makes its debut in our diet vocabulary. “It’s what I consume for dinner, with vegetables, and paneer, if I must.” However, mindful of her tendency to lose the sense of proportional-eating while binging, she’s taken steps to avoid snacking altogether. “Some people can do it mindfully. While I will have makhanas and roasted chickpeas, if I need to, I generally avoid snacking [between meals]. It throws me out of whack, and I begin to eat whatever comes my way.” 

She is neither “into fancy diets”, nor “fad workouts”. She says she will never be caught experimenting with unconventional routines in a swimming pool, even though she recently gave a go at Animal Flow, and found it to be a “pleasant extension to yoga.” Gupta largely sticks to the basics — three days of weight-lifting, comprising movements like squats and lunges, some amount of functional training and skipping, and a lot of yoga. Occasionally, she’ll indulge in a game of tennis. 

But despite the struggle to maintain her weight, especially as part of an industry that romanticises lithe figures, Gupta has been able to establish a relationship of admiration with her routine. “My equation with fitness is a beautiful one. I set my life around it, and that’s the only way it works. If you see it as a chore, it will always be one. But this is what will help you live a better life. I thrive in it — it helps [keep me in a good] mood, manage stress, and celebrate the joy that food is. I learnt from Shiamak Davar that the body is a temple — respect it, and it will help you. My body and mind come first. The rest of the world can wait.”

Neena Gupta, who spent around two months at her home in Mukteshwar, Uttarakhand, is now back in Mumbai and has started shooting for her film Goodbye. The film’s shoot was halted after a lockdown was imposed due to the surge in Coronavirus cases. This is a special project for Neena, who completes four decades in the industry next year, as she gets to share screen space with Amitabh Bachchan for the first time. “Everybody is surprised that this is my first film with him, but that’s the truth! Chalo, at least now I get to work with him,” says Neena, who was in talks for a film starring Bachchan many years ago. “Yes, there was one project that we were in discussion for, but in the end, it didn’t materialise... I don’t know why.”

In Goodbye, directed by Vikas Bahl, Neena plays the actor’s wife. Though this is their first professional collaboration, she has been good friends with his family. “Jaya ji (Jaya Bachchan) invites me for their Diwali party every year. And Mr Bachchan, you know, is such a good host.” Back in 2018, he had appreciated Neena’s work in Badhaai Ho! The actress fondly remembers that she was pleasantly surprised to receive a bouquet of flowers with a handwritten note praising her performance in the film.

Though she shares a good rapport with the Piku actor, when it comes to performing with him, Neena gets nervous. She says, “Initially, I used to be very nervous on the set. Honestly, I was a little in awe of him. However, as time went by, we chatted a lot on the set, and I became normal.”

The actress points out that as they get back to work post the second wave of COVID, crew members are extremely cautious and follow the protocols more stringently. Now that she is in Mumbai, does she miss spending time in the mountains? “I was there for around two months with my husband. Even my daughter Masaba visited us for a few days. But I have had enough of rest, now I want to be busy with work,” she signs off.

Such was the popularity of Masaba Masaba that Netflix India apparently greenlit the second edition a fortnight after the opening season dropped online. But it has been a long wait since to take the Masaba and Neena Gupta starrer on floors. While the plan to roll the second instalment in April was marred by the lockdown, mid-day has learnt that creator Ashvini Yardi and director Sonam Nair are set to kick off the shoot in Mumbai next month.

A source from the creative team reveals, “Masaba and Neena ji will report to the set by mid-July. While senior actors like Neena ji are fully vaccinated, only those who have at least got the first dose will be allowed on the set.”

The series — a dramatised version of the life and loves of the celebrated fashion designer — will focus equally on her actor-mother’s journey in the upcoming season. “When the makers had approached her, Neena ji had narrated certain interesting incidents from her life, which have now found a mention in her autobiography, Sach Kahun Toh. These incidents will be included in the new episodes. The makers have yet to speak to Masaba’s cricketer father Vivian Richards, but there is a possibility of him making an appearance too.” 

Yardi and Nair remained unavailable for comment.

Only a week into the filming of the second season of Masaba Masaba in late March, the shoot was stalled due to the surging Coronavirus cases in Mumbai. Soon after, the Maharashtra government imposed a junta curfew, thus putting the brakes on shoots across the state. Now, one hears that the makers of the biographical drama — starring Masaba and Neena Gupta — have planned an elaborate Kashmir schedule.

A source reveals that creator Ashvini Yardi and director Sonam Nair had conducted a recce in the valley in the third week of March. “They are awaiting a few local permissions to shoot in the picturesque locations. Though they initially intended to film there in mid-May, the lockdown has altered their plans. Depending on the situation in the valley, Netflix’s go-ahead and the crew’s vaccination, the team, in all likelihood, will kick off the Kashmir schedule in late July. Post that, they will turn their attention to the Mumbai leg again,” says the source.

For the uninitiated, streaming giants Netflix and Amazon Prime Video had suspended all their shoots since late March due to the worsening situation across the country. Work on the projects will resume only after their international counterparts deem it fit, in adherence with their safety guidelines.

Though assumed to be a popcorn entertainer, Masaba Masaba challenged the unrealistic beauty standards set by society and the stigma surrounding a failed marriage. The autobiographical series also gave us a confident actor in couturier Masaba Gupta. "Initially, I assumed it would be like Keeping Up With The Kardashians, and was instantly uncomfortable about a camera following me around. But a large chunk of the show is scripted, and that made me say yes to it. We took a year to put the project together," begins Gupta, who has earned a nomination in the Best Actor (Series) category at the mid-day and Radio City Hitlist OTT Awards.

Ashwini Yardi that she wouldn’t cross a few lines. "I don't care much for my imagery, nor does my mother [Neena Gupta]. But we didn't want to compromise on others’ privacy. I was waiting for people to pass it off as an average show. What presumably worked was us taking a dig at ourselves."

The climax depicts Gupta picking up the pieces after her fashion show turns out to be a disaster. Ask her if the sequence was inspired by one of her real-life events, and she recounts, "A few years ago, I had done a show on a yacht. The place was suffering from overcapacity, and people were stuck on the lower decks. Almost 70 people were stuck on the landing area, trying to get on board. When the yacht began moving, people got sea-sick. Hardik [Pandya] was our show-stopper. It was a brutal experience; I stopped doing shows for two years after that. The only solace was that the collection sold well."

As a teenager, Masaba Gupta aspired to become an actor before she found her calling in fashion designing.

- Masaba Gupta has been nominated in the Best Actor (Female): Series category for Masaba Masaba. 

The other nominees are:  

- Kirti Kulhari: Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors (Disney+Hotstar)

- Prajakta Koli: Mismatched (Netflix)

- Shreya Chaudhry: Bandish Bandits (Amazon Prime Video)

- Shreya Dhanwanthary: Scam 1992 (Sony Liv)

- Sushmita Sen: Aarya (Disney+Hotstar)

- Log on to www.hitlistottawards.com to cast your vote.

- You can also vote via SMS. Send HITLIST <space> category name <space> your choice (a/b/c as on the website) to 57575.

- Voting lines close on February 9