Sonali Bendre
Life goes on, and one should look ahead and not backward.Collection: Life
Incorporating small changes/additions in one's daily routine can have a big impact. For example, eating a healthy diet, including a handful of almonds every day and a regular exercise regime, not only helps me maintain a healthy life but also balance both my family's health as well as my own.Collection: Diet
Until Ranveer was born in August 2005, three years into our marriage, I was working in Hindi or South Indian films. After marriage, I began learning how to run a house. My mother wanted to teach me the basics, but I was never home. So when my mother-in-law taught me chores, it was hard to adjust.Collection: Marriage
During Holi, my mom prepares lovely puran polis, and everyone in my family makes an exception in their diet plan to include this delicious food item!Collection: Diet
All we have is the knowledge passed on to us by our elders, experiences we inculcate and hardly negate. But to bridge the generation gap, one needs to adapt to the new while retaining the goodness of the old.Collection: Knowledge
People often confuse self-respect with arrogance. I believe that there is a very thin line between the two. Balance between the two is often what leads to happiness.Collection: Happiness
The parenting books didn't work for me; I got my parenting lessons from everything but the books! And it was about figuring things out. So every time I had a thought, I would put down my conclusions and thoughts.Collection: Parenting
As I started parenting, I realised there is no formula to it.Collection: Parenting
Being a fitness enthusiast, I try to stay away from overindulgence. I make sure my family eats healthy, too.Collection: Fitness
I feel I should get better at my fitness regimen, but I think it's about doing it more regularly rather than expecting miracles. There are no shortcuts.Collection: Fitness
For working mothers, creating a work-life balance is critical, as we must ensure we do not neglect any significant part of our lives - our children, our family's health, our own health and fitness, our marriage, and, of course, our careers.Collection: Fitness
The point of human evolution is adapting to circumstance. Not letting go of the old, but adapting it, is necessary.
I believe, as human beings, we sometimes indulge in self pity more than it's necessary. Over my life's journey, I have realised that overthinking about your problems and indulging in self-pity is not the answer to get through tough times.
There's a hidden Goth in me: I have a dark sense of humour; I have a dark sense of fashion.
Unless you are aggressive, you will never become number one.
I land in New York, and next day, we go to the doctor. He looks at everything, and we had sent all our tests, and he says, 'You know, it is fourth stage, and you have 30% chance of survival.'
I read anything and everything. Comfort food for my brain is fantasy fiction or science fiction.
I am a Maharashtrian but was not brought up in Maharashtra, as my father worked in CPWD and was transferred every two years. So I have always been a gypsy. I, therefore, could not make good friends, and it still takes me a long time to form attachments.
For a formal look, I wear saris, and certain occasions require a dressed up look. But wherever I can, I like being in something easy and casual.
I love French cuisine. From crepes to the variety of cheese and seafood preparations, this cuisine is so innovative and fresh. It offers something for every kind of foodie.
My mother-in-law thinks I'm more beautiful than all the other faces around. She keeps encouraging me to take up more work.
Every cancer is different. The symptoms and treatments are different, and every human body deals with it differently. There are no formulas to it. That, I think, was the biggest takeaway for me.
Personally, I wear a lot of my mother-in-law's chiffons and my mother's silk. But when I buy saris for myself, then they have to be understated.
I don't want to be equal to a man. We are different and are meant to be that way. Women are more resilient than men. I thrive on the difference between a man and a woman and love a well-behaved man opening doors for me and a certain amount of caring that happens.
Every time I feel fearful of something now, I do it.
I came from a very middle class Maharashtrian family. It was a big step to get into movies. My family was shocked.
I have endorsed every hair product in my career. Looks have been my bread, butter, jam. Looks are important in our society.
I am a completely self-made person. It's been a tough journey - I learnt on the job, worked 48 hours without sleeping.
My routine is very simple because I realised that the more complicated the exercise sessions are, the less likely I am to make it for them. They have to be simple and doable in my daily routine.
When I shaved my hair, my friends asked me to keep it, maybe make my own wig out of it, but I wanted the old hair to go; it was not mine. I wanted to let go.
I come from a background where there would be one mirror above the basin that was used by everyone in the house. If you spent more than five minutes in front of the mirror, you would probably get a whack. My mother was so strict that if anyone complimented me for being pretty, she would not encourage that discussion.
My parents are naive in their morality of things, and so, without realising it, I landed up being ethical and having strong opinions.
I have never planned my career. I never wanted to be an actress. Films were an instinctive step, just like modelling and television.
There is no reason to compare Bollywood and Marathi films. Both have their own charm.
Initially, I was like, 'I can handle anything. What's the big deal about being a mother?' I was not prepared for the changes which are so subtle that they creep up on you.
My whole life turned upside down once I became a mother.
If you are agitated, children tend to think that they have done something wrong.
As an actor, there are a lot of personas and personalities that you carry. Whatever you wear, you adapt to it, and people feel that's your style. But that's not necessarily an actor's style. There are some things that are very 'you,' and some are only to suit your persona.
I know people have always seen me in very fitted clothes because that is required and so is done, but personally, I like the deconstructed look.
I tell women who have gone through cancer that healing from it requires receiving care, receiving support, letting friends and family rally around us. It is time to receive.
As a writer, penning down personal stuff was not easy for me, as it was way too close to my heart.
My writing did turn out to be quite intact, as it has all my experiences gathered at one place.
My memories of the whirlwind '90s are a blur of work schedules. I was completing my B. Com. degree in 1991 when I took to modelling and acting in TV serials. A year later, I found my foothold in movies.
Ranveer was almost three when I began my second stint. I took up TV assignments so that I could have enough time at home. While being 24/7 with my child was amazing and his company stimulating, I missed adult conversations.
Time management is surely the most critical aspect of acing multiple arenas: home, work, and family.
Getting married and having children is an evolution process, a live social experiment no one is documenting.
My son can be as open as he wants with me, but he cannot forget I am his mother and that all will not be forgiven.
Once you are a parent, everything takes a back seat. It ceases to be a role. It is a reality. Once I had Ranveer, I realised that I was cracking under the pressure and that I cannot be a superwoman. I had to open myself to learning.
I have fond memories of consuming a handful of almonds that were soaked the previous night and peeled the next morning. All through my school life, my mother would ensure she kept some almonds in my tiffin box so that I would always have my daily dose of nutrition handy.
If I return to films, the feeling to do it must come from the heart.