The Modest Joys of a Majestic Life

The Simple Pleasures
Money to me means a little bit of security, for the family. It allows a little bit of fun and enjoyment of life. It is certainly not everything for me. Reading, and education makes me feel happy. You should know what you feel happy with in life. I don’t need too much. I have lived in a palace and a rented apartment in Mumbai. Give me a lamp by my bedside and a book, and I will be happy. My parents gave me all that and I loved it then and now too. Books are my friends.

Does He Miss Palace Life? 
I do not miss living there anymore. Life should be a mix between the city and the country. In Mumbai, you live in a tight space. I have a terrace apartment and a flat too. But I love residing in my small flat because I feel life is correct like that. My kid is right in the next room to me. But yes, I miss the palace simply because it is home to me. Dad is buried there. 

Spending Time with Taimur 
Sometimes you have to work. Well! Today he is with me…sleeping upstairs. Soon after I complete my promotional interactions with the media, I shall take him for a swim

Being Attached to Taimur 
I don’t like to leave the house because of him. Maybe once he grows up and turns irritating, I may prefer to leave the house.

Boarding School Bound 
We might like to send him to a boarding school, probably at 13. Growing up as a star kid in Juhu and Bandra, he needs to see the world - a little of Africa and other countries. To be able to lead a normal life, he needs to be sent to a boarding school. I studied in a boarding school and grew up as a normal kid. Taimur is getting too much attention. So we would like to strike a balance, by sending him to learn to live a normal life. 

Obsessed with His Character in Bazaar 
For Bazaar, I had to learn a little bit of Gujarati. It’s like you start having an affair with your character. So even at home, when I am feeding Taimur sometimes, I start murmuring my lines. And this little one would wonder what was I doing. I would, however, pretend to be normal.

Terms of Endearment
Taimur has just begun to speak. He calls me ‘Sir’, ‘Sir Abba’. He also calls me ‘bhai’ at times, as he hears the workers nearby from a construction site addressing each other as ‘bhai’. Taimur has picked up this word and whenever he looks at them, he calls them, ‘Ehh! Bhai!!’.