Soha Ali Khan recently opened up about her parents — the late Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and veteran actress Sharmila Tagore. In a recent interview, the actor spoke about growing up in a home defined by equality, her father’s progressive values, his absence in her later years, and how her mother’s cancer diagnosis reignited her deepest fears.
‘My father came from a royal background, yet was so progressive’
Reflecting on her upbringing, Soha said she only realized much later how privileged her childhood had been.“As a child, you think what you are growing up around is normal. Only when you have some more exposure do you realize how privileged you were. To have a role model in my mother, who was a working parent and the breadwinner, and a father who was so present — it shaped my entire outlook on life,” she told Nayandeep Rakshit. Despite coming from a royal and conservative background, her father was far from traditional.“You would imagine someone from a royal, aristocratic Muslim background to be conservative, but he was so progressive. I took all that for granted growing up. Now I see how that shaped who I am — I expect to work, to be a parent, to have a voice and agency. I wanted a partner who would see me as an equal, and I think that came from watching my parents.”
‘My father’s confidence never wavered despite my mother’s stardom’
Soha also spoke about how her father’s confidence and security as a man deeply influenced her perception of relationships.“My father was inherently confident. It didn’t shake his ego that he was married to a superstar — that she wore a bikini, romanced other people onscreen, and played such strong characters. He was secure, and they don’t make many people like that anymore. Even today, people are regressing instead of progressing,” she said.Calling her father her “first role model,” Soha added that his presence during her formative years shaped her self-esteem.“He helped with my college essays, came for my school plays, and was always proud of me. For a young girl, that kind of presence from your father really shapes your sense of worth and the kind of partner you seek later.”
‘My biggest regret is that he never got to meet Inaaya ’
Speaking about losing her father, the actress became emotional. “There are so many moments when I miss him. My biggest regret is that he didn’t see Inaaya — he would have contributed something beautiful to her life. He hardly got to know Kunal; I think they met only twice. He once asked my mother, ‘Is she still with that boy who wears earrings?’” she recalled with a smile.She continued, “People say time heals, but I feel as the years go by, you just miss them more. You accept it, but you never stop missing them. The only way to deal with grief is to keep their memory alive, to talk about them with people who loved them.”
‘My mother’s cancer diagnosis brought back my deepest fear’
Soha also opened up about the fear and panic she experienced when her mother, Sharmila Tagore, was diagnosed with cancer.“Of course it makes you more panicked. My biggest fear has always been untimely death and losing loved ones. You can handle everything else, but not that,” she said.She expressed gratitude that her mother’s illness was detected early.“At least when it comes to something like lung cancer, the most important thing is prevention and early detection — and that happened miraculously early in her case. That’s why we have the results we do today. I’m just grateful for that.”
