'Mothers are not goddesses'

'Children have to remember that we come with all our failings,' best-selling Shobhaa De tells Rediff.com's Savera R Someshwar.
Videos: Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com

At 75, Shobhaa De has seen motherhood evolve. From her 'Aie' who was 'plain exhausted looking after four children and a demanding husband to make cuddle time for her youngest -- me' to her daughter-in-law Radhi and son Rana, who are currently living in Thailand, who don't believe in 'putting down roots' and are not overly concerned about a formal education for their daughter, Samsara.

'This is the way new of educating kids... Children are studying, but differently. The important thing is we need to be happy, breathing clean air and Samsara needs to be with nature,' they gently explain to her.

In her latest book, Insatiable: My Hunger For Life, Shobhaa De confessed to being initially 'stumped' before she understood her children's way of thinking.

As she looks around at anxious young mothers, she has a bit of advice for them this Mother's Day.

"Mothers," she says, "are not goddesses. And children have to remember that we come with all our failings."

Here, Shobhaa says, is one of the kindest things children can do for their mothers.

Shobhaa has been a working mother all her life. As someone who is still a working mother, she has life-tested tips to share:

Modern India. Young India. Vibrant India. And yes, a new India where children are now leaving home at a much earlier age for studies or to set up their independent lives. How then can you keep the mother-child bond strong?

Here's what Shobhaa suggests.

Shobhaa De's 25th book, Insatiable: My Hunger For Life, has been published by HarperCollins Publishers India.