Neliima Azeem recalls ‘tough’ single-motherhood with Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter, credits Mira Rajput for uniting the family

Actors Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter‘s mother, Neliima Azeem, recalled how ‘tough’ it was to raise her sons as a ‘single mother’, and now, all she wants to do is to focus on herself, and spend time with her grandkids.
In an interview with ETimes, she said that she worked ‘very hard’ and witnessed some difficult times as she raised Shahid and Ishaan. But she is glad that she can now sit back and watch their careers flourish.

Shahid is her eldest son, born from her marriage with actor-director Pankaj Kapur. Neliima later married actor Rajesh Khattar, and then Raza Ali Khan. In an earlier interview with Bollywood Bubble, Neliima had spoken about the failure of her marriages, and how defeated she had felt then. “It was the first time when I actually experienced grief, sorrow, rejection, anxiety, pain and fear of the unknown and a whole lot of insecurity,” she said, about her separation from Pankaj Kapur.
She credited her daughter-in-law, Mira Rajput, for having ‘brought the family together’, and said that she can’t speak highly enough of her. She also said that she loves spending time with Shahid and Mira’s two children, Misha and Zain. “I feel I am totally blessed to have a happy family now,” she said.
Neliima also praised both her sons for the kind of career paths they’ve crafted for themselves, and said that if the opportunity arose, she’d gladly work with them.
Shahid will next be seen in Jersey, a Hindi remake of the hit Telugu film of the same name, starring Nani. Ishaan made his acting debut with director Majid Majidi’s Beyond the Clouds, and followed it up with a splashly Bollywood debut with Dhadak. He also appeared in Mira Nair’s adaptation of A Suitable Boy, and in Khaali Peeli.