Manjri Varde aka ‘Sassy Saasu’ on second chances in life: ‘Baal safed ho gaye ho, par dil jawaan hi hai’

While some people like to stick to specific milestones in life — like getting a degree, working a stable job, getting married and starting a family, etc. — there are others who take life as it comes.
This spontaneity often leads to them discovering their zest for life, their talents, and power. Among them is art Manjri Varde.
On Instagram, Varde is known as ‘Sassy Saasu’, and she often appears with her daughter-in-law Sameera Reddy in funny reels and cooking videos. Known for her wit, sass, and ever-smiling face, the 67-year-old even has followers of her own, who appreciate her craft on the regular. She is also hailed for her fashion sense, which is quite dinct.

But, not a lot of people know that Varde has had to smash many stereotypes and overcome too many challenges in life to reach this point. Her story was shared Humans of Bombay on Instagram recently. In a video, the art and grandmother shared that she went back to the world of painting after separating from her husband.

Varde added that the sale of her paintings gave her financial freedom, and she was also able to take care of her children. She also said she did not pity herself, instead learning new things, becoming an art, a content creator and also a model.
In the caption accompanying the video, she shared that she was 35 years old when her painting was first showcased at an exhibition. “I was so nervous but even then, I felt joy. You see, that had never happened before. I got married right out of college. We were deeply in love and just a year later, we even had a boy! And 27, I was a mom of 2! But soon we began having problems; I felt suffocated and so, we separated.”

Varde shared that she was a “wreck”. “My kids had to stay with their dad; I didn’t have money. But I promised myself — I’d become financially independent; and so, I started painting again.”
The art would take her artworks to shops to get them sold. For the first few months, however, she did not sell anything. But, when she made her first sale, she “felt worthy”. “…through word of mouth, I became known. But one of the highest moments of my life was seeing my paintings in an exhibition.”

Varde said she “cried that day”. “I’d found a new me… a new ‘Manjri’. For the next few years, I immersed myself in work and my kids. In fact, they were my biggest supporters.” She was eventually stable enough to raise her kids.
“We were our only family and it only became better when 8 years [ago] my son got married! I loved Sameera from the moment I met her,” Varde said about the actor. “And so, when she said, ‘Let’s make reels together’, I agreed in a second! I had no knowledge about social media but I was excited to learn something new,” she shared with Humans of Bombay.

She said after brands reached out to them and she even modelled, she realised she had found “a new passion” at the age of 67. “I get some comments like, ‘You’re so old to do this’ but at the same time, I have young girls coming up to me saying, ‘You’re so beautiful! I love your content!’”
“It’s been over 30 years since I restarted my life. I have no complaints — I’m the happiest I’ve ever been,” Varde said, adding: “But there’s so much more that I still want to do, kyuki baal safed ho gaye ho par dil jawaan hi hai!”
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