Mother’s Day 2023: Celebrating The Different Shades Of Motherhood
9 May 2023 | 11 min Read
Manisha Pradhan
Author | 1053 Articles
Motherhood is that fabulous journey where you’re raising mini-mes, vibing with their unique personalities, and learning life lessons together. You become a pro at multitasking. Let’s not forget the endless love and support you give (even when they’re being total drama queens) this Mother’s Day 2023.
Yes, mums are the OG BFFs, our ride-or-die, and let’s face it, we’d be lost without them. So, let’s give a shoutout to all those mama bears this Mother’s Day. Here are some amazing everyday mums with capes hidden under their aprons!
Celebrating The Different Shades Of Motherhood
Motherhood Is About Embracing Your Step-Children
Being a stepparent is not easy. Firstly, it comes with a lot of negative cultural baggage, thanks to all the age-old stories about cruel stepmothers. It takes a lot of hard work, consistency and most importantly a whole lot of love to be a stepmum.
But Gayathri Natarajan Dileepan makes it all look so easy. Gayathri is a mum to four wonderful kids, two of her kids are from her husband’s first marriage, her daughter from her earlier marriage, and a son she has with her husband Dlieepan. Gayathri, her husband Dileepan, and the kids share a wonderful bond.
That’s because Gayathri makes an effort to bust the myth about cruel stepmothers by loving each one of her kids equally. “When I wanted to be exclusive it was difficult to love my stepchildren. When I became inclusive I began to embrace all as my own,” says Gayathri.
Motherhood Is About Being Strong
Losing a partner is never easy, but when you’re left alone to raise two kids, the burden can feel almost unbearable. Yet, somehow, you find a way to soldier on, one day at a time. Especially when you have kids. Even though every day has been a challenge ever since the loss of her husband during the COVID-19 pandemic, Purva Kocher Bhandari has risen to the occasion time and again. She has learned to be both mum and dad for her two kids; 11-year-old Hrivaan Bhandari and 7-year-old Amaira Bhandari.
She’s been there, standing strong to give her kids the love and support that they need. Purva is also helping her family handle the family business after the death of her husband. She says she educated herself about grief to normalise her experience and find ways to cope for herself and her kids.
Motherhood Is Smiling Through Grief
She has a smile that lights up the room and laughter that can light up the whole town! There is not a hint of the challenges she faces every day as a mum to a son with Autism, nor the pain of losing her teenage son to cancer. In short, Gargi Bhattacharya is a woman who is the perfect example of strength and optimism.
The founder of a charitable trust called Zain Foundation, Gargi Bhattacharya is an inspiration. Her older son, Zain passed away at the young age of 15 due to brain cancer. Her younger son Rean is on the Autism Spectrum.
But the fighter that she is, Gargi decided to do something positive to make a difference. Rather than mourning over the loss or her misfortune. She started a charitable trust called Zain Foundation in 2015, named in honour of her older son, Zain. The foundation addresses the needs of the Autism community and also works towards the inclusion of those with autism spectrum disorder.
Motherhood Is About Being Grateful
A miscarriage, surgeries to align her uterus, countless injections to save her second pregnancy, and a stitched-up uterus. Pooja Khanna, Advocate For Change for neurodiverse individuals, has been through it all. “I was continuously bleeding throughout my pregnancy in the first few weeks and took a lot of injections to make sure that were no other complications. I was on complete bed rest for seven months of my pregnancy and that took a toll on my body,” she shares.
But through it all, she figured out different ways to entertain herself. She listened to chants, spoke to friends, watched series, and caught up on books. Her daughter, Norah was born prematurely in the 34th week with Down syndrome. Pooja says that she knew she would be able to handle it. She is grateful for the time she got during pregnancy to ponder over things.
Motherhood Is About Taking The Road Less Travelled
She’s a PhD in Molecular Genetics from the States and is a research scientist in the field of human breast cancer in Singapore. Leena Ukil says, “Once I came back to India, somehow I could not find my kind of science to continue enjoying myself and so I decided to quit.” She instantly got inspired and found a new avenue to not only put her old scientific training to the test but also went back to one of the animals she loved the most. She completed both her domestic and international level 4 dog training, behaviour and aggression certification under some of the best dog trainers.
Today this mum to 5-year-old Anishka, is a professional in the field. She runs her own business called ‘The FamiLee Dog.’ Her company aims at representing her contribution to dog owners in making their pet dogs adjust and fit into their families in the best way possible (hence the added Lee spelling in the word family).
Motherhood Is About Following Your Passion
Sandhya Chopra, a passionate pianist, and mum to two talented kids is all about positivity. She believes that implementing two very important words; muskurana (smile) and shukurana (thankful) in our lives can change our lives for the better!
Her passion for music and dedication to the art was a source of inspiration during the pandemic. What started as fun videos that she shot with her two kids during the pandemic, has now taken the internet by storm. Her music videos have been featured by The Suburb Live, Literary Mirror magazine, Aspiring She Magazine, Miss Malini, Momspresso, All Indian Women Music Festival, Rang Foundation, Mompreneur Circle, Official Humans of Delhi, One Beat, Music Online, World of Kidz, and many other prestigious platforms.
“These are very informal and warm performances which form a very good connection with the audience. As I am interacting and talking during the breaks with them. These videos are all captured by my husband in our home. There is no studio feel to it,” says Sandhya.
Motherhood Is About Never Giving Up
Pregnancy after a miscarriage can be nerve-wracking. Add the COVID-19 pandemic into the mix, and you’ve signed up for nine months of anxiety and constant worry. Soon after author, copywriter, and editor, Priyanka Menon learnt she was pregnant, the world went into lockdown.
“I couldn’t satiate any of my pregnancy cravings because there was no food delivery. And even if I cooked something for myself, by the time I would load it onto a plate, I would lose my appetite,” she adds.
Having miscarried an earlier pregnancy at 13 weeks she was nervous and afraid of the 13-week NT scan, especially since she was alone. “In our previous pregnancy, it was during this scan we learnt that we’d lost our baby. After pleading with the radiologist, my husband was finally allowed to sit for the 20-week scan. It was such a beautiful moment. Our rainbow baby was healthy and so real!” adds Priyanka.
Because of her miscarriage and her hypothyroidism, she was expecting to not make it to 40 weeks. She did almost make it to week 40. Her rainbow baby was born three days before his due date. “The most important lesson I’ve learnt while being pregnant in the pandemic is that all things have their way of working out in the end. Just remember, you’re carrying your silver lining with you!” she says.
Motherhood Is About Staying Fit
Mum to a three-year-old daughter, post-partum fitness coach, Ankita Sahani has been helping moms stay healthy and the fittest version of themselves during pregnancy and beyond. Her focus is on helping mums strengthen their bodies and work on their mobility. She helps them be strong to take care of the babies and not so much on weight loss.
“Though weight loss is an offshoot of everything we do and a healthy BMI is a requirement. Obsessing over weight loss soon after a baby or regretting the weight that one has gained during pregnancy is not healthy for the body and mind, and that’s what I discourage,” says Ankita.
Motherhood Is About Fighting Depression
When Sujatha Biswas, entrepreneur and owner of the famous saree brand Suta was pregnant, she was just two years into starting the business. There was tremendous pressure because everything was handled by her and her sister Taniya, along with a small team.
“From the first month of my pregnancy till the last month, I was shooting. So I was in front of the camera mostly. I did shoots even with my bump because we were just starting and couldn’t hire a model. I did have a lot of aches and pains but that was manageable and I even travelled a lot during pregnancy,” she adds.
Post-pregnancy she went into depression because of too much stress at work. Since her baby was the first baby in the family, she wasn’t prepared to handle it. It was not as easy as it looks as she was going through a difficult phase managing work, a baby and depression. However, she overcame it with determination and by talking about it to her family.
Motherhood Is About Embracing Unique Careers
Mandakini, a mom to an adorable three and half-year-old daughter, Omaira, started her career 16 years back. She started as a starry-eyed fresh graduate wanting to establish herself in the corporate world. “It all began as a need to take care of people and interact with them. I started my journey as a Human Resource personnel. Over the years, I tried my hands at almost all the verticals of a Human Resource department. Though the corporate world was satisfying, the thought that something is missing was always there,” says Mandakini.
After the birth of her daughter, this dog-loving mum did some research and came across a course that looked ideal for her. It taught her the various aspects of home boarding and kenneling for domestic pet dogs. “It was one of the best educational certificates I received to date, and that paved my way to where I am today, “ she adds.
Today she is a successful owner of a dog Homestay called ‘Wooftop Homestay’. What’s beautiful about the homestay is that her little girl Omaraia is actively involved in caring for these dogs.
Everyday mums are unsung heroes, shaping the future one hug, snack, and bedtime story at a time. Let’s take a moment to celebrate and appreciate these amazing women who juggle it all with grace, patience, and a touch of superpower.
Whether it’s Mother’s Day or just an ordinary day, let’s lift up the incredible moms in our lives, because they truly deserve all the love and recognition we can give.
Here’s what you can gift mums on Mother’s Day 2023
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