Kajol on 3-year 'fighting and irrational' struggle with Nysa, shares how she fixed their bond: 'Stopped giving instructions'

Kajol opens up about parenting nysa amid social media pressures, recalling early clashes when nysa turned 12. She shifted to calmer, more rational talks, learning to listen instead of instruct. After three tough years, their bond strengthened through long conversations. Kajol credits this change for making their relationship “okay today.”

Kajol recently shared insights into her journey as a parent, opening up about the evolving relationship she shares with her daughter, Nysa, amid the challenges of growing up in a social media-driven world. Nysa, the elder child of Kajol and Ajay Devgn, has a younger brother, Yug. During a recent interview, Kajol addressed how she handles the overwhelming exposure and societal pressures young girls face today, and whether Nysa looks to her for advice. Reflecting on their journey, she spoke about the various phases that helped shape their bond.

Kajol recalls early struggles with daughter Nysa

Speaking to Lilly Singh, the actress said, “I have a lot of talks with her. I talk to her. I talk her through things. It’s a relationship that we had to build. And we built it because of the simple fact that we just… I mean, hormones hit and she was 12. And it was, we were like all over the place. We were fighting and we were both irrational at times. We were both illogical at times.”

Kajol on changing her parenting approach

Kajol also reflected on a conscious shift she made in her parenting approach, explaining how she chose to handle situations more calmly and thoughtfully. Kajol shared, “I stood up and I said, I’m the adult. I should be a little more rational. And so I decided that I’m not going to fight with her that much. I’m going to try and talk to her as much as I can. Talk at her till she starts listening to me and work with her. And so we both struggled for nearly like three years. Both of us were like, I don’t listen to you. I don’t want to talk to you. But eventually, it became conversations, long conversations.”

Kajol on learning to listen to her daughter

She went on to say that things began to change when she moved from giving instructions to simply listening. She shared, “I realised that it was more about just me sitting down and me listening to her. It was not about talking so much. It was just about giving her space to talk herself and to be heard. And that made the biggest difference. Once I realised that it was not about trying to tell her how to do things. She would figure it out on her own. She just needed me to just sit there and listen to her as much as I could. So that was my biggest learning as a parent. So touch wood, we’re okay today.”