Signing you in

In a recent interview with NDTV, actor Imran Khan spoke candidly about this phase of his life as he prepares to return to the big screen alongside his uncle, Aamir Khan. While much public attention has focused on his comeback, Imran reflected more deeply on how his personal relationships have shaped his inner life. Having fallen in love with Lekha Washington in 2020 after their respective separations, and co-parenting his 11-year-old daughter Imara with former partner Avantika Malik, he described how emotional connection has played a crucial role in his healing.

Sharing how love functions in his daily life, Imran said, “To be loved by someone truly gives you strength and heals you. To give love truthfully and selflessly to another also is empowering and healing. And I have found this, in between my daughter and my partner Lekha, to give and to receive love. It has been absolutely crucial to my healing and to my own growth and well-being.”

Imran also spoke at length about fatherhood and the importance of presence, especially in a child’s early years. Emphasising consistency over perfection, he explained, “I believe being present seeps into children’s subconsciousness, even at an age when they are eight months, one and a half years, all of this, all the way through. I believe it seeps into their subconscious, the sense that a parent was there, that physically one was there, and one did the thing.”

Describing everyday routines like putting his daughter to bed, feeding her, and picking her up from school, he added that these acts give him “great joy and a sense of purpose and value,” and feel like “the best use of my time.”

In early childhood, Cadabam notes that the brain develops primarily through sensory and emotional experiences rather than language or logic. A caregiver’s physical and emotional presence signals safety, consistency, and emotional attunement to a child’s subconscious.

“This forms the foundation for secure attachment. When children experience dependable presence, their nervous system learns regulation, trust, and emotional resilience. These early experiences shape how they relate to themselves and others later in life, often without conscious awareness,” says Cadabam.

Balance comes from intention, Vashisht states, not perfection. “It helps to accept that different phases need different priorities. Some days, parenting will come first, on others, personal growth or a relationship may need more space.”

Guilt reduces when adults stop measuring themselves against unrealistic expectations and start listening to what is truly needed in the moment. Clear boundaries, open communication, and allowing oneself to be human make it possible for growth, love, and parenting to support each other rather than compete.