Mahira Khan stresses on financial stability for women, opens up on ‘exceeding expectations’

Actor Mahira Khan made an appearance on Frieha Altaf’s ‘FWhy Podcast’ on Monday, opening up on the double standards in the industry, and how her work ethic has been a constant all these years.

Speaking about the backlash she received after her Bollywood debut in ‘Raees’ across Shah Rukh Khan, Mahira said she was “threatened constantly”.

“I realised I can’t go to India to promote this, I can’t enjoy this,” she said. “I hoped that it would have been released here, because Shah Rukh Khan is so loved here and I knew people would rush to go watch it.”

Citing how it’s always political, she said: “For me, it was heartbreaking. That brought on a deep-seated depression where after suffering a panic attack I had to begin therapy.

“That time broke me. I ended up in a psychiatrist’s office who diagnosed me with manic-depression.”

Sharing how she’s been on anti-depressants for seven years now, “I went into a very very dark space.”

“I’ve tried to stay off my medication but that hasn’t worked for me. Clinical depression is real, and we should treat it like that.”

Speaking about her early years, Mahira shared how she started working at the age of 17, doing a number of odd jobs in order to support herself while attending community college in Los Angeles.

Reminiscing, she said that time was wonderful because “that’s the time when I really started dreaming for myself”.

Sharing her love for Bollywood, dancing and Shah Rukh Khan, she said, “I used to tell my friend after a long day of work, there are going to be billboards up of me and I’m going to star in a film as Shah Rukh Khan’s heroine.”

Mahira made her big-screen debut across musician Atif Aslam in the romance ‘Bol’ in 2011, which earned her a Lux Style Award for Best Film Actress.

Mahira later made her Bollywood debut in 2017 with action-romance ‘Raees’ opposite Shah Rukh Khan. Her other Pakistani films include, ‘Bin Roye’, ‘Ho Mann Jahaan’ and ‘Superstar’.

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Referring to double standards in the industry, especially for women, she shared, “When people can see your potential and have just achieved recent success, there’s a lot of love and appreciation. But when you exceed their expectations, it’s hard to stomach it.

“You do not have to pull someone down. If someone is succeeding you have to applaud it. You will also succeed.”

Sharing how she struggled through her college years, she said the kindness of friends got her through hard times, especially when her brother’s antics got them both evicted from their apartment in Santa Monica.

“Life is strange. When someone does something for you when you’re at you’re lowest, you remember it forever.”

Mahira’s showbiz life began with her declining a scholarship for higher studies and returning to Karachi to get married.

“Quite honestly, I was tired of that life of struggle, even though with my scholarship in hand that life of hardship would have ended.

“Although I do feel that I missed out on college life, however, at that time, that is what I wanted.”

On returning to Karachi she attended the Indus Awards in Lahore with her then-husband, and began her career as a VJ.

With her transition into this new life, she cites Pakistani youth as playing a big part in propelling her to the top.

“The music scene was exploding at that time. I remember playing Ali Zafar, Atif Aslam and all the callers calling in were young adults watching and listening.

“It was a really fun, innocent time and I really enjoyed it.”

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Responding to a comment by Altaf, who said Mahira still has miles to go and much more to achieve, the actor said “there is no limit to the extent to which you can dream”.

Speaking about the end of her marriage following the birth of her child, “I think I knew that my marriage was over perhaps even before the birth of my son.

“Personally, my life was unravelling, but professionally, I had no idea what had just arrived. I could have never imagined that success would come in this manner, almost overnight with ‘Humsafar’.”

Mahira was referring to her successful Urdu-language television drama, with co-star Fawad Khan. The drama, directed by Sarmad Khoosat, first aired in 2011 and was based on a novel of the same name by Farhat Ishtiaq.

‘Humsafar’ was offered to Mahira two months after her very first film ‘Bol’.

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Commending the power women have, she said, “There is one major strength that women have. When they decide something, that’s the end of it.”

She also spoke about the importance of financial stability for women.

“I knew I was going to be leaving my husband and taking my child. But I also knew that I did not want to be dependent on anyone, not even my parents.”

“When there was nobody around me, my work was with me. There is nothing like financial stability.”

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Responding to a question about why she hasn’t jumped on the Hollywood bandwagon yet, Mahira responded, “I’m waiting for Brad Pitt to call me.”