Trishala Dutt reveals why Sanjay Dutt didn’t stay with mom Richa Sharma in the US during her cancer treatment

Trishala Dutt recently reflected on losing her mother at the age of eight and recalled how Sanjay Dutt would travel back and forth between India and the US.

For many, the label “star kid” comes wrapped in assumptions of privilege, glamour and an easy life. But for Trishala Dutt, the reality behind the glamour was far more painful. Recently, Trishala opened up about losing her mother to a brain tumour at the age of eight and revealed why her father, Sanjay Dutt, was unable to stay in the US full-time during her mother’s treatment.

Sanjay Dutt is with his eldest daughter, Trishala Dutt, whom he had with his first wife, Richa Sharma.

Trishala Dutt gets candid

Recently, Trishala joined the latest podcast episode of Inside Thoughts Out Loud, where she spoke about her life as the daughter of actor Sanjay Dutt.

Trishala opened up about the bullying she endured as a child in the US, revealing that it began when she was just five or six years old and was largely rooted in her Indian identity. She mentioned that things “blew up” when she went to high school as people started finding out who she was, and the family she came from. Trishala admitted that she had “no one to lean on” and hoped that she had “someone to talk to when I was younger.”

Trishala also reflected on losing her mother at the age of eight and recalled how her father, Sanjay Dutt, would constantly travel back and forth between India and the US during that difficult phase of their lives.

“My mother passed away in 1996 when I was 8 years old, and she passed away from a brain tumour. She was diagnosed in 1989. When they found out, it was already grade 4. That type of brain cancer is one of the deadliest and most aggressive human cancers. Dad was splitting his time between India and the US. He was back and forth because he was working, and it was hard to stay here for her entire treatment while also being an actor back home,” she recalled and shared that her father was splitting time between India and the US at the time.

When her mother was struggling with cancer, she confessed that she found some comfort in food, which led to a “weight problem”. She said that people think that if one is a celebrity’s daughter, one has to look a certain way, adding that she “just didn’t look the part of Sanjay Dutt’s daughter”.

During the conversation, Trishala was asked about the “biggest misconception” that people have about her. To this, she mentioned that people think she was born with a silver spoon. While she acknowledges it, she says that she was also surrounded by a lot of “dark clouds.”

She said, “I have been through many storms, a lot of dark clouds. Was I born with a silver spoon in my mouth? Yes and no. I didn’t have everything handed to me as everybody thinks. I had to work a lot to get to where I am today. I have internal struggles just like everybody else. I am not perfect and I became a therapist to let people know that it’s okay to struggle. You don’t always have to have it together and you are not alone in this journey.”

More about Trishala Dutt

She was born in 1988 to Sanjay Dutt and his first wife, Richa Sharma. Her mother passed away from a brain tumour in 1996. Following this loss, she was raised by her maternal grandparents in the United States.

Largely staying away from the public eye, she consciously distanced herself from the glamour of Bollywood. Over the years, she has built a life and career on her own terms, establishing herself as a psychiatrist in the US with a focus on education and mental health advocacy.