Ram Charan and Upasana are due in July; she reveals, ‘I will be using insurance for my child birth’

In an exclusive chat with us, entrepreneur- philanthropist Upasana Kamineni Konidela talks at length about her pregnancy and her ‘growing’ bond with actor-husband Ram Charan. Read the interview.

Entrepreneur- philanthropist Upasana Kamineni Konidela is currently in her third trimester and reveals she is ‘due in July’. “Like every parent, we are also excited,” she says, adding how her actor-husband RamCharan has been ‘very supportive’ throughout her pregnancy. She adds, “The child will be allowed the freedom to be themselves, but with a certain set of guidelines and responsibility that they actually carry forward because sometimes fame comes with a huge responsibility and it must be valued.”

Upasana K and Ram Charan (Instagram)

While being pregnant, Upasana, who is currently working, wishes to be an advocate for working mothers. “Why should motherhood be different from any other time in your life?” she questions. “I do have a lot of help but the thing is that I also want to be a hands-on mother. While being a hands-on mother, I want to try and strike the absolute balance between taking care of my child and my career at the same time. I’m still figuring out how I can use myself as an example to get more women back into the workforce as soon as possible without compromising the well-being of their child.” Moreover, Upasama aims to bring awareness when it comes to motherhood in the corporate world. “Why is maternity leave only structured to six months and why not three months or nine months. And why cannot it be personalized?...Health care is very affordable in our country. We must know the different channels to actually afford it. While I have all this support I know my organization is going to take care of my childbirth. So insurance will cover me. So even I will be using insurance for my child birth.”

Upasana and Ram have been married for over a decade now. Over the 10 years of their relationship, the two continue ‘growing’ together. She finds the balance in their relationship by ‘sticking together’ in their lows and ‘celebrating’ their highs. “Life is not a bed of roses and with our travel schedules, with the other external sources, with so many people’s opinions, there were very many lows in our life. But then I think standing together and creating a balance, a clean line of communication, reviewing our relationship goals regularly actually strengthened our bond,” she elaborates.

For Upasana, understanding and being open to criticism are important aspects for any healthy relationship. “Receiving criticism from your better half is something that you should not take negatively, but you should take with a positive attitude because they know you best, you’re spending so much time with them. I really feel that you have to find mid ground and adjustment. Equal respect in a relationship with somebody doesn’t come overnight, it is built and that is where you have clear lines of communication.” She admits her and Ram’s marriage has its own lows. “If you read Ramayana and Mahabharta, even the Gods’ relationships went through ups and downs; other relationships obviously have a chance to go here and there. It’s only human. Sometimes we have an emotional fit and it’s absolutely fine being there and being supportive,” she mentions.

She believes life has changed for her and actor-husband Ram Charan after the phenomena that RRR was. “Life was very different pre RRR. It’s been a three year journey. We got to see a whole different new world and it was a beautiful experience for both of us,” she ends.