Aishwarya Sakhuja: Didn’t have the heart to tell my father I was back to work, he called from Australia and requested me to stop

Aishwarya Sakhuja had resumed working when the lockdown restrictions were lifted last year in July, and was shooting until recently before they again were stalled in Maharashtra. The actor says that 2021 has hit every sector harder than it did in 2020.

“The number of cases [being reported] are crazy, yet we’re seeing people not following the norms. You get out on the road and see people are still wearing masks only up to their lips. I call masks ‘beard holders’ now, they’re no longer masks. It’s a very stressful time. We’ll have to take a few calls. Unusual circumstances will also call for unusual actions,” says the Saas Bina Sasuraal actor, who is currently seen in another TV show.

She reveals that restrictions had become stricter on her show’s sets in the past few day. And she doesn’t hesitate in saying that the current situation is happening because people became lax.

“When work had begun initially, it was all very new to us. We were getting used to it, everybody was diligent. Then, as we all saw Covid cases going down, there was a lackadaisical attitude. We forgot Covid is there, and it was like, ‘How long are we supposed to live like this, hona hai toh ho jaaye’. But they didn’t realise the entire family would get affected. This is one phase of my life I want to get over with,” says actor.

Asked if her family was okay with her decision of stepping out to work in the peak of the pandemic and Sakhuja admits they requested her to not venture outside.

“My family was obviously not happy with the idea of me going to work every day. My father recently called me from Australia while I was at work. I didn’t have the heart to tell him I’m back on set. The minute I picked up the phone, he said, ‘Main tere saamne haath jodta hoon, please stop working’. My creative, styling and hair people were there. They all looked at each other and said, ‘Galat nahi bol rahe’. But how do we let go of what is our work?,” she asks.

In fact, Sakhuja reveals that her family also wanted her to quit the show at one point. “They wanted me to leave it for the time being. It was very hard for me to make them understand that this is not how TV works. I can’t say overnight that I’m not going to work,” she ends.