Karan Mehra is undoubtedly one of the most popular faces of Indian TV having played Naitik Singhania in popular soap Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai for seven-and-a-half-years.
It has been four years since he left the show and didn’t make a comeback to the fiction TV space in a full-fledged manner except a short stint in Khatmal-e-Ishq.
He tried his hands at reality TV with Nach Baliye 5 and also Bigg Boss 10 where he impressed everyone with his decent game.
Very few people know that Karan assisted Rajkumar Hirani and Ram Gopal Verma in four movies and also did a small role in Priyanka Chopra’s Love Story 2050. Born in Jalandhar, his family had shifted to Noida where he grew up and pursued fashion designing.
With fatherhood began a new journey
A new journey altogether started for the NIFT (National Institute of Fashion and Technology) topper when he and wife Nisha Rawal became parents to Kavish in June 14, 2017.
Karan like all his other aspects of life and career is proving to be the very best as father to his 3-year-old and doesn’t hesitate in changing his diapers or feeding him as required.
The actor says he is children’s favourite and notes how kids sense the energies around them and respond accordingly.
Embarking on a trip down the memory lane, the actor revealed how he never failed to enjoy each and every moment with model and actor wife Nisha Rawal, during her motherhood journey.
From night duties, changing diapers, feeding his baby, Karan Mehra played the real life role of dad perfectly.
“Parenting is a beautiful and learning experience. Our friends were amazed to see the change in me. Before Kavish was born, I had not only cut down on my projects to be with Nisha but also accompanied her for doctor’s appointment. There should be more awareness and guidance for soon-to-be-dads,” tells the actor.
Karan Mehra’s new baby: UNIDAD, a Facebook community for dads
While the industry is reeling with the impact of Coronavirus and struggling to re-start the shoots, Mehra has kicked off a new project close to his heart—UNIDAD, a Facebook community that connects fathers across the globe.
UNIDAD short for Universe of Dads, the community formed on Facebook, is a shoutout to fathers, to tell them how rewarding it is to be called father or dad.
Talking in detail, how this idea struck him, Mehra says everything was destined.
“I never knew this wholesome experience of being with Nisha while she was pregnant to becoming a complete hands-on father will discover UNIDAD which is of the dads, for the dads and by the dads. Interestingly, this community is powered by the World’s largest community of moms #Unimo which enjoys 4 lakh, 27,000 mommies and nearly 228 watsapp groups already. “It was during Nisha’s chat show ‘Motherhood Chronicles’, where Neha Kare Kanabar, who owns UNIMO came on board. UNIMO is the sister concern of UNIDAD,” shares Karan.
“With an aim to unite moms and give them a platform for networking, Neha Kare Kanabar launched UNIMO, a social media networking platform for mothers staying in different parts of the world on Facebook, explains Karan. “It was during one of the conversations, Hitesh Kanabar, Neha’s husband and I decided to form UNIDAD,” adds he.
Karan further tells that basically the thought was to create something first-of-its-kind in India.
“There is no community like this before. Hitesh and I are leaving no stone unturned to make UNIDAD engaging,” he adds.
“Generally, fathers remain clueless or have less idea on how to treat their wives while they are embracing motherhood. They do not know how to contribute ‘meaningfully’ before and after the child is born. The role of a father and husband is not only confined to provide materialistic happiness to the mum and child but is much more than that. He has to involve emotionally,” feels Karan.
Explaining the features of the Facebook community, the actor says: “UNIDAD brings dads of all generations under one roof. This community educates, motivates and guides fathers in a concrete way. We celebrate many days. Initiatives like ‘dads of the day’, weekly porgrammes, monthly programmes have been introduced. For instance, on Monday, we have ‘influence day or reading day’. On Tuesday, we celebrate ‘chef day’ and on Wednesday, we go for ‘budh bazaar’ etc. Apart from this, there is travel day, fitness day, drive day where we discuss bikes, cars etc. and at last, we chill on Sundays. It is not only the mum who has to take care of the child but we father-child duo would also engage in some fun activities. This community also brings dads of all professions under one roof whether they are entrepreneurs, actors, businessman or any other profession etc,” says he.
Karan says the feeling was inexplicable, when 800 dads joined them initially.
“UNIDAD is not only limited to Mumbai or India in fact fathers across the globe. Surprisingly, females want to join UNIDAD but we have specifically told them here, only ‘admi apna dukhda ro sakte hai’. No females allowed!” he says.
So dads can join UNIDAD by clicking here
Memories with his father
Every son wishes to follow in the footsteps of his father. Karan gets nostalgic while disclosing his childhood memories with his father.
“Things were different back then. While I was growing up, my father could hold me but was definitely scared of walking around considering that I might fall off,” he said.
Interestingly, it was during one of his conversations with his father on UNIDAD, the actor’s father spilled the beans and said that he never changed Karan’s diapers.
“Lol! To be very honest, I never complained much about it as he was in a transferrable job. He gave me the best for everything,” says Karan.
“Earlier, any male would be looked down upon if he was seen taking care of kids. Now this mentality has changed and people are ready to learn and grow. UNIDAD is a close-knit unit trying to help each other in a best possible way,” adds the actor.
UNIDAD aims at making ‘The expert fathers’. So, it invites people from multiple professions whether entrepreneurs, doctors, financial experts, travel planners or food stylists for a live discussion.
“We at UNIDAD, invite experts who know their job well. From inviting a well-known orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Ashish Jain to a food expert who told us how to keep the hygiene quotient intact during spread of Covid-19, we are putting our best foot forward, trying to become a larger community on Facebook. UNIDAD knows how to cherish each life,” says the proud actor.
We all must have heard that like father, like son. Despite being closer to his mum, Mehra was never a mumma’s boy. He mentions that he would want his son Kavish to turn out to be responsible like him. The actor recalls how he learned doing household chores except cooking from his dad. The proud father says his son Kavish is an inquisitive child and at times does assist in household chores.
Postpartum depression in men: Men do cry
Expressing his views on postpartum depression in men, Mehra says that men do cry and are sensitive too.
“Due to the societal pressure, it becomes difficult for them to vent out their feelings. There might be a possibility that a man who has lost his first child, is going through pain but is hiding due to ‘men are strong and can’t cry’ thingy. Remember, we are also human beings with so many emotions intact,” he said.
Life in a metro
“In metros, both the parents are taking care of their kids. They realise it’s okay to feel in a certain way. Due to lots of awareness being spread, men are breaking the myths and are being upfront about issues that trouble them. There are men who are more emotional than women and this is perfectly OK!,” states the actor.
Being the ladies’ man
Mehra and his wife Nisha are cleanliness freaks. Karan opines that he is a decent cook and extends a helping hand to his wife and mother-in-law in completing the pending household chores. He loves to cook pasta or burgers so that the ladies of the house enjoy some ‘me time’.
Social distancing in Mumbai
The actor along with his wife Nisha, distributed sanitizers even before the lockdown. Karan wonders why people are least bothered about hygiene. He slams those who are not wearing masks, gloves and feel they won’t get affected. “It is good to be confident but donning an overconfident outlook is a big no! It is surprising to find people without masks or gloves even in my own apartment. They don’t even hesitate to pull it down or take off quickly while talking. We all must remember that it is for our own benefit. Who wants to fall sick? This is a pandemic situation. We need to be considerate towards ourselves first!,” feels the actor.
On state of migrant workers
Talking about the situation of migrant workers, the actor says, “No one expected this would happen. This is a highly tough time for them. Lots of efforts went into sending them back home, but now they wish to return. They have created an indecisive situation. Mumbai is a big city. We are not in a position to continue with lockdown. People would want to earn their livelihood. Social distancing has to be followed keeping safety on mind. We all are together in this crisis and would fight bravely else how would we survive, asks he.
On resuming shoots
Says Karan, “Everything will fall into place. It’s highly risky to restart shooting even if is a small unit of 30 to 40 people. In spite of putting all the preventive measures in place, it is not easy to kickstart work. How long we cannot be working? I wish whatever happens, it benefits us completely. Nowadays more than finances, it is the health that matters. I knew how most of my friends refuse to resume work because of this unavoidable crisis or even a few went back home after surviving this 2-3 months of lockdown. Mumbai weather is known to all. Things are really tricky and I hope it shall pass soon.”
On Sushant Singh Rajput’s suicide
The whole world is in shock over the untimely demise of TV and film actor, Sushant Singh Rajput who died by suicide.
Karan Mehra says he met Sushant a couple of times and is heartbroken over his death but feels it is completely futile to act like the apex court and pass verdict on the whole scenario. “I was certainly not friends with him but distinctly remember exchanging smiles during the award ceremonies,” recalls the actor.”
Karan feels there must have been something problematic which pushed Sushant to the extreme but criticises various stories and strange comments that are doing the rounds on social media. “Most of us are yet to register with the fact that the talented lad has gone too soon. But, who advises us to act like a top court? Everyone goes through ups and downs in life,” says the actor.
When asked about any hobby that he’s pursuing in this lockdown, Karan said this, “Hobby? Which hobby am I pursuing? UNIDAD consumes most of our time (Hitesh and his). Nisha is too occupied with Mother Chronicles, Sunday YouTube, cooking activities and above all Kavish keeps us busy all the time. Lol!. He is our world and we keep roaming around him all the time,” laughs the actor.