Shilpa with Viaan and Samisha. (courtesy theshilpashetty)
Highlights
- "I didn't want Viaan to grow up as a single child," said Shilpa
- "I did explore other ideas but they didn't pan out well," she added
- "I waited for nearly four years," she said
Actress Shilpa Shetty, who welcomed her second child this year, has revealed to Pinkvilla that she suffered miscarriages earlier and did not want her son Viaan, now 7, to grow up without a sibling. In February, Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra announced the birth of daughter Samisha; Samisha was born via surrogacy and in her interview, Shilpa explains that the couple considered various options before choosing surrogacy. "After Viaan, I did want to have another child for the longest time. But I suffered from an auto immune disease called APLA and that came into play every time I get pregnant. So I had a couple of miscarriages so it was a genuine issue," Shilpa, 44, told Pinkvilla.
Shilpa Shetty, who has a sister named Shamita, added, "I didn't want Viaan to grow up as a single child, because I'm also one of two and I know how important it is to have a sibling. Coming from that thought, I did explore other ideas as well but they didn't pan out well."
In the interview, Shilpa revealed that she and her husband Raj Kundra also considered adoption but that the home they were to adopt from closed because of differences with the centralised adoption agency CARA."At that time when I wanted to adopt, I had put in my name and everything was underway but then, the Christian missionary shut down because they had a tiff with CARA," she said. After waiting for four years, Shilpa tried out surrogacy. "I waited for nearly four years and then, I was so irritated and we decided to try the surrogacy route. We had Samisha after three attempts. I had honestly given up on the thought of another child," said Shilpa Shetty.
For her children Viaan and Samisha, Shilpa shared a lovely Mother's Day post on Sunday. "Making the decision to have a child - it is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. - Elizabeth Stone. To the two halves of my heart Viaan and Samisha: You both complete me. I love you. Happy Mother's Day... to me and to all those amazing mothers out there," she wrote in her post.
Shilpa married businessman Raj Kundra in 2009. In terms of work, she was last seen as one of the judges on the TV reality show Super Dancer Chapter 3, alongside choreographer Geeta Kapoor and filmmaker Anurag Basu. The actress will next be seen in Sabbir Khan's upcoming film Nikamma.