There’s one thing that’s challenging and fulfilling across all species—motherhood. And for humans, the challenges and thrills of motherhood are an overwhelming experience, to say the least. Keeping in mind International Mother’s Day—it was on Sunday—we thought of peeking into the life of one such woman, who decided to pursue her career in fashion about the same time as she became a mother to twin boys.
But she took it all in her stride with gusto, rising to the challenge each time with grace. We are talking about none other than the celebrated designer Anamika Khanna and her equally talented 27-year-old twin sons, Viraj and Vishesh Khanna. Raised in a creative atmosphere, Viraj and Vishesh, who were poised to enter the world of finance, ended up in the world of arts.
Viraj discovered his skills in fine arts during the COVID-19 lockdown years and has already had a few sold-out exhibitions of his textile collages, sculptures, and artworks. Vishesh, on the other hand, found his creative calling in fashion during his second year of his college and is all set to launch AKOK’s menswear range this summer. We had an engaging chat with the trio about their bonding.
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You started your label around the same time as motherhood was beckoning, was it a hard decision for you?
Anamika: For any mom, whether working or not, it’s not an easy journey to have someone new in your life for whose upbringing you are responsible. For me, of course, they were twins, so, the trouble was double and also the fact that I had just started out in my career. It was a choice I made that involved a lot of sacrifices—I don’t think I had slept for the first six months of my motherhood because there was some design work too. But I didn’t want to give it up because both were equally important. I also didn’t have a lot of support but at the same time, I don’t want to complain because I think it was the biggest lesson of being a woman—how we are capable of giving so much. Interestingly, these two turned out to be angels, I don’t know how—they wouldn’t cry, or yell, or shout for things.
Viraj: We never really fought with each other and we really made it easy for her (laughs).
One thing that impresses you about your mom?
Viraj: I think despite having so much work pressure, we never felt that she ever ignored us. She has been one phone call away during any emergency or any time we needed her. During our board exams, she had a show but she left everything and prepared us for a whole month, teaching us 14-15 hours a day and we both got 93-94% for her.
You must have had those guilt pangs of a working mom.
Anamika: Yes, a lot. I saw my friends being 24x7 with their children, taking them to classes, running after them with their food but I was much more casual and was not there enough for them. But, I also realised that when I was with them, there was no compromise there.
Any weird things you did as a mom?
Anamika: I pushed them to golf from cricket, that was one of those crazy things I did. The whole gamut of being into professional cricket is such a challenge. I felt they should have a sport in their life that should always be there. So, on one of their birthdays, I gifted them these mini golf sets and they were flabbergasted.
Vishesh: At that time, we were obsessed with cricket and thought she would gift us Kookaburra cricket bats. We felt that golf was an old man’s sport and we were very dramatic at that point. But we are now actually grateful to her for introducing us to golf.
What’s the secret of good parenting?
Anamika: It’s just about taking it easy and I think the biggest thing is trust in any relationship. I trust my boys with anything they do and I have full faith that I will not have to suffer because of that. I always lived the way I wanted to live and I am not going to stop them from how they want to live theirs.