Jyotika says she stopped working at 28, talks about handling stardom and family with Suriya

Actor Jyotika, who is gearing up for the release of Dabba Cartel, has opened up about parenting and managing stardom with her husband and actor Suriya. Dabba Cartel, a crime comedy, also stars Shabana Azmi, Gajraj Rao and Nimisha Sajayan.

Talking to Screen, Jyotika said that in a bid to provide a smooth and normal childhood for their children, the two actors leave their stardom outside the door. Dabba Cartel is directed by Hitesh Bhatia and written by Vishnu Menon and Bhavna Kher.

“I guess we leave the superstardom outside the door when we enter home,” she told Screen. “At home, we are just parents of our kids. It’s more about what’s going in their school dabbas (tiffin boxes) in the morning. One dabba leaves early morning, at 6 am to school, while the younger one’s food goes at lunchtime at 12 noon. So the discussions are more about what they are eating and how we are packing their food and sending it. So absolutely we are parents at home, superstardom stays outside.”

Jyotika and Suriya tied the knot in 2006. The couple recently moved to Mumbai from Chennai. The two have two children: a daughter, Divya (born in 2007) and a son, Dev (born in 2016).

Jyotika, a much-sought-after leading actor, quit acting at the age of 28. After a brief hiatus, she returned to acting. Jyotika said she doesn’t regret taking a break from movies.

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“I was extremely happy in the South. I have done some of my best roles there and I could only be glad that I was part of South films. Because I’m not sure if I had probably got those roles if I had worked in Hindi. In fact I was married and stopped working at 28 and then got back to films when I was 35. And I did see a lot of prominent roles coming up my way in Tamil where I played the protagonist. And here I am in Hindi now where I am again receiving a very warm welcome. So no complaints. I am very happy with the way the career has shaped,” she told Screen.

Dabba Cartel drops on Netflix on February 28. Jyotika was recently seen in the horror drama Shaitaan, also starring Ajay Devgn and Madhavan.

Some months ago, in an interview with The Hindu, Abhishek Bachchan had spoken about how his mother, actor-politician Jaya Bachchan, had stopped acting in films to spend time with her children. The actor also thanked his own wife and fellow actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for prioritising the role of a parent, allowing him to focus on his career.

“My mother (Jaya Bachchan) had stopped acting in films when I was born because she wanted to spend time with the children. But we never felt the void of dad (Amitabh Bachchan) not being around. At the end of the day, he always came home,” he had told The Hindu.

“Even in my household, I’m lucky I get to go out and make the movies, but I know that Aishwarya is at home with Aaradhya and I thank her immensely for that. But I don’t think children think of it that way. They don’t look upon you in the third person.”