I’m not a parent who says me and my daughter are best friends: Lara Dutta Bhupathi

January 20 marked ten years of motherhood for actor Lara Dutta Bhupathi. Talking about how her equation with daughter Saira has evolved, she says, “Would I want to be a friend to my daughter? Yes! But I don’t want to be a parent who says me and my daughter are best friends.”

Stressing on the importance of treading on the fine line between both the roles, Bhupathi elaborates, “I think it’s essential to have a relationship wherein you can be open and discuss everything with a mother figure, but I don’t want to confuse her as I can’t oscillate between being a mother and the best friend at my convenience.”

The 43-year-old, who is married to former tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi, had to clarify a few months ago that she isn’t on any dating app after her fake dating profile went viral. Ask her about it and she quips that she’s happy she didn’t have to “navigate the online dating field” back in the day: “The advent of dating apps has really changed the dynamics of dating. I’m still a little old school where I think you need to go on at least three dates before deciding whether you want to get into a relationship with someone. Today, it’s like a revolving door. You just can’t keep up (laughs).”

So, how she would react if Saira signs up for a dating app in the future and the BellBottom (2021) actor shares, “You’ve to move on with time and I think today it really allows people far more options than earlier. It gives you a chance to be a part of a level playing field.”

Though modern dating has its own perks, Bhupathi quickly adds that it has also a flip side. “Sometimes you may go out on a date and make a friend for life who you may not end up dating. It’s a fantastic medium for people to connect. It’s just that I’ve an issue with the majority of the intentions behind those meet-ups,” she ends.