Mumbai: Actress Shriya Saran, in an exclusive interaction with IANS, opened up about the emotional challenges pregnancy and parenthood bring—not just for women, but also for their husbands.
She noted that expectant and new fathers often find it difficult to understand and cope with the physical and emotional changes their partners experience during pregnancy. According to Shriya, while women go through the transformation directly, the emotional impact is frequently felt first by the husband, who may not fully comprehend what is happening.
“Unfortunately, the first person who bears the impact is usually the husband, and most of the time, he doesn’t fully understand it. Not because he doesn’t want to, but because he isn’t emotionally trained or informed,” she said.
Shriya added that men are deeply affected by the process but are rarely prepared for the realities of pregnancy and impending fatherhood. She also spoke about how emotionally difficult it can be for a pregnant woman when her husband is not present during vulnerable moments.
“When you want someone to pass you a pillow or just call you silly for no reason, and they are not there, it really hurts. The husband not being there feels terrible,” she shared.
Reflecting on the emotional and physical upheaval a woman undergoes during pregnancy, Shriya said the journey involves constant changes. “A woman goes through so much; her body changes, her organs get compressed, and emotionally she feels very different throughout the journey. From the beginning till the end, there are mood swings, but none of this is really explained to a husband,” she explained.
She pointed out that most couples learn about these realities only as they experience them. “No one tells you these things before pregnancy. You only find out as it happens, and then you wonder why nobody told you earlier. Emotional turmoil is a big part of it, and a woman goes through a lot,” she said.
Shriya Saran is a mother to a five-year-old daughter, Radha, who was born in January 2021. She married Russian entrepreneur Andrei Koscheev in March 2018 in a private ceremony.
On the work front, the actress has been receiving praise for her performance in the recently released web series Space Gen and is also gearing up for her upcoming film Drishyam 3.
With inputs from IANS