The saas-bahu saga gets a happy twist

Times have changed and so has the equation between mothers-in-law and their bahus. The days of a Monster-in-law or a

saas

straight out of a never-ending daily soap are passé. What’s more, the COVID-19 pandemic has come as a blessing in disguise, with many saas-bahu jodis bonding over cooking,

OTT

shows, social media masti and more.
Among celebs, actress Sameera Reddy’s fun Instagram videos with her mother-in-law Manjri Varde (picture below) clearly show the

bond

they share. Shilpa Shetty Kundra also did a joyful photoshoot with her mother-in-law Usha Rani Kundra (picture above), both visibly enjoying their time together. And they are not the only ones. New-age mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law are redefining the infamous bond in their own sweet ways.

Bonds that belie age
Actress Manali Manisha Dey, who married Abhimanyu Mukherjee last year, told us that she shares a wonderful relationship with her mother-in-law, Bosudha Mukherjee. “She treats me like her own daughter. She scolds me at times, but I don’t take it to heart,” Manali said.

The same is true for Ananya Chakraborty, a professional married for 13 years now. “My sister-in-law used to stay abroad for her studies. So when I got married, my mom-in-law, Dorothy Dcruz, treated me like her daughter. She always tells everyone that I filled the void created after her daughter went abroad. She stays in Kharagpur and every day, we talk over the phone for hours. We mainly bond over music,” Ananya said with a smile.

For Preeti Oswal, a banker based in Mumbai, her mother-in-law is her best friend and confidante. “In the past 11 years my bond with my mother-in-law Sunanda Kadam has only strengthened. We watch films together, cook together and even go on holidays together,” Preeti told us.
Thane-based professional Jayeeta Bhattacharya has been married for the past 15 years. And according to her, she hasn’t ever met a woman like her mom-in-law, Rekha Bhattacharya. “She pampers me and stands beside me like a rock whenever I feel frustrated or down. There is no particular thing over which we bond, as my relationship with her is mental,” said Jayeeta.
Bonding over technology
The COVID-19 lockdown gave many of them the opportunity to rediscover family life and redefine relationships. For instance, Ananya taught her mom-in-law how to operate WhatsApp. “Now she has also learnt how to make video calls,” Ananya said.
As for Manali, the bonding was over myriad things. “We used to cook together and go for evening walks. I also taught her how to pay bills digitally or watch her favourite cookery shows online. She was on cloud nine when she realised that she could actually do grocery shopping online! Moreover, both of us love to shop. So, after lunch every Sunday, we go on a shopping spree,” the actress said.
A special relationship

Anand Makhija and Harpreet Singh have been in same-sex relationships for 20 years now and have been living together for 14 years now. “I moved into Harpeet’s house 14 years ago and share a lovely bond with his mother, Gaver Chhachhia. She accepted me when my own family didn’t. She was okay with our sexual preference from the very first day. We bond over almost everything, be it watching films on OTT platform or over pets. Whenever any new series releases on OTT, we make sure we watch it together,” Anand told us.