Abhishek Bachchan opens up on co-parenting with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan; ‘I have never butted heads with her’

Over the years, Abhishek Bachchan has openly spoken about how fatherhood changed him, from his beliefs to the way he sees the world. Recently, he once again reflected on the experience, admitting that watching his daughter Aaradhya grow has given him a deeper understanding of life. He added that her endless questions often make him discover things about himself he hadn’t noticed before.

Abhishek Bachchan recalls a sweet memory with Aaradhya

During a recent chat with Lilly Singh, Abhishek shared a heartwarming memory from Aaradhya’s early childhood, one that still brings a smile to his face. “We were watching TV when she was a kid, and I was being tortured by Peppa Pig. I said, ‘Hey, Aaradhya…’ You know how kids are, they’re like zombies. I said, ‘Aaradhya, can you just get Papa a glass of water?’ She looked at me like, ‘What?’ I said, ‘Can you give me a glass of water?’ She said, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘Because I asked you to.’ It’s normal, right? I’m the dad, get me a glass of water. She got up, went and got me a glass of water very sweetly. I said, ‘Thank you,’ gave her a kiss, and she sat down.”

Abhishek Bachchan shares a parenting lesson from Aaradhya

The actor went on to describe how the simple exchange soon took an amusing yet insightful turn. “Half an hour later she says ‘Papa?’ I said ‘Yes?’ She asked, ‘Can you give me a glass of water?’ And I’m like ‘Go get it yourself.’ She said, ‘Why? If you can ask me, why can’t I ask you?’ I had no answer to that. And I was like, she’s right. I mean, I can’t pull rank on her. She’s right. If she can get me a glass of water, why can’t I get it for her? And I never butted heads with her after that. It’s very logical.”

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Abhishek Bachchan on equal parenting with Aishwarya Rai

Talking more about his approach to parenting, Bachchan mentioned that he and Aishwarya prefer a balanced, partnership-based approach rather than defined parental roles. “In my home, as parents, both of us try to be the best example for Aaradhya instead of telling her what is right and what is wrong. We believe in showing what to do by being that ourselves. It’s never been like, ‘Okay, I’ll teach her self-defence.’ If you’ve seen my wife, she can take care of herself. It’s never been divided like, ‘I’ll teach her self-defence, you teach her to be empathetic.’ No, it’s not that.”

He added: “It’s simply about leading a good, responsible life with your values and morals. Your child sees that, emulates it, and in that way, you’ve equipped them. So there’s no competition at home about who has to be the man or who has to be the woman. When it comes to children, we both believe you have to lead by example, not try to teach them what is right and wrong. Because what’s right for us might not be right for them. Generations change. Our world is very different, and our children’s world is going to be even more different.”

Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai’s family life

Abhishek and Aishwarya got married in April 2007 in an intimate ceremony held at their Mumbai residence. The couple welcomed their daughter, Aaradhya Bachchan, on November 16, 2011.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”