From shooting 72 hours non-stop for Kasautii Zindagii Kay, Palak's bond with brother Reyaansh to being a strict mom to her daughter; Shweta Tiwari gets candid about life

Shweta Tiwari is a popular name in the Hindi television industry, with a successful career spanning over two decades. She has been a part of hit shows like Kasautii Zindagii Kay, Parvarrish, and Comedy Circus, showcasing her versatility across various genres. Recently, the actress made an appearance on Bharti Singh and Haarsh Limbachiyaa’s podcast, where she candidly spoke about her journey in showbiz, her personal life, and her kids, Palak and Reyaansh. In the interview, Shweta recalled her Kasautii Zindagii Kay days, how they shot non-stop for the show and Ektaa Kapoor's vision behind hit shows. (Photo: Instagram)

I’ve faced many personal struggles in life, but when it comes to my career, especially in acting, the path has been surprisingly smooth. I was born in Allahabad but raised in Mumbai, where my father was from. While still in school, I participated in an interschool competition in Mumbai, and that’s where a director noticed me and offered me a role. Soon after, I appeared in an advertisement with Nassir Khan, which led to more opportunities, someone saw the ad and invited me to do a play. After the play, I was cast in Rishtey, followed by X Zone, and from there, projects kept coming one after the other. While working on Aane Waala Pal, Ekta Kapoor happened to see the promo and the first episode. She reached out to me for Kasautii Zindagii Kay, and from that point onward, there was no looking back. (Photo: Instagram)

The power that Ekta had in her storytelling I don’t think anyone else had. I feel during those days we were famous in the industry for working non-stop without sleep. I remember shooting 72 hours non-stop, bhai 30 din ke mahine hote the, mujhe 45 days ka cheque milta tha. Kyuki subah 7 baje se lekar shaam ke 7 baje tak 1 hota tha. Shamko 7 baje se lekar agle din subah 7, 2 hota tha. Main aise shoot karti thi. Voh sirf hum actors nahi karte the. Ektaa bhi karti thi. (Photo: Instagram)

Ektaa bhi soti nahi thi, team nahi soti thi kyunki unke paas 22 shows the…jab bhi Ektaa ko phone karo woh ek ring mein uthati thi… whenever I used to call her regarding a scene she used to explain everything in detail and ek baar Ektaa ne explain kar diya you can’t go wrong. The way she used to write her stories and explain us, we would get goosebumps. Whenever she would explain us a line, we would feel she’s doing a better job than us. So many times I used to copy Ektaa Kapoor’s style. She has so much passion and those days she was not making shows to impress the audience, she was making for herself, her creativity and imagination. (Photo: Instagram)

Urvashi created the Komolika’s look on her own. She used to create based on Ektaa’s demands like Ektaa bolti thi usko this time I want glamorous, open shoulder and she would say okay. She would then go sit in front of the mirror of her makeup room. She would not sit in girl’s makeup room, she used to take boys room, because she used to have so much stuff. She used to look in the mirror and just say randomly, I’ll cut my hair. Baal cut karwa ke aajati thi, then she would put huge bindi, cut it and make her own design. Nobody stopped her. (Photo: Instagram)

Whatever she did, she did it herself. No one ever stopped her. I remember she had to wear a blouse and a saree. She wore it and said, "This isn’t enough. I can’t shoot like this." Then she experimented and tied a waistband on her shoulder, from one side to the other. The look got approved and the waistband was attached to every saree she wore as a blouse. Her lipstick, the way she outlined it. She would take 15 to 20 minutes to do that part, and she did it very carefully. Sometimes it felt like she was painting. She got ready all by herself. No makeup artist was allowed to touch her face. She used to sit and say, don't disturb me. We could see her transition from Urvashi to Komolika. It was so enchanting. Her eyebrows, lips, eyes, she used to do it so beautifully. (Photo: Instagram)

Not now, but when she was younger, I had only a few basic rules. For example, if she was going out at the 11, she had to be back by 11 or at the very latest, by 1 am. I expected her to be at the door by that time. She couldn't say, "I’m leaving the party at 1.” 1 am meant being home, not just starting to leave. She had to return on time. She would often get upset and say, “I’m going with seven friends.” And I’d reply, “Then I want the phone numbers of all seven.” She hated that. She’d say, “Please don’t call my friends,” but I would still call, especially after 11 PM, just to make sure she was safe and coming back on time. I used to get contact details of the kids, their parents. She knew I wasn't just making empty threats, I meant every word. Whatever she asked for, I gave her, but I always expected her to respect the rules. (Photo: Instagram)

Palak didn’t have a phone during her school days. She got her first phone only when she entered college. As for makeup, she never used any while she was in school. It was only at the age of 16 that she received her first set of makeup products and began experimenting with them. She had a tendency to spend money quite freely. I would often tell her, “Your budget is Rs 25,000, try to stick to it.” But if her spending went up to Rs 30,000, I’d still end up covering the extra Rs 5,000 for her. (Photo: Instagram)

She even had a full list, like a reward chart, to earn money through household chores. For cleaning the bathroom, she’d earn Rs 1,000. Making her bed would get her Rs 500, and doing the dishes meant another Rs 1,000. She would usually spend everything she earned. Sometimes, she’d do extra chores just to justify asking for more. She’d say, “I’m going out, I need some extra money,” and then show me her list, saying, “Look, I’ve done this and that.” (Photo: Instagram)

Palak and Reyaansh share such a strong bond that sometimes I feel like an outsider. Technically, he is the younger brother but in reality, he isn’t treated like one. He’s her child who gets everything he wants without question. If his mother (Shweta) doesn’t do something for him, it doesn’t bother him because he simply turns to his sister. If I don’t allow him to go somewhere, his sister steps in and takes him instead. (Photo: Instagram)

For example, when he says, “I want to go,” Lavu immediately asks, “When is his school going to end? When is your shoot happening?” She got in touch with my team, sent an email to his school stating that Reyaansh would be away for five days, and made all the arrangements. Just like that, they were off to Mauritius, because he wanted to go. He gets everything from his sister, and as a result, he doesn’t really care whether his mother is involved or not. (Photo: Instagram)