Neena Gupta and Masaba Gupta are quite the mother-daughter duo. From giving birth to Masaba out of wedlock to raising her as a single parent and making a name for herself in the industry, Neena Gupta is the epitome of women empowerment.
Neena had once revealed that in the early days, Masaba ‘would feel bad’ that her father, former West Indies cricketer Vivian Richard did not keep in touch with her. Neena shared that she had to make Masaba understand that Vivian was ‘not a family man’ and it was difficult to get in touch with him.
During a 2015 interview with Times of India, Neena said, “I told her how her father is not a family man and how he was like this and this. In the beginning, she would feel bad that Vivian was not in touch with her till the age of about 20, but then he got in touch. His problem also is that he is not net savvy and so, it is very difficult to get in touch with him.”
She further explained how Vivian was inconsistent with his availability and had difficulty expressing his emotions.
She added, “Sometimes, he would call her on her birthday and sometimes, he would not call for even three years. Sometimes, he would come here and meet and sometimes not. By then, I knew him and how he was. If I told him I needed something, he would go mad finding it to bring it for me, but on his own, he would not bring anything. He is a person who cannot express his emotions.
Neena recently came out with her autobiography titled ‘Sach Kahu Toh, which was unveiled virtually by Kareena Kapoor Khan. She made several interesting and shocking revelations in the book including that one time when Vivian Richards didn’t speak to her for five years.
The ‘Badhai Ho’ actress revealed that Masaba and her were supposed to go meet Vivian, however, she had to cancel their trip at the last minute as the dates clashed with Masaba’s interview for her admission to Jamnabai Narsee School.
"Vivian didn't understand the importance of it. Or maybe I wasn't clear enough in explaining to him how difficult it was for a child in this situation to get admission in a good school. He thought I wasn't serious about meeting him and was just making an excuse to drop out. This wasn't the case at all. He hung up on me, dismissive, and angry, and didn't call me again for five years," Neena wrote in her book.
