Juvaria Abbasi wants you to stop assuming that being a single mother is 'difficult'

Actor assures in some cases, it is fun, because a woman can provide for her child just as well as any man.

Actor Juvaria Abbasi, in a recent tete-a-tete with a local magazine, spilled the beans on taking off from television, making her way into the industry, and raising her daughter, Anzela Abbasi, alone – all while juggling her career.

The Raqs e Bismil actor spoke in great length about how, when she first stepped into PTV after winning an acting competition, she faced numerous challenges. She detailed how because she was an outsider, the challenges she faced were not much different than the challenges newcomers face today. “What many youngsters don’t understand is that in our profession, you need to keep your ego aside,” a lesson Juvaria learned the hard way after being screamed at on the sets of her debut serial.

Speaking about why she took off in the midst of her career, only to return for roles of seniors while still looking like a million bucks, Juvaria recalled, “Initially, it was very difficult for me to transition from a heroine to a mother. It took me five years just to understand myself and come to terms with the fact that now I have grown up. I can’t behave like a heroine anymore.”

She added, “People don’t talk about this feeling in interviews but everyone goes through it. I played the first inning real well, and I thought it would last longer but I didn’t realise I had spent 25 years on the screen.”

The Ghisi Piti Mohabbat actor then explained how it feels to be a hero or heroine of days gone by as the younger lot starts replacing you. “When your screen time has passed and new faces take your place, it hits you. It hit me when my daughter became a heroine; I was like ‘oh shit! Now I am not this [the star], she is.’ When I observed the next generation take hold of things, I stepped back.”

Juvaria then prepared herself to don newer caps and essay newer roles, all while maintaining her appearance and evergreen spirit. Till this day, she does not understand the animosity some seniors have against anyone their age wanting to stay and look young. “I get ticked off when people say things like, ‘budhi ghodi lal lagaam.’ I mean if someone has kept themself fit and young, what is your problem?”

But when asked if being a single mother was difficult for her, Juvaria argued that it shouldn’t be assumed the phenomenon is difficult to begin with. “Why is it that the first thing people ask single mothers is how difficult it is to be one? In reality, it is fun!” she assured. The actor reinstated that because we live in a society which believes a woman has to have a husband who can provide for her child, it is difficult for many to comprehend how the mother can provide alone.

“I can give my child a great life from whatever I earn. I don't need a man," she said. “I raised my child well. I have an amazing daughter, she's beautiful, she's working, I'm so happy that she's a well-educated girl,” assured Juvaria, who made it all happen single-handedly. “What else do you want in life?" she asked, "I couldn't have done better than this. This was my best,” she asserted.

Juvaria also encouraged her female fans to look at the positive side of leaving a relationship that wasn’t going to work. "Stop crying about being single. God forbid, I'm not saying that you shouldn't get married, or you should get separated from your spouse. But if such an unfortunate event has happened and just in case you're there, live your life. Allah has given you a chance to leave a toxic relationship and build one with yourself," she shared.

Juvaria married Shamoon Abbasi in 1997; the latter then married and divorced Humaima Malik. Shamoon and Juvaria dissolved their marriage in 2007 and have a daughter, who’s also an emerging actor, together.

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