Bollywood actress Dia Mirza, who recently became a mum for the first time, has marked World Breastfeeding Week by sharing her thoughts about the lack of women’s access to safe spaces.
“I have become more acutely aware of the lack of safe spaces for new mothers, especially if they are socially and economically marginalised,” Mirza told Indian media outlet Mid-Day. “Why have we never [highlighted] how hard it is for underserved mothers to feed their babies on construction sites, farms and roadside stalls without any privacy?”
World Breastfeeding Week is marked between August 1 and 7.
Mirza and her husband Vaibhav Rekhi welcomed their son on May 14. In July, the ‘Thappad’ actress revealed that son Avyaan Azaad Rekhi spent time in the NICU following an emergency surgery the actress had to undergo.
“Our heartbeat, our son Avyaan Azaad Rekhi was born on May 14th. Having arrived early, our little miracle has since then been cared for by tireless nurses and doctors in the Neonatal ICU,” she wrote on Instagram at the time.
In her interview about breastfeeding week, Mirza pointed out how Indian society can be critical of a woman feeding her child in public.
“In Belgium, breastfeeding in public is protected by law, but in India, we need to bring about a systematic shift in societal attitude. Feeding a child should be considered a natural act, but it triggers so much shame and judgment when done in public,” she said.
Mirza tied the knot with businessman Rekhi in a private ceremony on February 15.
She took to Instagram on April 1 to announce that she was pregnant with her first child.
The 39-year-old actress said at the time that they only found out they were pregnant when she was planning her wedding.
“We discovered we were going to have a baby while we were planning our wedding. So this marriage is not the result of pregnancy. We didn’t announce the pregnancy until we knew its safe (medical reasons). This is the happiest news of my life. I’ve waited for many many years for this to happen. No way I would hide it for any reason other than medical,” Mirza said when someone on social media asked why she didn’t break the news about her pregnancy before she got hitched.
