Overview

• In a Firstpost interview published July 1, Sharma contrasted a “motherhood penalty” that reduces women’s earnings after each child with a “fatherhood premium” that boosts men’s pay and seniority
• She cautioned that without supportive policies, balancing a film career and motherhood becomes harder and deters women from starting families
• Sharma called on the Government of India to introduce reforms such as paid maternity leave extensions and on-set childcare to protect working mothers
• Her comments coincide with the final promotional push for Anurag Basu’s Metro In Dino, which Sharma stars in alongside Aditya Roy Kapur, Sara Ali Khan and Pankaj Tripathi
• Drawing on her own experience as a divorced co-parent to son Haroon, she highlighted how personal insight underscores the urgency of industry-wide change