4 min learnNew DelhiFeb 21, 2026 06:00 PM IST
Anupam Kher as soon as shared a deeply private story about shopping for a house in Shimla on The Divya Jain Podcast. The Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge actor revealed how the house was not one other funding or asset for him, however a fulfilment of his mom’s lifelong want to lastly stay in a spot she may name her personal.
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Recalling the dialog, he stated: “Meri maa ne mujhse kaha ki mujhe Shimla mein ghar lena hai… kehti mai poori zindagi waha kiraye ke makaan me rahi hoon. Mai us jagah par malkin banke rehna chahti hoon… mummy ne kaha ki ek bed room corridor ka hello chahiye… symbolically chahiye… mera apna ghar ho.” (My mom advised me she wished to purchase a home in Shimla… she stated she had lived her whole life in rented properties and wished to stay there because the proprietor. She stated even a one-bedroom corridor was sufficient — symbolically — to really feel that it was her own residence.)
Kher went on to explain how, whereas house-hunting, he selected to purchase a a lot bigger property than his mom had requested for as a result of it felt significant. He additionally recalled how the vendor diminished the worth after studying the home was being purchased for his mom, and later provided a further concession upon recognising him. For Kher, the acquisition carried emotional weight past the transaction.
“That was such an incredible feeling. So the one home that I’ve is the home in Shimla,” he shared.
In Body: Anupam Kher, his youthful brother Raju Kher, and their mom Dulari Kher (Picture: Instagram/Anupam Kher)
Why possession can really feel deeply private
In line with psychology, such a want is rooted in additional than mere materials need. In line with Dr Anitha Chandra, Advisor – Psychiatry, Aster CMI Hospital, Bangalore, individuals who have lived in rented properties for years might carry a lingering sense of impermanence.
“When an individual has lived in rented homes all their life, they might carry a deep feeling of non permanent belonging. Renting typically means adjusting to guidelines, shifting properties, and by no means feeling absolutely settled. Over time, this could create a robust emotional need for stability and management. Owning even a small house can really feel like a way of safety, permanence, and private achievement… Psychologically, it satisfies the essential human want for security and belonging. The want just isn’t solely about property, however about dignity, roots, and emotional safety,” she explains.
On this gentle, Kher’s mom’s request for even a symbolic one-bedroom residence displays a eager for identification and rootedness — a transition from being a tenant to feeling like an proprietor in a single’s personal story.
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When giving turns into an expression of affection
Kher additional added that when he discovered a small one-bedroom home identical to the one his mom wished, he realized that an 8-bedroom residence was additionally obtainable on the market. “Toh, I stated mai mother ke liye pehli baar ghar le raha hoon, to mai ek bed room ka kyu loon.” (So I stated, if I’m shopping for a home for my mom for the primary time, why ought to I purchase only a one-bedroom residence?) He went on to buy the larger one.
Kher’s gesture and emotion resonate with many grownup youngsters who need to honour their mother and father’ sacrifices.
Dr Chandra explains that when somebody buys greater than what their mother and father requested for, it typically exhibits deep love, gratitude, and emotional attachment. “The individual might really feel grateful for the sacrifices their mother and father made and needs to provide again in a much bigger means… It may also be a strategy to categorical feelings which are exhausting to place into phrases. General, it exhibits affection and emotional closeness.”
Seen via this lens, Kher’s Shimla house is way more than actual property. It represents gratitude, belonging, and the emotional fulfilment of a promise — a reminder that for a lot of households, a home is not only a construction, however an emblem of dignity, care, and connection.
