Actor Shefali Shah on why digital safety is vital for children
Actor Shefali Shah is vocal about the need for online safety for children in today’s time. She recently joined hands with Snapchat, which is strengthening its focus on teen safety with new features.
Shefali Shah started her acting career on the Gujarati stage before making her television debut in 1993. She gained recognition with TV series Hasratein and Banegi Apni Baat in 1997 and has since then continued to garner acclaim for her stellar performances.
Be it Satya, Gandhi, My Father, and Dil Dhadakne Do earlier or the recent Jalsa, Darlings, and Doctor G, Shah has always focused on characters that are “distinctively different”. But it was Delhi Crime’s DCP Vartika Chaturvedi that won her critical acclaim, and made her part of the only Indian show to win an Emmy in 2020.
Apart from acting, Shah plays additional starring roles: as wife to director Vipul Amrutlal Shah, and mother to their two sons, Aryaman and Maurya. Her posts on social media are a stream of endearing commentary about life, especially her children.
Actor Shefali Shah
On her parenting style, the actor starts by saying that she’s definitely not a tiger mom. ”I don't remember putting pressure on my children. But yes, I have been a helicopter mom, being extremely involved and having to tell myself to back down,” she says.
In a world that’s completely digital, Shah says she’s aware of the many advantages of technology. “During COVID, the phones, iPads, and laptops helped us learn and stay connected with friends and family. Or else, we were all disconnected,” she says.
But the hands-on mom says she’s extremely aware and vocal about the need for online safety for children in today’s time. “I am struggling; we're all learning here. Digital has become the biggest part of our lives and it's constantly changing, growing. Every day there's a new problem and every day you have to find a new solution,” Shah adds.
Shah says she understands the power and impact of digital choices, as an actor and a mother.
“There are so many things that you hear about in connection with children going online. Are they being given the right information, are they being bullied, are they aspiring to be someone who is fake, are they being exposed to strangers…It is extremely important for any platform today to put in place measures to ensure the safety of children,” she says.
Shah adds that kids at 13 or even 17 “may not be cognisant of the damage that certain things can do but we as adults are.”
When you're giving your child privacy, you also have to understand that they may watch something that's not appropriate. “Kids want privacy, which you have to respect, but I think we have to focus on creating an environment where they can share things instead of hiding them. I would rather my sons come and have conversations with me rather than try to handle everything on their own,” she says.
Shefali Shah says the current phase of her career is like a 'win-win' situation, with her getting the opportunity to play interesting parts.
Shah recently joined hands with instant messaging app Snapchat, which is strengthening its focus on teen safety with new safeguards.
The features, which aim to further protect 13 to 17-year-olds, are designed to protect teens from being contacted by people they may not know in real life, provide a more age-appropriate viewing experience on the content platform; and enable more effective removal of accounts that may be trying to market and promote age-inappropriate content through a new strike system and new detection technologies.
“It's crucial that we guide our teens to make thoughtful decisions while navigating the online world. Having open conversations with our teens about tools available to help keep them safe is critical,” she says.
What’s next on the work front?
Shah says she is “obsessed” with work but none of her career choices stem from a desire to be continuously seen on screen.
“[2022] was the first year in my entire life where I had five releases and it wasn't planned,” she says, adding that the current phase of her career is like a “win-win” situation with her getting the opportunity to play interesting parts.
Shah was last seen in a special appearance in Vidya Balan-led murder mystery Neeyat. Her last release was Doctor G with Ayushmann Khurrana in 2022. Her breakthrough film Satya recently completed 25 years of its release.
“Whatever I am doing will now only happen next year. Two-three of my projects are still in the writing stage,” says the actor whose main focus is to ensure that you “don't remember Shefali Shah, you remember a character”.
(The article was updated to make a coorection in the headline)
Edited by Affirunisa Kankudti