Sharmila Tagore and Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi’s daughter Saba Pataudi was raised in a royal household. Her mother Sharmila embraced Islam when she married Mansoor, and Saba recently revealed that she grew up with Islam, which was introduced to her by her mother. She also shared that she never practiced Hinduism, and the family never went to any temples.
Describing herself as a “religious” person, she shared, “For me, I would say my religion is Islam, and I do connect with it. And I’m spiritual because, if I were to think of a God, I would probably say Allah. That doesn’t mean that I don’t respect other religions, of course not.”
She explained that her mother, Sharmila, converted to Islam after marrying Tiger Pataudi and introduced her children to the faith, giving them a sense of grounding while ultimately allowing them to make their own choices. “When Amma and Abba got married, Amma, in fact, did convert to Islam and did guide us in Islam, perhaps so that we wouldn’t be confused and would have some sort of grounding. So there was no temple, there was no Hindu religion that we practised. In fact, she taught me my faith and gave me an understanding of Islam, Ramzan and things like that. And then it was our choice what we wanted to follow.”
She insisted that her parents did not impose any religion on the three siblings. “It’s not something I think my father or mother, or anybody, would have imposed on any of us,” she said.
Speaking about her siblings, actors Saif Ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan, Saba noted that both have married into different faiths. “My siblings are in interfaith marriages, I don’t think anybody is following anything very strictly. But I think faith is something that’s very personal. It’s not something that anybody can impose on anyone. It’s your choice what you turn to,” she said.
In an earlier chat with Simi Garewal, Sharmila was asked about changing her religion, and she said, “It wasn’t easy nor was it very difficult. It had to be faced and understood. You couldn’t be very flippant about it. Before that, I wasn’t terribly religious. Now, I think I know more about Hinduism and Islam.” She shared that her name Ayesha was suggested by her husband.
In another chat with Tweak India, Sharmila shared that they received threats when they announced their marriage. “Bullets shall speak,” she recalled as one of the threats.
