Archana Puran Singh on daughters-in-law: 'I now have two daughters'
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Actress Archana Puran Singh has spoken candidly about her bond with her sons' partners — actress Yogita Bihani and fitness influencer Samiksha Shetty — saying she regards them as her own daughters rather than daughters-in-law. The actress, speaking in a recent interview, said her approach stems not from any exceptional virtue but from basic human decency.
Love Follows Naturally, She Says
'It's not difficult. You just have to be human. You love your children. Your children have chosen someone to be their life partner. You automatically will love them,' Archana said. She stressed that treating her sons' partners with warmth requires no special effort — it is, in her view, the only logical extension of loving her own children.
A Conscious Break from the Past
Archana also reflected on her own years as a daughter-in-law, revealing that she made a deliberate choice not to replicate any negative experiences she encountered. 'There's a saying that if something happened to you, you'll do the same. But there's also the opposite, that you'll never do what happened to you. I belong to the latter. If anything bad happened to me as a daughter-in-law, I would never want to repeat it,' she said. The admission adds a layer of personal history to what might otherwise read as a simple feel-good statement — suggesting that her warmth is, in part, a product of lived experience and conscious resolve.
Pushing Back Against the Saas Stereotype
The actress was equally forthright in pushing back against the popular image of the overbearing mother-in-law, a trope that Indian television has long amplified. 'People say Archana's behaviour is very good, but I think millions of mothers-in-law are brilliant with their daughters-in-law. The ones who come into the limelight are those shown in television soaps, the bad mother-in-law. That's a stereotypical image. Nowadays, there are very few stereotypical mothers-in-law, and I hope by the time I become one, that stereotype will be over,' she said. Notably, Archana herself has spent decades in the entertainment industry and is acutely aware of how screen narratives shape social perception.
She also declined to accept praise for her attitude. 'I don't want any address or to be called great. Whatever you see on screen or off screen, this is genuinely who I am. There is no greatness in this. If you are a nice person, if you are a genuine human being with a conscience, you will behave like this. So I don't think I deserve any special mention for this,' she stated.
Family and Personal Life
Archana Puran Singh has been married to actor Parmeet Sethi since 1992. The couple has two sons — Aryamann Sethi and Ayushmaan Sethi. Aryamann is in a relationship with actress Yogita Bihani, while Ayushmaan is dating fitness and yoga influencer Samiksha Shetty. Archana has regularly shared glimpses of their family life through vlogs and social media.
What's Next for Archana
On the professional front, Archana Puran Singh is set to be seen in the OTT project Adarsh Baal Vidyalaya, which she described as one of the most unique roles of her career. The show is scheduled to release on 24 July.