Mohit Malik: I made a mistake of bursting crackers as a kid, so I wish to keep Ekbir away from them

It’s Delhi calling for actor Mohit Malik for his son Ekbir’s first Diwali. The actor says they are planning to go all out to make it special for the little one. That’s because it is something which his late father-in-law, who he lost in August this year, would have wished for.

“I am planning to take Ekbir along with Addite (his wife) and her mom to Delhi to celebrate the festival. I have always believed in celebrating the festival with my parents, and when we celebrated the festival in Mumbai, it was with Addite’s parents and friends. I have so many memories of celebrating the festival in Delhi,” Malik says.

But that doesn’t take away the sense of grief about the absence of his father-in-law. “It is really unfortunate that we lost dad. But we intend to make the festival special for Ekbir as he always wanted us to celebrate festivals. If he would have been there, he would have told us the same thing to do. And that’s something we wish to do in his memory as well.”

In Delhi, there will be a big family reunion, with everyone bonding over good food and having a blast, without crackers.

“I have a joint family in Delhi, and they all are waiting to meet Ekbir. I get calls from my family every day, and some even threaten me saying, ‘If you don’t come this time, don’t bother showing your face to us any longer’,” jokes the 37-year-old.

The memories of celebrating the festival in the national capital while growing up are etched in his heart, which he hopes to revisit with his kid, but not without rectifying his mistakes from the past.

“For us, Diwali was sitting together, doing Lakshmi Puja and then heading out to burst crackers. Today, I know that we need to avoid crackers as they generate so much smoke and add to the pollution levels everywhere. I don’t want to teach this thing about bursting crackers to my son. I have made that mistake. So, it’s a safe Diwali for me everywhere,” says the actor, known for Banoo Main Teri Dulhann, Doli Armaano Ki, Miilee, and Kullfi Kumarr Bajewala.