Rakul Preet Singh recalls nervy times during Army officer dad's postings, says she got his 'army genetic'

Hindustan Times

10 hours ago

She may not be a big observer of Father's Day as a concept, but Rakul Preet Singh is extremely close to her father. Rakul admits she has a special bond with dad, Col (Retd) Kulwinder Singh, including shared character traits as well. In a special Father's Day chat with HT, Rakul opens up on memories with her dad and the biggest learnings from him.
Talking about the significance of Father's Day, Rakul says, "I think the joy is in celebrating your parents every day, your father every day, for the unlimited sacrifices that they have given while raising us. I think just celebrating them for one day is not enough. It's more about special memories that we create throughout the year."
Rakul admits that she is very similar to her father. "We are both practical. I think I get his army genetic of pushing against odds. Nature-wise, both of us are equally hot-tempered, but also very driven, very disciplined and punctual," she tells us.
Rakul's father served in the Indian Army, and when she was growing up, he would often be away, at times in sensitive locations where contact would be limited. "Today, when I look back, I feel that, thanks to my mother, we never felt those anxious moments," she admits. Rakul says that she and her brother were too young to understand how serious things were back then, but credits both her father and mother for not letting them get overwhelmed. "We were kids and much younger to actually understand the gravity of the situation. But, kudos to them for never letting us feel the same. And also that, in an era where mobile phones were not there to constantly keep in check and keep talking. I feel like a huge credit goes to them for keeping the environment at home so normal that we never felt that there was anything worrisome."
Despite that, Rakul does remember times when she saw her mother tense when her father was posted in the North-East. "I do have certain memories of one or two instances where we couldn't locate him. He was in a disturbed area, and there was news of a shootout. I have very specific memories when my mom was really tense till we heard back that everything was fine. Especially (when he served) in the northeast; he served there for years. So that was a very disturbed time for the family, but we were not privy to it."
Rakul adds that even now, after she is successful, her father and mother keep her grounded just by being themselves. "The best thing is that my father or my mother both are very unaffected by fame or success. They are very happy, very supportive, but very unaffected by it. That's what actually keeps me grounded."