From deciding to move out of her parents’ house and build a home; The Kapil Sharma Show fame Sumona Chakravarti shares what ‘settling down’ means for her

The Kapil Sharma Show fame Sumona Chakravarti recently opened up about what ‘settling down’ truly means to her in a podcast with Pankaj Dubey. From moving out of her parents’ house to building her dream home, she shared her thoughts on financial independence, personal growth, and breaking societal norms.

She expressed the importance of setting boundaries with her parents, not out of conflict but as a step towards personal growth. She said, “In 2020 I decided that I want to live by myself. At the age of 30, I told my parents that we need some boundaries and distance in a good way. I told them I want to live alone. Until you live alone, ek ghar chalana, the responsibilities, accountability… financial accountability is one thing and managing everything on your own is a different thing, when you realise your cook is not coming…those responsibility…that won’t come.”

Owning property in Mumbai is no easy feat. Sumona revealed the struggles she faced while purchasing her home, describing it as, “I bought a house years back and Mumbai me ghar khareedne me jo papad belne padte hai… I bought myself a small house and I renovated it…”

Sumona transformed her space into a stylish New York-inspired studio apartment. “I wanted to turn it into a New York style chic studio apartment. A very minimalistic, Scandinavian – there’s a term called Japandi - a style of interior design that blends Japanese and Scandinavian aesthetics. Bare minimum is the idea but high on practicality and functionality and aesthetically pleasing,” she said.

She emphasized that social media only reflects a curated version of life. Quoting, “You don’t know me, you know my social media,” she reminded her audience that real-life struggles and achievements go far beyond what is showcased online.

For Sumona, being settled is about financial independence, not marriage. She highlighted, “When anyone asks me, ‘when will you settle down?’ I am settled. What’s the definition of ‘settled’? Marriage is not the definition of settled, atleast not for me. That’s what my parents have taught me. Being settled is when you are financially independent. My mom encouraged me that no matter I get married or not, I should have a space of my own and not dependent on anyone. I am very proud of myself.”

“I have my own personal sense of humour, but my personal sense of humour won’t suit this show, it won’t work here. So for me, it was genuinely pure acting. It took a lot of time to do it,” shared Sumona. She added, “Hume jab script milte the, I was one of those people, I used to sit with pen and paper, highlight, read, memorise word-to-word because punch lines hoti hai. And more than that, I used to also remember Kapil’s lines as timing is also important.”

Sumona encouraged women to invest in their future rather than relying on marriage as a financial safety net. She credited her mother for teaching her the importance of having her own space, regardless of marital status. She said, “I wanted to give out a message to all the girls in our country. Our parents, save up money for our marriage. I took a home loan and it’s been exactly 10 years.”

My father relocated to Pune for a few months and then we shifted to Mumbai. Mere andar sab kuch Lucknowi hai. My roots are there. My school friends, food everything is from there. Pickle, kaju katli, sweets and most of the things are form Lucknow, thanks to my mom and the online ordering services.

Reflecting on her journey, she takes immense pride in having built a secure and independent life on her own terms. “I feel a sense of pride and achievement that I have been able to buy a home and have a roof over my head and that too in a city like Mumbai. Its not a value for money if you see it that way but it’s very expensive. The money that I spent on to buy this small house, in some other city, I could have bought a villa,” she said.