‘Shahid Kapoor has changed my diapers’: Ishaan Khatter on 15-year age gap, their friendship

5 min readNew DelhiJun 19, 2026 01:48 PM IST

Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter have a 15-year age gap. (Photo: Shahid Kapoor, Instagram)

Shahid Kapoor and his brother Ishaan Khatter have an age gap of 15 years, and they both grew up under the shadow of their mother Neelima Azeem. She brought them up single-handedly and all this while, she sacrificed many of her dreams as an artiste, a dancer and an actor, and in a recent interview, Ishaan opened up about the many sacrifices of his mother and how she took up jobs that would pay her well, instead of following her artistic ambitions.

Neelima Azeem doubled up as a father and a mother to Ishaan Khatter

In a chat with Lilly Singh, Ishaan shared that his mother started dancing professionally at the age of 9, under the guidance of Pandit Birju Maharaj, and by the age of 14, she was on a postage stamp, which was a huge honour for her. Talking about growing up with a single mother, Ishaan shared that he saw her play the role of both father and mother, while also managing everything else.

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“In many ways, I saw my mother double up throughout my childhood. I also grew up with an elder brother who is 15 years older than me, so he was, in many ways, a parental figure. It is a very interesting relationship again, where we are more like pals than brothers, but there will always be a line of respect. He has changed my diapers, so every argument ends with, ‘I am older than you’,” he said.

Neelima had Shahid with her first husband Pankaj Kapur when she was 21, and she later had Ishaan with her second husband Rajesh Khatter when she was 36. “Just watching mom navigate every phase of her life, trying to do her best and also being a very liberal kind of parent where… She had me when she was about 36, she had my brother when she was 21-22, so they were like friends. She had me a little later, but she still maintained that vibe and friendship with me where I felt I could share anything with her and I didn’t have to hesitate. And that I think has contributed to the person I became in many ways. I am just glad I had a parent I didn’t need to hide from or lie to,” he said.

Ishaan Khatter and Shahid Kapoor pose with their mother, Neliima Azeem.

‘She took up jobs that gave consistent pay over artistic endeavours’

He also spoke about the many sacrifices that Neelima made for her children and shared, “Anything that’s worth it requires sacrifice but the way in which working women who are also parents give those parts of themselves, like you have to be a superwoman. And I have seen her make those choices. Whether it’s taking a job that gives more consistent pay but is not what you see yourself doing, or creatively excites you. Or taking that job just to be able to run the house and have that security. She has done that for the better part of one’s childhood, and you have seen that.”

He said that even though the artiste in her is a very important part of her, she still prioritised being a mother. “The artiste in her is a big part of who she is, and she has put that second to the mother in her often, and I have seen that,” he said.

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In an earlier interview with Zoom, Neelima had revealed that she moved to Mumbai when she was just 24, with Rs 4,500 in her pocket, and never asked anyone for any monetary assistance.

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‘Shahid Kapoor admits his mistakes in retrospect’

Talking about his relationship with his brother Shahid, Ishaan said he calls him ‘Baba Sasha’ and described him as “emotionally sound”. He recalled that he started his career at 21, much like his older brother, and felt he had the privilege of “watching him make mistakes and I had the privilege of watching him through his triumphs and see the beauty and the growth.”

He shared that they now share a “beautiful friendship” and Ishaan finds himself to be his “most vulnerable with him emotionally.” “He does call to check up on me. I call to check up on him,” he said and added that Shahid also opens up about his mistakes with him, albeit in retrospect. “In retrospect, he does, not when I am calling them out. He will be like, ‘You know what I did that was wrong 15 years ago?’” he said with a laugh.

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Shahid’s latest film Cocktail 2 is currently in theatres. Ishaan’s last release, Homebound, was India’s entry to the Oscars, but the film did not make it to the shortlist in the Best International Film Category.