Bollywood actress Zeenat Aman on Thursday offered a glimpse into her daily meals, revealing what the septuagenarian eats on a regular basis to stay healthy.
Sharing a photo from a 1980 magazine, which shows her cooking in a kitchen, the actress said, “I quite sportingly posed for it, but the truth is the most I can do in the kitchen is boil an egg for Lily (her pet dog).”
“Still, food remains a great joy in my life, and serendipitously my younger one grew up to be a fabulous chef who occasionally spoils me with elaborate home cooked meals,” Zeenat added.
Zeenat lives by the simple credo — “Eat small, eat fresh” — an old adage that was instilled in her by her mother. Mornings for Zeenat start with a cup of black tea and a bowl of soaked and peeled almonds. For breakfast, she usually has a mashed avocado on sourdough toast with chunks of cheddar cheese. However, if she craves desi flavours, she replaces it with a chilla or poha.
Lunch is her heaviest meal of the day and the menu items are simple — dal, sabzi, roti and some “accoutrements”. Zeenat shared a picture of her preparing “deliciously tangy khatti dal, matar aloo in hara masala, paneer tikka, and a lovely homemade tomato chutney” for lunch.
For evening snacks at 5pm, which are “essential” according to Zeenat, a bowl of makhana tossed in light spices is her go-to dish.
Being healthy doesn’t mean you have to refrain completely from cheat foods. She said that the best part of her eating routine is the time when she indulges in sweets. “I try to be careful about ingesting too much sugar, but I am certainly not going to eliminate this pleasure from my life. These sinful, smooth and rich squares from Royce are a current favourite. I could demolish the box in one sitting, but I attempt to keep it to two squares at a go,” she wrote, sharing a photo of dark chocolates.
Zeenat said that she used to initially feel embarrassed for not being able to cook. “But then I reminded myself that I’ve been putting food on the table for my family since my teens! That’s something too right,” she concluded her note, asking fans about their favourite healthy treats and delivery services.
The actress will be next seen in Faraz Arif Ansari’s Bun Tikki alongside Shabana Azmi and Abhay Deol. Bankrolled by Jio Studios and Stage5 Production, the coming-of-age drama delves into the nuanced relationship between a seven-year-old boy, Shanu, and his single father, Sidhant. The film explores themes of identity, parenthood, and resilience.
