India, July 21 -- A s the conversation around maternity and professional flexibility continues to gain ground in the entertainment industry, actor Gauahar Khan is the latest to add her voice to the dialogue. In a candid exchange with actor Debina Bonnerjee on her podcast, Gauahar opened up about navigating motherhood at the age of 39, sharing her experience of a miscarriage, the emotional aftermath, and what it means to work through physically demanding roles while pregnant. Her comments come shortly after reports emerged of actor Deepika Padukone stepping away from filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Spirit, allegedly due to unfulfilled requests for eight-hour shifts and time off - putting renewed spotlight on how working women, particularly in showbiz, balance personal commitments with public-facing careers. Gauahar, who welcomed her son Zehaan in 2023, is now expecting her second child. She reflected on how the journey to motherhood wasn't without setbacks. "I was 36 when I got married, and we knew we wanted to try for a child within a year," she said, adding, "But I had a miscarriage before Zehaan, and it took me a year and a half to even gather the courage to try again. When I finally conceived him, everything went smoothly." Recounting the emotional toll, she said, "At that point, you assume everything will go as planned. No one expected me to lose the child. It was extremely difficult. By the time I gave birth to Zehaan, I was already 39. And if I wanted another child, it was now or never." Yet even through both pregnancies, Gauahar never took a prolonged break from work. In fact, she continued filming - often during her first trimester - and was seen performing high-octane action sequences. "I was shooting throughout my first pregnancy, and this time around, I've been doing action scenes again. While filming the finale of Fauji 2 in Pune, I was literally blasting bombs on screen," she said, adding, "If I'm committed to a project, I can't be unprofessional. Thankfully, the action directors have been extremely understanding and shoot the scenes accordingly." HTC...