From a Mumbai chawl to 2 homes: Here's how 'Musafir Cafe' actress Mahima Makwana turned childhood struggles into success by 26

Mahima Makwana's life has come full circle. The actor, who lost her father when she was just five months old and grew up in a Mumbai chawl, now owns two homes in the city at 26. Looking back, the Musafir Cafe actor says acting was never her dream—it was her family's lifeline, one that helped her fulfil her mother's biggest wish of owning a home.

Speaking on Ranveer Allahbadia's podcast in 2021, Mahima recalled that she was only five months old when her father passed away, leaving her mother to raise two children on her own.

"I was just five months old when my father passed away. Back then, my mother worked at an NGO. My brother was nine. My mother had always wanted to become an actress but couldn't, so she pushed me towards acting," she said.

Mahima began auditioning at the age of nine, even though she had little interest in acting. Instead, she said, the family's financial struggles became the reason she stepped in front of the camera.

Don't Miss: From founders to CEOs: 84% of India's top women leaders are self-made, says Hurun

"I started auditioning when I was nine. I would tell my mother that I wasn't interested in acting. I didn't understand this world. I would attend school for half the day, travel by bus to auditions and come back exhausted. But my mother kept pushing me. The biggest reason I became a part of this industry was because I wanted to support my family," she recalled.

Growing up too soon

The actor said she never experienced a normal childhood because she became the family's earning member at a young age. She also recalled growing up in a chawl where people—including relatives—often looked down upon them.

The turning point came when her mother shared a wish that stayed with her.

"One day my mother told me that before she left this world, she wanted to own a house."

Mahima said that conversation became her biggest motivation.

Bought her first home at just 14

Her breakthrough came with Zee TV's Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke in 2012, when she was 13. The show's success transformed her family's finances almost overnight.

"After that show, I bought my first home. I was just 14. I bought a house in Mira Road and also bought my first car," she said.

But success came with sacrifices.

"I missed out on the golden days of my life—school. I would only go to write my examinations. In the process, I grew up too early."

The humiliation that changed her career

Before becoming a television lead, Mahima worked as a child artiste and junior actor, often taking up one- or two-day shoots. She also recalled how child artistes were sometimes paid much less than promised.

"Sometimes we were promised Rs 10 but would end up getting just Rs 2," she said, using the figures to illustrate the difference rather than the actual amounts.

One incident on the sets of Balika Vadhu became a defining moment in her career.

She was around nine or ten when she had to perform a monologue opposite veteran actors Surekha Sikri and Anup Soni but froze on set.

"The director came to me and said, 'If you don't know acting, then why are you here?'"

Mahima said the comment deeply affected her, but it also pushed her to work harder.

"I felt humiliated. I went home, memorised my lines and worked harder. It became a learning experience. After Balika Vadhu, I got my first break as a protagonist, and there was no looking back."

Years of rejection before films

Despite becoming a familiar face on television, Mahima said films did not come easily.

"I studied on my sets because I didn't have time to attend school."

She said she continued auditioning for advertisements, films and OTT projects while juggling television work and her education.

"When it came to films, I faced multiple rejections. Sometimes projects got shelved, sometimes I was replaced. But I always believed I would make it to the big screen."

Even after years in the industry, she said she continued to be labelled as "just a television actor."

"I still face rejections and get typecast. But I took my work seriously and myself a little less. I just kept working."

How Salman Khan changed her career

Mahima said she first met Salman Khan while promoting her television show Shubharambh on Bigg Boss.

"He was intimidating but very sweet."

A year later, she received a call from Salman Khan Films for Antim. The offer came during a difficult phase when her brother had contracted COVID and her television show was ending.

After meeting director Mahesh Manjrekar and auditioning for the role, she was cast in the film.

"He said, 'I know you have had humble beginnings, but there is no looking back from here,'" Mahima recalled Salman telling her.

'People suddenly wanted to become my best friend'

Following the release of Antim in 2021, Mahima said people's attitude towards her changed almost overnight.

"When I did Antim, people's behaviour suddenly changed. They all wanted to become my best friend. It looks like overnight success to people who don't know you, but for me, it was over a decade of hard work."

Reflecting on her journey, she added, "I have learnt a lot from my failures. I have seen so many ups and downs."

The void that success couldn't fill

Despite achieving financial security and fulfilling her mother's dream, Mahima said one absence continues to stay with her.

"I don't know what it feels like to have a father. When I see my friends with their dads, I don't know what to feel. I feel empty and heavy at the same time."

She added that while her mother ensured she never lacked love, she often wondered about the father she never got to know.

"My brother was nine when my father passed away, so he has memories of him. I don't. Somewhere, you always want to know who your father was."

From one dream home to another

More than a decade after buying her first house at 14, Mahima has fulfilled another milestone. Last year, she gave fans a glimpse of her second Mumbai home, where she lives with her mother.

According to a report by The Indian Express, Mahima had earlier told Mashable India, "I bought my first house in 2014. At that time, I didn't realise what it meant to own a house in a city like Mumbai. Eleven years later, I have a second home, which is much bigger. It is a huge thing for me."

Mahima made her Telugu film debut with Venkatapuram in 2017 before starring in Antim, Tumse Na Ho Payega, Showtime and most recently, Netflix's Musafir Cafe. At 26, she has spent nearly two decades in the entertainment industry, turning a childhood marked by loss and financial hardship into a career that not only transformed her life but also fulfilled the promise she once made to her mother.