Shefali Jariwala wanted to adopt a baby girl; revealed Bigg Boss stint led to family planning talks with Parag Tyagi

Hindustan Times

13 hours ago

By HT Entertainment Desk | Written by Riya Sharma
Jun 28, 2025 02:07 PM IST
Shefali Jariwala's untimely demise has not only left a void in the entertainment world but has also brought renewed attention to her deeply personal journey off-screen. Known for her performance in Kaanta Laga and later for her stint in Bigg Boss 13, Shefali had earlier spoken about her desire to adopt a girl child — a dream she had nurtured since childhood. Shefali Jariwala always wanted to adopt a baby girl.
Parag and Shefali had been married for 11 years but didn't have any kids. In an interview with India.com in 2020, the actor talked about her decision to adopt and said, "It's a very brave decision, especially in the culture that we belong to. The first reaction is always why not have your own. Adoption is such a taboo even today. It's reserved for people who can't have children of their own. We don't come from there, we can have children of our own. But this is something I always wanted to do, from the time I understood the concept of adoption when I was 10-12 years old. I found the thought very beautiful."
Shefali further recalled how she came to learn that children are often abandoned at a very impressionable age. She revealed that after 4–5 years into marriage with Parag, she got all sorts of questions about having kids, which she found to be normal. She revealed she wanted to adopt a baby girl and said, "But Parag couldn't understand my emotions. So for a big decision like adoption, it was important that Parag and I be on the same page. That took some time. I think my time away in Bigg Boss house got me and him thinking about having a family. When I came out, we discussed with our families. Parag's family was very supportive. But my parents are still in process of accepting the decision."
Shefali talked about the road to adoption not being an easy one because of lots of laws in the country, including authority checks, paperwork and counselling. Shefali Jariwala's death
Shefali was rushed to Bellevue Multispeciality Hospital in suburban Mumbai by Parag on Friday night. "She was brought to the hospital around 11.15 pm (Friday). The on-duty doctor declared her dead on arrival,' a hospital source told news agency PTI. While some reports claimed the actor died of a cardiac arrest, Mumbai Police revealed that her body has been sent to Cooper Hospital for a post-mortem to ascertain the cause of death.