Dia Mirza reveals stepdaughter Samaira's 'acceptance was key' in marrying husband Vaibhav RekhiDia Mirza has always been a present parent in her son Avyaan’s life, and with her stepdaughter Samaira, Dia has made sure that they share a warm and friendly relationship. The actor, who got married to businessman Vaibhav Rekhi in 2021, has often spoken warmly about their blended family. In a recent interview, Dia revealed that if Samaira had rejected her relationship with Vaibhav, she wouldn’t have gone ahead with their marriage. She also recalled losing her father at a very young age, and how that difficult period made her the person she is now.‘Father’s death changed a lot for me’During a conversation with Times Entertainment, she shared that she lost both her biological dad and stepfather fairly early in life. “I think when you see death early in life and when you recognise the futility of the pursuit of just the material and how it really doesn’t get you anything. Because when you see your parent dead, and all you see is their corpse, they take nothing with them,” she said.The actor continued, “All they leave behind are the feelings that you have in your heart and the memories you created with them. That defines a lot of your choices and I think it did for me. I was 23 when I lost Abba (father). I was 9 when I lost my biological father. Those two very strong instances, life’s greatest realities, changed a lot for me.”ALSO READ | Dia Mirza reveals her ‘child-led’ parenting rule for Samaira and Avyaan: ‘They are not judged’‘Samaira’s acceptance was key’Samaira is Vaibhav Rekhi’s daughter from his previous marriage. When asked about the role her husband played in building Dia’s relationship with Samaira, she replied, “I think the first and the most important thing he did was that he involved her very early in the relationship. He basically allowed her to take the lead in deciding whether this is something that she wanted, if it was the life she wanted, whether she wanted us to be a family or not.”“I think that was very important. If Samaira had rejected me in those early days, if I felt there was a strong friction, I would have never gone ahead with the relationship in the way we went ahead with it. Her acceptance was key,” Dia concluded.‘She hasn’t called me maa’During an interview with News18 Showsha in 2024, Dia had revealed that Samaira does not call her ‘maa’ or ‘mumma’, and she has no expectations regarding the same. She calls the actor lovingly by her first name instead. “She hasn’t called me ‘maa’. There is no expectations from her to call me ‘maa’, ‘mumma’ or ‘mother’. She has a mother who she calls ‘mumma’ or ‘mom’. She calls me ‘Dia’,” she shared.Story continues below this adDia Mirza and Vaibhav Rekhi tied the knot in February 2021. Their biological son Avyaan Azaad Rekhi was born in May 2021. Dia was previously married to producer Sahil Sangha from 2014 to 2019.Dia Mirza will next be seen in the Netflix courtroom drama Ikka, also starring Sunny Deol and Akshaye Khanna.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.Tags:dia mirza