Shiney Ahuja takes his 14-month-old daughter arshiya for a morning walk every day. We catch them in a playful mood

OUR early morning shoot is delayed by almost an hour. The supporting star of the shoot has just woken up and is getting ready, we are told. We don't mind the wait, especially if it's for a 14-month-old. She comes down with her dad, actor Shiney Ahuja, a bit wide-eyed and wary of strange faces and a camera that starts clicking almost instantly. Arshiya has her father's eyes.



The father and daughter morning walk is a daily routine. But it turns out to be more than just a walk for Shiney, who has to constantly run after Arshiya once she gets comfortable with people around her.

"Boo boo is for dog," explains the actor as he tries to control the adorable bundle of joy from rushing towards stray dogs in the building. This is the first time Shiney is shooting with his child. His wife Anupam looks on.
After the half-hour shoot, it's time for breakfast. On the way up to their seventh floor apartment, Anupam ribs her husband about being forced to get up early every morning ever since Arshiya's birth.

He also potty-cleans her. "Sometimes," he adds, sheepishly. The actor playfully says that Anupam's mood can be gauged by how much Arshiya has eaten.

"If I come back from the gym and she looks at me and asks, 'hi, how was the gym?' I know that Arshiya's eaten well. Everyday our discussion starts with what the baby ate. I think Arshiya takes 15 minutes to eat but the discussion on what she ate goes on for half an hour." "But I am her mother," Anupam defends herself, and hits back with, "And should I say how you complimented me the other day?"

Shiney makes a face as Anupam relates that when she went down all dressed and asked her husband how she looked, he said, "Like my BMW."

It's Shiney's turn to be defensive and he says with a laugh, "But I always say na... Porsche is beautiful but the BMW is hot."

Meanwhile, Arshiya is placed on her high-stool to eat, while Shiney takes the couch to answer some parental and pertinent questions... there are other voices that chip in during the interview, the most distinct being Arshiya's, who often calls out, in between mouthfuls, to her "papa".

How does your morning begin?
I am not a morning person at all. But now Arshiya wakes me up most of the time. I'll accept that. (Laughs) Sometimes she just pats me first, I feel her tiny hands on my shoulder and then she will go, 'pa pa' (enacts). Her cognitive ability is quite well-defined.