Govinda recalled why his mother Nirmala Devi quit acting.

Govinda has maintained that he’s always been very close to his late mother, Nirmala Devi, also a former lead actor in Hindi cinema. Unlike the actor, his mother quit the film industry within 10 years of her debut, shaved off her head, and became a sadhvi (ascetic) while raising her five children. Govinda, the youngest of her children, has inherited the quality of detachment from his mother.

Govinda on his mother’s sacrifice

“After becoming a heroine, my mother Nirmala Devi got poor to such an extent that all the stuff from our bungalow were taken away,” recalled Govinda in a recent interview. “My father told her, ‘Nirmala, you’re so pretty that when you go out to ask for work, people would ogle at you.’ So my poor mother got her shaved off and became a saint.…