Taha Shah Badussha: “A Man Should Never Be Cut Off From His Vulnerable Side”

As actor Taha Shah Badussha turns a year older today, the occasion carries deeper meaning than previous birthdays. Reflecting on his journey, he shares that this year is not just about professional milestones but about inner growth and emotional awareness. “Previous years, it has always been about the career, but this year, it’s not just about career but also about self-growth, self-awareness, work on my inner self and becoming a bit more connected to the universe,” he says. Taha plans to celebrate with his family because, as he puts it, “It’s all about keeping the right people next to you instead of more people.”

Coincidentally, his birthday falls on International Men’s Day, prompting him to reflect on how perceptions of masculinity have evolved over time. “There used to be a lot of hard-core men before, especially for at least 30 years after the partition as their experiences through the time made them such. Then after the 2000s, there were young boys coming out, who crossed over to become men. But in this generation, everybody is quite open. There is gender fluidity and the understanding of who a man should be has changed over time,” he explains.

For him, being a man today means embodying integrity, patience, calmness and devotion. Turning 38 this year, Taha believes today’s men are more emotionally expressive and connected than earlier generations.

Speaking about men on screen, he feels audiences now gravitate towards characters who are authentic and emotionally nuanced rather than stereotypically “alpha.” His performance in Heeramandi resonated with this shift. “I feel the audience is looking for something romantic because there has been too much intensity and too much violence in the content coming out. With how Heeramandi or Saiyaara succeeded, it showed that people were looking for romance, something that they could fall in love with because love has become rare.”

Taha openly rejects the old notion that men must suppress their softer emotions. “I don’t think that a man should be separated from his vulnerable side. He should be in touch with that side and be able to control that, and not completely ignore or sideline it. In today’s world, you have to be a bit of both strong and vulnerable to survive,” he says.

He believes that today’s men are more understanding and emotionally available—qualities he feels earlier generations often lacked. However, he acknowledges that modern men could learn patience and stronger impulse control from their predecessors, who did not face the constant distractions of today’s world.

Ending with advice for men everywhere, he emphasises the importance of embracing one’s emotions: “It’s important that we are in touch with our emotions, otherwise how will we communicate or express to young people how they should be?”