Masaba Gupta says she had no money to pay her cook during pandemic: ‘Remember crying after every call’ | Bollywood FilmyMeet

Masaba Gupta recently spoke about the challenges she faced in running her business during Covid-19 pandemic. The fashion designer-entrepreneur described her helplessness when her business was on the verge of shutting down. In an interview with Faye D’Souza for her YouTube channel, Masaba revealed that due to constant financial setbacks, she did not have enough money to pay salary to her cook. (Also read: Masaba Gupta says she regularly deals with body-shaming and racism: ‘Someone said I look like Om Puri’)

Massba Gupta on impact of pandemic on her business

Masaba, while speaking about her financial challenges, during pandemic stated that, “In 2020, when COVID hit, it was the worst time of my life. I don’t think I had even ₹12,000 to pay to my cook. It was that bad. In March, 2020, the lockdown happened and we thought it was mostly for a day or two, and it was extended to 14 days. In those 14 days, my life completely turned around. I think it was end of March or the beginning of April when my business head said, ‘There is no money now. It’s done. Nobody is buying anything.’ Fashion was at the bottom of the food chain at that time.”

She also said, “I remember crying after every call. My business head was confident, he was sure something would work out. But, we shut down five stores in two months. Some were franchises. Some were company owned. I think I had some ₹2 lakhs in the bank account. So we thought we will hold on to that ₹2 lakhs, keep making masks and keep our focus and cut our losses.”

About Masaba Gupta

Masaba is the daughter of former West Indies cricketer Sir Vivian Richards and veteran actor Neena Gupta. Masaba got married to Indian film producer Madhu Mantena in 2015. The duo separated in 2018 and got officially divorced in September 2019. She tied the knot with actor Satyadeep Mishra in January 2023. The couple announced their preganancy in April 2024.