Katrina Kaif’s mother raised eight children alone but later chose to live a village life away from luxury

Highlights:

• Suzanne Turquotte raised eight children as a single mother.
• She moved from London to rural Tamil Nadu in 2008.
• Her school now serves more than 300 children.
• She has lived with limited electricity and internet access.
• Katrina Kaif quietly supports her mother’s charitable work.

Katrina Kaif’s life today is closely associated with Bollywood, fashion and luxury. Her mother, Suzanne Turquotte, has followed almost the opposite path.

After separating from Mohammed Kaif, Suzanne raised all eight of her children as a single mother. Years later, instead of moving closer to the world of celebrity that surrounded her daughter, she relocated to rural Tamil Nadu and devoted herself to working with disadvantaged children.

In 2008, Suzanne moved from London to Tamil Nadu and founded Relief Projects India, an organisation focused on education and community development.

What began with free evening tuition centres for children attending government schools eventually developed into a wider community initiative. Suzanne later founded Mountain View School in 2015.

The school began as a small nursery for fewer than 30 children. Today, according to the source material, it has more than 300 students.

A life without the comforts most people expect

Suzanne’s decision to live in a rural village is particularly striking because her daughter is one of India’s most recognisable film stars.

Katrina has previously described just how different her mother’s daily life is.

Speaking to ABP, Katrina said, “My mom stays in Madurai where she has started a school for children. She is a teacher. She teaches there. And she is happy. It is because of her charities and blessings that I have reached these heights.”

But Katrina also spoke about the practical difficulties her mother faces.

“It is not easy to live there. They don’t have access to electricity. It is available for 12 hours. Sometimes, when I want to FaceTime my mother, I cannot, because there is no electricity or sometimes even internet. So we have a normal call.”

It is a striking picture of a family whose lives took very different directions.

Katrina says her childhood was never about luxury

Suzanne’s approach to life also shaped the childhood of Katrina and her siblings.

Speaking to Colors Cineplex, Katrina explained that her upbringing was far removed from the privileged lifestyle often associated with Bollywood stars.

“The countries that I grew up in when I was very young… they were always countries which had a lot of people who lived below the poverty line like we do here. It is something I have always been exposed to because my mom has done charity work. We didn’t grow up in a life of privilege or luxury. We had a very frugal and basic childhood. That’s the life I come from. I came from starting out, working in the industry and having absolutely no money. Needing to work to be successful and if I wouldn’t have been successful then I would have had to look for another job where I could have had security.”

Katrina has also described how her mother built the school herself.

“She has this school in Madurai. This is a school she built from scratch. I think we have about 250 kids there. She teaches at the school. She has made curriculum, she trains the teachers there.”

The mother who never chased the spotlight

Suzanne’s life has remained largely away from celebrity culture. According to the source material, she has continued living in the community she serves, despite the basic conditions.

Katrina has said her mother has spent more than 15 years living this way.

“A person who lives in a village where there are hours in a day when there is no electricity there. It’s incredibly hot and because you don’t have electricity, so the ACs are not there. She lives in this condition and she has always done because she enjoys helping people. It’s a tough life. It takes a different kind of person. I don’t know if I could do that. My mom has been there for more than 15 years I think.”

Katrina quietly supports her mother

Although Katrina cannot always be physically present because of her film commitments, she has supported her mother’s work financially.

A source told Mid-Day, “Katrina loves the work her mother is doing and posts about it on social media sometimes. However, she doesn’t like to bring her contributions to attention. Since she is busy with her film commitments and hence cannot always visit the place, she donates money.”

Katrina has also publicly appealed for donations. In 2012, she told Hindustan Times about her mother’s plans for a school and hoped Salman Khan’s Being Human Foundation could help fund it.

“I’m happy that my mom is so involved (in education and charity). Now, she’s building a school since the children (from the orphanage) are growing up. She’s bought a property close to Mercy Home. Hopefully, Being Human can help fund the school for us.”

According to Relief Projects India’s official website, the organisation has expanded its work across 25 villages, with programmes covering adolescent development, women’s empowerment, life-skills training, career guidance and cervical cancer screening.

For Suzanne, the story is not about being Katrina Kaif’s mother.

It is about being a mother of eight who raised her children alone, then chose to spend the next chapter of her life helping children in rural India build a different future.