Dia Mirza reveals 16 year old step daughter would spend 8 HOURS on phone: ‘It’s like giving a child COCAINE’

In an era where digital footprints begin before a child can walk and every parenting decision is dissected online, raising children has become a complex act of balance, boundaries, and emotional intelligence. From managing screen time and redefining gender roles to addressing environmental concerns and nurturing mental wellbeing, modern parenting calls for unprecedented levels of awareness, vulnerability, and adaptability. Episode 5 of The Healing Circle, hosted by Janice Sequeira brings together a dynamic set of guests, each at a different stage of parenting, for a raw and powerful conversation on raising children in the digital age.

The episode featured a deeply introspective dialogue with actress and climate warrior Dia Mirza, entrepreneur and creator Varun Duggirala, fashion and lifestyle influencer Juhi Godambe Jain, and Dr. Mona Gujral, chief psychologist and a leading parenting coach. In a heartfelt and nuanced exchange, the guests reflected on the quiet complexities of raising children in a digitally dominated world. The comforts of technology often blur the lines between connection and distraction, and the need for emotional presence has never been greater.

One of the most striking moments in the conversation was when Dia Mirza opened up about the emotional fallout of too much screen time. Drawing a powerful parallel, Dia Mirza linked screen addiction to substance dependency​. She stated, “Screen content, especially that created for children, is like a dopamine addiction. It’s like giving a child cocaine,”. Reflecting on her daughter’s early exposure to social media, which led to excessive screen time, she adds, “She was spending eight hours a day on her phone. We’re now trying to reverse that, but it’s been an incredibly difficult journey,”.

Dia shared how the experience made her deeply cautious about screen exposure and voiced her strong resistance to commodifying children for social media. “It is terrifying to see children being made up or put in provocative situations for the sake of views or content. The rise in child exploitation and abuse, including child pornography, is deeply concerning, which is why some countries have banned children under 16 from using social media platforms.”

Screen content, especially that created for children, is like a dopamine addiction. It’s like giving a child cocaine

- Dia Mirza

Juhi Godambe Jain shares a lighter take on parenting, revealing her child is too young to understand, but he is very fascinated by the voice assistant Alexa.​ “He is fascinated by Alexa, and it doesn’t matter where we are; whenever he hears the name, he starts looking for the voice,” she laughs. But beneath the surface, Juhi opened up about facing mom guilt and societal judgment for breastfeeding her child for only nine months. “There’s so much pressure on moms to do things a certain way. I had to learn to shut out the noise.” She also reflected on maintaining her own identity through motherhood, choosing not to become a ‘mommy blogger’ and instead staying true to her voice as a content creator.