Actor Genelia Deshmukh frequently shares her tips on parenting and her style of raising children. Once she shared how her family tries to keep mobile phones away during meals and even outside the bedroom at night. In an old interview with Film Companion, Genelia spoke about the no-phone rule at the dining table, explaining that the idea did not come only from the parents. Their children also helped them recognise the importance of following the rules they set for them. “What we do at the dining table is no cell phones,” Genelia said during the interview. She called it “a good one” and explained that the rule had made her and her family think about their own habits. “That’s something that our kids have also made us realise,” she said. “I mean, we are so strict with them, like, you know, when you’re eating your food, it has to be about your food.”Genelia acknowledged that if parents expect children to follow a rule, they need to practise it themselves. “It was something that came from them as well, and we felt that if we want them to do something, we need to implement it ourselves.” She added that the family now tries to keep phones off the dining table. “So now the phones are not on the table. At least we try 90 per cent. It’s that, you know, very, uh, that meeting that needs to happen, but otherwise phones are not.”
22 Sept 2026 | 15:04
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“Even when we go to bed…”
Genelia
The actor also spoke about another change in the family’s routine: keeping phones outside the bedroom at night instead of inside it. “Even when we go to bed, our phones are kept outside our room versus inside,” she said, describing it as something new that the family was trying to follow. For Genelia, these rules are part of an ongoing process rather than a fixed set of instructions. “This is something that’s new, but we keep evolving with little things,” she said.
How parents can make a no-phone rule work at home
A useful takeaway from Genelia’s experience is that screen-time rules work best when they apply to adults, too. If parents ask children to put their phones away during meals but continue checking their own screens at the table, the rule can feel one-sided. A no-phone rule is easier for children to accept when they help decide how it will work. Instead of simply announcing that phones are banned at the dining table, parents can ask their children what would make family mealtimes feel less distracted. The family can then agree on a simple rule: everyone leaves their phone at a designated spot before sitting down, including the adults.Here are three practical ways to put the idea into action:Let children call out the rule: Make it a family agreement that anyone can remind another person to put their phone away, whether it is a parent or a child. This makes the rule mutual rather than something children are expected to follow alone.Give the phone a fixed parking spot: Keep a basket or charging station away from the dining table. Everyone puts their devices there before a meal, so the rule does not depend on repeatedly telling children to switch off their screens.Create a small bedtime change first: If keeping phones outside the bedroom feels difficult, begin with a set time when the family plugs them in outside the room. Parents can use a regular alarm clock if they rely on their phones to wake up.