Mahira Khan set to welcome second child at 41, makes TIFF debut with baby bump

Pakistani actor Mahira Khan has announced that she is expecting her second child. The 41-year-old actor shared the happy news on social media.

Mahira took to Instagram to share a photo of herself dressed in a stunning white maternity gown. Announcing her pregnancy, she wrote, “We make plans, and then there is ALLAH’S plan.”

Congratulations Mahira🥺
MashAllah🤗🤗#MahiraKhan pic.twitter.com/pWLOJzDje4

— rohti kyu?💀💀 (@lalalalaateun) September 13, 2026

Mahira Khan married businessman Salim Karim in an intimate ceremony in Pakistan in 2023. This will be the couple’s first child together. Mahira is also mother to son Azlaan, born in 2010, from her previous marriage to Ali Askari.

The pregnancy announcement comes shortly after another major milestone for Mahira Khan. She recently made her debut at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), where she participated in the festival’s Community Impact programme and was honoured for her contribution to cinema.

Mahira also attended the world premiere of Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, directed by TIFF Tribute Award recipient Bassam Tariq and starring Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali.

For the screening, Mahira looked stunning in a saree and was seen proudly flaunting her baby bump.

Mahira Khan at TIFF#mahirakhan #tiff #tiff2026 pic.twitter.com/Nc2MJRQSPL

— Espiritu Libre (@espiritu_libre1) September 13, 2026

However, going public with her pregnancy at TIFF wasn’t an easy decision for Mahira Khan. In an interview with Pakistani news website Dawn, the actor admitted that she was nervous about sharing the personal news.

Mahira said, “I’m generally quite a private person, so revealing anything personal makes me a little apprehensive. And then, if I’m being completely superficial, I was worried about the clothes! Being pregnant, showing, and then doing a red carpet is a very different experience.”

However, Mahira said she eventually decided to embrace the moment rather than worry about hiding her pregnancy. “But I thought… this is where I am in my life right now. There was something quite freeing about just embracing it rather than trying to hide it.”

Story continues below this ad

Talking about her fashion choices for the TIFF 2026 red carpet and panel discussion, Mahira Khan explained that dressing for the occasion felt more personal this time around. “Strangely, this time around I’ve been thinking about it as more than just, ‘What am I wearing on the red carpet?’” she confessed. “There’s obviously a very visible bump coming with me! So, what I wear and how I present myself feels a little more personal this time.”

During the interview, Mahira Khan also opened up about experiencing pregnancy many years after she first became a mother. “It’s very different this time, and definitely more challenging,” she said. “The last time I was pregnant I was 24. I’m 41 now, so I’m literally a different woman … emotionally, physically, in every possible way.”

Reflecting on her first pregnancy, Mahira said, “At 24, I think I went through pregnancy with a certain innocence. I was excited, my health was great, and perhaps I didn’t think too much about everything that could happen. I just went with it.”

Mahira Khan is pictured on the red carpet for “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother” at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Laura Proctor/The Canadian Press via AP)

She explained that her current pregnancy has brought new physical challenges. “This time has been very different. Physically, it’s been harder. There are days when my body simply doesn’t allow me to do what my mind thinks I should be able to do. And that has been an adjustment for me because I’m used to being on the go, working, travelling, doing a hundred things at once,” Mahira explained.

Story continues below this ad

The actor also spoke about the emotional changes that come with experiencing pregnancy at 41. “Emotionally, it’s different too. I think you carry so much more awareness at this age. You know more. You worry more. You understand how precious and fragile it all is. There has been immense joy, of course, but there has also been fear, exhaustion and vulnerability.”

Mahira also acknowledged that she is entering motherhood again at a very different stage of her life. “And then there’s the fact that I already had a life that was very much in motion. I have a grown-up son. I have my work, my routines, my independence. I had a version of what I thought this stage of my life was going to look like. To suddenly find myself starting this journey again after all these years has required a real emotional adjustment as well,” she said.

Mahira Khan is pictured on the red carpet for “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother” at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Laura Proctor/The Canadian Press via AP)

Speaking about how unexpected this new chapter was, Mahira Khan said, “You imagine a lot of things for yourself and for your life, and this wasn’t necessarily one of the things I had imagined at this point. But we plan and then God plans, and of course His plans are supreme.”

She added, “I think that has been a big part of this pregnancy for me … learning to surrender. To accept that I don’t have to have everything figured out, and that life can surprise you even when you think you know where it’s going.”