Padma Lakshmi proudly proclaims she has entered her 'sexual peak' at 53 while posing in her new lingerie line
Padma Lakshmi says she has entered her 'sexual peak' at age 53 following her traditional upbringing in a 'very conservative South Indian family.'
After freeing herself from expectations, the former Top Chef host said she feels 'great' about embracing her age and sexuality.
'Look, I’m at my sexual peak,' she told Us Weekly on Wednesday while promoting her Bare Necessities collaboration. 'Let’s just say what it is. I am. And I feel great about that. I don’t care what anybody thinks.'
She continued: 'I don’t care what my mother thinks, unless she’s very supportive.'
The mother-of-one explained that she previously 'really lived in fear' of others' judgement and was 'terrified' that her 'grandfather was going to see those Helmut Newton pictures.'
Padma Lakshmi revealed she feels that she has entered her 'sexual peak' at age 53 following her traditional upbringing in a 'very conservative South Indian family'
'But I am free of all that. I just didn’t meet their expectations at all,' she explained.
While she says she weighs about 35 pounds more than she did at age 23, Lakshmi said she feels 'so much sexier.'
'I love it. I wouldn’t go back to that body,' the model insisted. 'I love saying I’m 53... and people are like, "Oh, you don’t look like you’re 53." And I’m like, "No. This is also what 53 looks like."'
The star also noted that she recently went from a 34C bra size to 36DD, which she said she 'wasn't prepared for.'
'I have beautiful dresses that are hanging in my closet that will not button, that I just have to wait for my daughter to fit into now and it breaks my heart,' the cookbook author admitted.
She continued: 'But when I was looking for bras that fit the new me, it was really hard to find something that did what I needed it to, but also didn’t look matronly. I would see these bras, I’m like, "I don’t want to wear that.’ That’s not who I am."'
'Our culture really has a way of telling women that there’s this narrow window and this narrow size or narrow appearance that you have to look to feel attractive, and that is complete bulls**t,' she reflected.
With age, Lakshmi says she takes 'pleasure' in becoming more 'feisty' and 'untied with [her] tongue.'
After freeing herself from the expectations of her loved ones, the former Top Chef host said she feels 'great' about embracing her age and sexuality
'Look, I’m at my sexual peak,' she told Us Weekly on Wednesday while promoting her Bare Necessities collaboration. 'Let’s just say what it is. I am. And I feel great about that. I don’t care what anybody thinks'
She continued: 'I don’t care what my mother thinks, unless she’s very supportive'
While speaking about her decision to just say 'everything' in her 2016 memoir, Love, Loss and What We Ate, the TV personality explained telling all 'took the power away.'
'Nobody could say anything about me that I hadn’t said about myself,' she explained.
Lakshmi raved that not caring what others think of her has been 'so liberating.'
While speaking about her lingerie line, the bombshell hopes that those who wear it 'to feel happy and confident and comfortable.'
The mother-of-one explained that she previously 'really lived in fear' of others' judgement and was 'terrified' that her 'grandfather was going to see those Helmut Newton pictures'
'But I am free of all that. I just didn’t meet their expectations at all,' she explained
While she says she weighs about 35 pounds more than she did at age 23, Lakshmi said she feels 'so much sexier'
'No matter how beautiful you look, if you’re not comfortable, you won’t look beautiful,' she reminded fans. 'I want people to reach for these things, wear it, feel good, and then go on and do the things that are really important in life, like falling in love, doing the projects they want to, being with their kids, dancing till midnight.'
Lakshmi shares her daughter, Krishna, 10, with businessman Adam Dell, who she has dated on and off from 2009 until 2021.
Prior to their relationship, she was married to Salman Rushdie from 2004 to 2007.
Over the years, she has also been romantically linked to Richard Gere, Vikram Chatwal, Theodore Forstmann, Nur Khan and Terrance Hayes.
In April, when asked if she was dating or single, the reality star said that was a 'who knows' area in her life.
Lakshmi seen in a red bikini on a trip to Miami in 2019
'I love it. I wouldn’t go back to that body,' the model (pictured in 1997) insisted
'Everything’s so open and free or nonexistent or new,' she told Harper's Bazaar, with a laugh. 'What I’m saying is, I have nothing concrete to report!'
She proceeded to reveal that she tried the dating app, Raya, after saying her teenager 'out of pity' downloaded the app for her.
She opted to list that she was 'interested in men and women' but, ultimately, found the app 'very white' and men on it draining.
'They’re always jumping out of a plane, skiing, lying on a yacht, or horseback riding, and then they’re brooding, and by the time I’m done scrolling, I’m tired of just looking at you,' she admitted.
The star also noted that she recently went from a 34C bra size to 36DD, which she said she 'wasn't prepared for' (seen in 1992)
Lakshmi was previously married to Salman Rushdie from 2004 to 2007 (seen above in 2001)
Lakshmi said she matched with an Italian man living in Tokyo, who would right her 'long, old-fashioned letters' over email.
'I really started to like him. When his letters would come, sometimes I wouldn’t read them because I’d want to save them and savor them,' she confessed.
After finding herself on a trip to Japan, she suggested they meet in real life.
'We kissed a little in the back of the car—not even made out—just leaning on each other’s shoulders. It was very Lost in Translation,' she said of the short-lived fling.
After she returned to New York, she said it fizzled after a few more emails.
After going on three other dates through Raya, she said she deleted the app.
'I just want to find the male version of me,' she stated.
