Deepavali - A Festival Of Lights

Deepavali is a festival of lights celebrated all over India.

Crackers are burst by one and all.
Sweets are made in all Hindu households and distributed among friends and relatives.
But these are days when sweets or gift hampers are bought across counters of shops which do brisk business during this important festival time.

This is a time when all working people get a bonus of about a month's pay which is spent in buying new clothes, crackers, sweets, etc for near and dear ones.

Today I had to take a bus to a distant place. Saw a poor labourer holding a huge packet of dolls. He was busy explaining to another co-passenger about how his daughter loved to have it and since he got his bonus yesterday he was taking it home even though he could ill-afford such a costly buy but this is once in a year and his child's happiness was a higher priority.

I can imagine the happiness on the child's face on seeing that big packet of dolls. I remembered my own childhood when my parents stitched us all new clothes and made sweets and snacks so elaborately. They were such fun filled days.

Left to myself, I will spend this festival of lights with just lighting a few lamps, listen to soft music and enjoy the quietness.
May we all be blessed on this festive occasion.
Happy Deepavali.

Mahalakshmi

Shah Rukh Khan & Hema Malini - Stories of Hurt & Rejection

Read a comment made by the Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan on his meeting with Steven Speilburg at some international movie festival (Cannes or somewhere). This must be long time back, though.

Khan was very excited to see Steven who was sitting right next to him in some film festival abroad. Unfortunately there was no response from the great man who looked through our Khan like he was some transparant glass! Khan was upset and commented that Steven must have thought Khan to be some fan-type of person, trying to get some attention. He vowed to prove that he was no fan-type but great star material. Everyone knows his movies have opened at theatres abroad, to housefulls and he has made a name as a successful star.

Yet two things come to my mind:
a)If not for fan-types will these stars survive? But for these fan-types a hero's movie cannot expect to run, why deride them by referring to them this way?
b)Khan should be thankful that someone prodded him on to perform better even if it was just to show that he was no ordinary celebrity-crazy fan-type.

It always happens to all of us in our own lives.
Someone insults us or we think they insulted us.
We remember that insult but they never even have the faintest idea that they insulted or hurt us.
This slight or hurt often propels us to work harder even if it is to prove someone else that we have talent or skill.

I recall reading way back, how a very young Hema Malini, who got a chance to meet Vyjayantimala who was a big star then, din't bother nor oblige her with an autograph. Hema Malini felt very let down due to this. She was nicknamed as the 'dream girl' and later went on to prove herself to be a very successfull Bollywood actress of her times.
Vyjayantimala may not even remember this episode. For Hema Malini, it must have acted as a propeller to work harder to show she was something who mattered in the movie world.

Fan types or not, success is got due to channelling our energies due to someone's failure to recognize us or our talents.
The person who hurts is not important but the hurt getting converted into positive action from inside us is very important. The fire to prove is lit and its upto us to keep the fire burning until we succeed.

I am sure there will not be a single human, who may not have gone through some kind of rejection, failure, hurt in life. We cannot lie down feeling sad forever. We have to get up, get going, perform some action which leads us to overcome this rejection, this failure or this hurt.
Success is most often achieved this way.

May the Festival Of Lights show us all the right path.
May we all prosper with good health, wealth and joy.
Happy Diwali.

Mahalakshmi