Do what you love doing. No matter
what people think of you. And you will forever be at peace. And, importantly, you
will always feel young.
Review your Life. Almost all your decisions
are based on what other people think of you. The way you dress, the way you
speak, the way you think are limited because of a perceived world-view you have
of yourself. In fact, many people are trapped in lives and careers that are
based on what other people have chosen for them __ parents or spouses __ or
they have been driven by circumstances and fears to do what they are doing.
Dev Anand, Bollywood’s Evergreen,
Everyoung, Eversmiling and Everalive star, led his Life his way__no matter what
people thought of him__and led the way for us for the 65 years that he was in
cinema. Almost everyone loved him. In fact, I am yet to come across someone who
says, “I don’t like Dev saab”. He
lived a full Life, although his last recognized hit at the box office, ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ came in 1971, which
was 40 years before he passed away in December 2011! But over these 40 years,
he continued to do what he loved doing __ make films, launch new talent,
helping whoever came his way. He financed his 18 films between 1971 and 2011
from revenue from his various real estate investments and from his
post-production, recording and sound remix facility in Pali Hill, Mumbai, which
industry estimates say, earned him Rs.20 crore annually. So, his Navketan
Films, continued to survive despite all his 18 films failing at the box office.
Despite his bad run in the trade, Dev Anand’s goodwill, carried him along in
his last few decades. The venerable Warner Brothers associated even with his
last film__and another failure__’Chargesheet’ that released in October 2011,
because, as an official told The Economic
Times, “We did it for Dev Anand”. Trade Analyst Komal Nahta recounts the
tale of a person who bought the distribution rights of a Dev Anand film for the
Rajasthan region some years ago. Nahta asked him: “Are you crazy?” His reply, Nahta
told The Economic Times, was, “I got
to pose with Dev Anand for a photo.” It wasn’t just about his star appeal
alone, which he of course retained despite aging over the years. He didn’t mind
that the trade wrote him off because of his films’ poor showing. He continued
to be alive to humanity. What was special about Dev Anand was his energy.
Nobody, it is said, who went to him came back depressed. He continued to launch
talent__having launched stars like Naseeruddin Shah, Jackie Shroff and Tabu in
films__and was willing to help anyone in distress. “Log mujhe pyaar karte hain”, he would say smiling his trademark
smile, meaning, “People love me.” To me, the key learnings from Dev Anand’s
Life: 1. He loved what he was doing. 2. He was therefore ever peaceful, ever
smiling. 3. He took his work seriously: continuing to improve every day, with
each film, at least in his mind, within himself, IRRESPECTIVE
OF WHAT PEOPLE SAID OR THOUGHT OF HIM. 4. He was forever
willing to help. Only when we live Life this way, can we live easy, and as the
lyrics of Dev Anand’s 1962 classic ‘Hum Dono’ (We Both), go, we too can say, “…Main Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhatha Chala
Gaya…Main Har Fikr Ko Dhuen Main Udaatha Chala Gaya…”. This means, I went
along playing ball with Life, blowing away all my worries. This, Dev Anand
often said, was also his Life’s Mantra.
Make it yours. And you too will be
Everalive, Evergreen and Everyoung!
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