Wish I could tell my self that 23-year-old all time heals
Firstly, a very happy 23rd birthday to HT City. As for a note to my 23year-old self, well, it was a glorious time for me in my career 23 years ago. I was peaking with every film release. In fact, Mohra was also released around the same time.
For me, at 23, there was huge exposure. Mohra and other films I made were global phenomena. In fact, we were doing concerts all over the world, and the kind of love that we got was great. I absorbed it well. I used to think maturely. I was a grounded person, but super sensitive and a bit impulsive. At that time, one would look at an emotional loss and wonder, ‘Okay, is this all the end of it?’ But then I always knew that there was a light at the end of the tunnel, and there somewhere, I kept telling myself that I would be laughing about this six months later, and kept reminding myself along the way.
What I would like to tell myself for sure is to sit back and absorb what’s happening. Think about it, literally that cliched line of ‘think before you leap’.
The huge takeaway, which I learnt later on in life and I wish I could tell myself back then, was that time heals everything and not to be impulsive... Think about the steps that you are going to take, what you are going to do, and think about the pros and cons.
Honestly, I think there’s no better lesson than life itself. Every day is a new learning, every experience is a new chapter, and you learn from that. But to be grounded and to be calm in the worst situations is an art that you have to develop and learn. I think I have kind of reached there. I have also learnt that it is very important for people to take time off for themselves.
That’s what I do. I follow my passion, and then my time with my family is very precious. It’s always been like that; I was family-oriented even at 23, and I remain the same till date.