DAY 1583
Jalsa , Mumbai Aug 18/19, 2012 Sat/ Sun 2 : 59 AM
EID MUBARAK !! EID MUBARAK !! EID MUBARAK !! HAPPINESS AND PEACE ALWAYS !!
Jaishree Sharad … happy birthday and wishes for your
continued success in your unique field. May this year and the many years
to come bring prosperity and greater glory … love from all of us !!
Beauty elegance and creative finesse have an unbounded capacity to
elate ones senses to the ultimate peaks. Surrounded by an excellent
mixture of some of the brightest brains and those of immense social
standing, housed in an environment of the most formidable taste, and you
can feel the lift of your sagging jowls, wishing away some serious
years off your age menu !
The book launch of ‘India Fantastique’, a unique document of some of
the most exciting and astonishingly beautiful creative works down the
years, of Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, two of the most distinguished
designers of our time, has been an evening one is not likely to forget
in a long time. The color, the finesse of their designs, the intricacy
of their workmanship, the quality of the material and its appropriate
positioning, all have been put together over the years in matchless
dimensions inside this exquisite book. And the presentation of it
choreographed in much the same fashion as their works, has been today
for me, a most memorable evening. Ensconced within the portals of the
magnificence of ‘Antilla’, Mukesh Ambani’s palatial residence, decorated
and managed with utmost efficiency to the smallest detail, has not just
added to the evening, but set fresh pinacles of lavish hosting !
But above all the magnificence, the one factor that has made it most
attractive to me tonight has been the Indianess in every breath that one
took. From the ‘mogras’ to the dresses of the models, right down to the
ladies and gents in the guest list, it has been a sea of Indian
celebration. And for this I am most proud.
As a free country there is much that has been achieved, there is much
that still needs to be achieved. There has been cynicism and negative
posturing by many that look upon this country as one that never seems to
recover or advance to the levels that other nations expect. For me,
those that send out measures of expectation, are the ones that lack that
ingredient, largely in themselves. It is not we that need help, they
do ! Put yourself in our situations, live with us and our state, realize
reality, ponder and then speak up, for I am certain that there shall be
huge efforts that shall need to be made to even come out with a
whimper !
Diversity has been our historical inheritance. No amount of effort
from within or without shall ever succeed in trying to alter it. We live
and prosper because of it. It is our hidden asset, our example for the
rest of the world. I have worked in every corner of this great country,
from North to South, from East to West and travelled among common
trails, met spoken and observed my countrymen. No where have I ever
encountered disrespect, disdain or hostility towards either individual
or collective polity. Our strengths lie in this belief, and they are not
as frivolous as many others may seem it to be.
Our combined beliefs and practices have ousted many an oppressor and
we shall be more than prepared to oust them even now. Do not attempt to
touch the fabric of our appearance because you find it fragile. The
strength of its making is far superior than any other. Our materials are
strong and lasting, and even if perchance you were to tear a slice from
it, it shall be a momentary exercise in futility, for our fabric does
have the ability to wrap itself around him that separates it from its
mother body and throttle it into submission !!
‘India Fantastique’ may be the reflection of a materialistic form,
but even there the material of the fabric is strong, lasting and most
Indian ! Jai Hind !
Good night … or whatever time in the morning it is … love
Amitabh Bachchan
