Harry Potter and the boy he inspired

Every Potterhead has his or her own set of Harry Potter moments. I have three that stand out. Let me start with the most recent and then I will explain why this means so much to me.

Moment # 3 - Pleased and humbled to share that I am one of the judges of the HP and the Cursed Child contest where Potterheads across the country are competing to win a JK Rowling signed copy of the Eighth Harry Potter story.

Moment # 1 was when as a teenager I picked my first HP from one of those here today - gone tomorrow stalls on FC Road back in '99. A hundred or so pages into the book - I found myself in this remarkable world and truly under a spell. Let’s call it a Flagrate – a spell that brought with it the singular truth that my life's calling is to keep attempting to create my own little worlds. Try a bit of magic when I am ready. Be a writer.

Moment # 2 was meeting this quirky, beautiful girl in college who was as big a Harry Potter fan as anyone I knew. And we made a deal. Now that we were through with all the books that had been written till then - we would see the movies together at the same cinema hall in Pune. That's exactly what we did over the years and this girl, somewhere in our journey cast a spell of her own and we ended up as man and wife.

Now you know why I am so excited about moment #3. This represent a chance for me to give back to the HP universe, one that inspired me to take up my life's work and also helped in finding the love of my life.

How amazing it is to be able to share this insanity with others who in different degrees have also seen their lives and their beliefs being shaped by the tale of the boy who survived and who now has grown up?

Sigh. A toast of Firewhisky to everyone and to life.

Ah, before I forget. Flagrate is the one that brings with it the ability to write on objects.