I love you. I respect you. Thank you for inspiring me. For guiding me, working with me, for creating art that makes the world a more beautiful place. Thank you.
Okay. Right off the bat, I don't like all of you.
a) There are those who are just too damn good. Too talented, too good looking, too young. I am jealous. I am human. Hell, I might even talk shit about you.
b) Then, there are those who are just too damn bad. Too greedy, too fake, too undeserving, too selfish, too crass. I am angry. I am human. Hell, I definitely talk shit about you.
The rest, man, I love you.
Let me tell you why.
Human beings aren't supposed to work hard. We are wired to choose the easiest way, do what's convenient and save energy - just like animals.
Besides food, water, shelter, you don't see birds being obsessed with designing the best "state of the art" nest or tigers trying to invent their own Onitsukas to catch the damn deer faster or sharks practicing meditation and breathing techniques to start hunting prey on land.
Uh, no. And Thank God.
We take up jobs to give us purpose, earn that livelihood. There are tasks, structures, deadlines, protocols to be followed. Performance is measured. There are benchmarks. You do a decent enough job and at the end of the month you get money
Guitarists rack their brains practicing the same scales, the same licks for hours till their heads hurt to get it absolutely perfect to play for that gig over the weekend.
Pianists play these complex pieces - left plays the bass notes, the right plays the melody and everything is in time.
Drummers use their hands, legs to create the the foundation, lay down the railroads for others to drive their music on. Every limb moving independently while the mind makes infinite new connections every second.
A singer wakes up everyday to practice their scales every morning, trying to achieve perfection balancing tone, pitch, breath control and rhythm using their body as an instrument plucking the strings with their minds making intimate connections with the audience through spoken word and intricate melodies.
An actor puts himself in someone else's shoes - cries, laughs, dances, shouts, feels pain and enjoy and everything in between for an audition tape that might not even get played.
Beyond the acting and singing practice, I would do everything from yoga, boxing, dance, weight training, strength and conditioning just to make sure I can physically act, sing and dance live on stage and deliver my absolute best for the paying audiences.
A painter is using images and colours from his brains to create a visual story on a blank canvas.
A writer tries to use soul-less words to evoke imagery strong enough to force you to paint your own version of the writer's world.
And then a director takes those same pages and constructs a world where you can get lost in for 2 hours.
I am in awe of you all.
How you create beauty from the intangible, which then feels more tangible than the tangible things in life.
I have been ruined by art and I have been saved by it.
I have dreamt the lives of people on screen, imagined living their grandiose. I have been ravaged by reality and found comfort in characters that spoke to me, at times more clearly than my friends could.
There are songs that have shaped me. And then there are songs that have killed me. They've understood my pain, they've comforted me and validated my tears.
I see my friends releasing songs, getting awards, getting the roles, the fame and recognition they deserve and it inspires me.
I see geniuses humbled by life, circumstances, ruined by thieves and yet carrying on with a smile on their face and it inspires me.
I see men and women with dreams, the sacrifices they've made, the people they've left behind, the effort they've put to get up, get ready, weather the morning local train onslaught, wrestle with heat, hunger and thirst, stand in long queues only to get rejected before even getting an opportunity to showcase all that they want to offer and it inspires me.
I am not undermining the effort of a logical thinker.
I worked with Google India, Audi Gururgam, a teacher with G.D. Goenka and I worked very hard at those jobs, won a lot of awards, love and respect.
I learnt and applied, used them brain cells to find creative solutions to everyday problems, spent long hours, helped my friends, went above and beyond, sacrificed "me time", time with family and friends to excel at my job - just like so many of my friends do.
But I was comfortable knowing I was getting a pay check at the end of every month.
I had a safety net.
You know it's easier to build muscle or lose fat when you go to the gym vs. buying a home gym or doing these DIY fat burning workouts at home.
I love Cult fit predominantly because all you need to do is show up. Get out of the house at 5:30 am, land at 5:50 am with a bunch of other people and just follow instructions - load, rack, lift. Don't think.
But artists have to fight distractions, be mentally strong, find their own rhythm, design workouts, motivate themselves, find reasons to push through the pain ALONE.
Being an actor, I don't even know if watching good content is like studying or passing the time? (Let me know in the comments below)
Artists, actors, musicians a lot of times don't even know what they're getting at the end of every month.
Will they thrive or struggle to survive?
As an actor, I go to the gym, study actors, directors, shots, break down scenes, understand conflict, underlying emotions and the way an actor chooses to justify that moment.
As actors you give auditions, do your best each time and then for years you will not get your due - but you keep at it.
You find ways to keep yourself motivated, thinking positive thoughts, hoping there's light at the end of the tunnel.
As a singer songwriter, you play your guitar, piano and you pour your heart and soul out on paper, you sing the most earnest honest song - feeling every single word, travel to meet producers, spend your money on making a demo.
You dream your dreams, hope and pray your baby gets the love it deserves so you take your songs to labels but they don't like the way you look, the way you sound or the story you're trying to sell.
But you still keep at it. You find ways to keep yourself motivated, thinking positive thoughts, hoping there's light at the end of the tunnel.